The Forbidden Wolf King: Kings of Avalier, Book 4(23)

And that’s when everything went black and I lost my battle with staying conscious.

SIX

I came to with the sound of arguing voices.

“Eliza says she’s pack with her!” an older male shouted.

“That’s against the rules. Only one wolf per pack may enter the Queen Trials,” another man said.

It sounded like the elder advisors were arguing. My body was still sore and I wanted to hear what they were saying so I continued to lie there quietly with my eyes pinched shut.

“I’m the king,” Axil growled. “And I say it’s not. Both women entered the trials from different packs. We told them to survive the task and they did what they had to in order to do that.”

“But—” one went to argue then stopped, probably getting a glare from Axil.

“They would have an extreme advantage in the next task, my lord,” the more reasonable voice added.

“Then so be it. You want me to marry the strongest member of our kind. Well, I think a woman who isn’t even an alpha, and was able to force a pack bond, is pretty damn strong,” Axil said and my belly warmed.

He was talking about me.

There was the sound of shuffling feet then as they retreated from the room and my eyelids sprang open. I was in an elvin crystal healing chamber bed with stark white sheets draped over my body. I realized then that not everyone had left, and I peered up to find Axil looking down at me.

“How’s—” I started but he waved me off.

“She’s fine. You saved her life.” His words were clipped and short.

Why did he sound upset? I propped myself up onto my elbows. “And you’re mad about that?” I growled. “You haven’t changed a bit. Still the same selfish little boy who only cares about his royal reputation!”

I didn’t care that he was king now, Axil Moon needed to be taken down a notch. He didn’t have a right to be angry at me for saving someone’s life.

At my words, he recoiled as if I’d slapped him. “Is that what you think?”

All the pain I swore I’d gotten over as a young teen came flooding to the surface. “Yes, Axil. Did you black out at our break-up? Your brother informed you that I was a piece of Mud Flat trash and you agreed and walked away. Never even came back the next year. Never sent a letter. Nothing.”

His cheeks burned with shame, redness washing over his neck. “I didn’t agree.” His voice was small and he looked horrified, eyes wide as he began to fidget with his hands.

I laughed, a biting sound. “The silence and sight of your back as you walked away was agreement enough.”

He frowned. “You hate me. I’ve spent all of these years loving you and you hate me?” He sounded surprised.

His words were like an arrow to my heart. I sat up fully now, pleased to feel no pain in my ribs, just the aching in my soul at his words. I was clothed, even if it was in a white healing gown, and so I slipped off the bed and hobbled towards him, testing the weight on my ankle. It was tender but nothing like before. It made me wonder how long I’d been out, but I no longer cared in this moment.

“Loving me?” Instead of feeling joy, I had never been more pissed off in my life. “You think that walking away after those two months at camp—”

“I—”

“DO NOT INTERUPT ME!” I shouted like a crazed maniac, pulling dominant power into my voice and his eyes flew wide. “I’ve waited five years to tell you this, Axil Moon, you will let me speak my truth!”

Axil looked scared of me and deep down that made me feel good. I wanted him to hurt. I shuffled closer to him so that I could look him straight in the eyes as I told him what he did to me. He appeared like he was in pain before I even opened my mouth.

With a shaky breath, I held his gaze. “I’m dead inside because of you, Axil.”

Agony crossed his face and he stumbled backwards into the wall until his back hit it. I pushed forward, stepping closer so that I could reach out and touch his heart with my hand. I laid my palm over the spot on his chest that contained his heart, like I had so many times that summer. Feeling the frantic chaotic beating made me feel good.

“I loved you with every ounce of my soul, the entire weight of it was yours,” I told him. “You made promises, knowing how broken I was from losing my parents so young. You told me that you would be my family,” I reminded him.

Shame burned his cheeks but he stayed silent, letting me speak my truth.

“And then you left me. Threw me away like trash!” I screamed in his face, retracting my hand. “And now every man that has come after you has gotten a shadow of me because there’s nothing left!” I beat on my chest hard, as my wolf rose to the surface and Axil did something I didn’t expect.

He covered his face with his hands and burst into sobs.

The raw heartfelt emotion shook me to my core and I didn’t know what to do with it. Axil Moon, the king wolven, didn’t cry. He wasn’t weak. He didn’t break down in sobs over a woman.

Or did he? And was it a weakness?

I stared at him in shock as he broke down and part of me wanted to pull him into my arms and squeeze him so tight until he stopped, but the bigger part wanted him to hurt. So I turned, and hopped out of the room, slamming the door and leaving my past behind me.

Hurt me once. Lesson learned. Hurt me twice … never gonna happen, because I’m not that stupid.