Warrior's Hope (Dark Protectors #16)(78)

For now, anyway.

Drake entered the study in a perfectly pressed black uniform with his silver medals recently polished. His hair was brushed back from his face, and he stood tall and ready with an ornate wooden box in one hand. He’d be handsome if she didn’t want to kill him.

He stopped cold. “You look beautiful.”

“Thank you,” she answered automatically, searching his face for any hint of the boy she’d once considered a friend. “You are really going through with this?”

“We both are.” He strode toward her and flipped open the box to reveal a stunning sapphire-and-diamond tiara. “The stones match your eyes.” Without asking, he slid it onto her head. “There you go. My queen.”

She swallowed, ignoring the pain along her scalp. “I don’t want to do this.”

“I don’t care.” He exhaled, his gaze somber. “The nation and my leadership are all that matter. You need to learn that now.” He glanced at his watch. “Once we step outside that door, I expect you to comport yourself as a queen, or there will be consequences.”

“Meaning what?”

He straightened his already straight shirt, and when he spoke, his voice remained calm. “I really do want to find peace with your people. However, I’m prepared to finish this war as quickly as it began.” He took her hand and led her across the room to the computer area, where he quickly brought up three screens. Her home in northern Idaho came into view.

“What is this?” she asked with a sinking feeling in her stomach.

“We’ve tapped into the satellites. We have missiles pointed at key targets, and I have a force amassed in the vicinity of northern Idaho. In addition, everybody here is prepared to go to war today,” he said. “The Realm isn’t expecting it.”

She took a step back. He was right. The Realm was not expecting an attack. But they had defenses in place, good ones, so she took a deep breath.

His smile wasn’t kind. “We know about the defense shield. The last time Paelotin was at Realm headquarters, we made good use of him.”

She put a hand to her stomach. “He breached the defense shield?”

“He most certainly did. There are bombs all around the shield as well as inside the control unit, thanks to Paelotin. He turned out to be much handier than we thought. All I have to do is push a button, and that defense goes down.” He lifted a hand. “Oh, I don’t doubt the Realm will fight and fight hard, but we’ll have the element of surprise. And I promise you, I’ll take out everybody you love.”

She gagged, needing to throw up.

“Don’t,” he said sharply. “Don’t even think about it. That dress cost me a fortune.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her all the way back to the front door. “I hope you understand me.”

“I understand you perfectly,” she said, wishing she had a Kurjan blade. She’d take off his damn head right there. “My people are better fighters than you think.”

“I’ve studied them my whole life,” he said. “If you need more incentive, here it is. If you don’t choose me in front of the cameras, then Paxton and Hunter will die in great pain.” He sighed and looked down at her again. “Paxton is a mutt. A Kurjan-demon mutt with no real past and no future. He’s a commoner. Too common. You can’t want that life for yourself or your children. He’s a nothing.”

“That’s not true,” she said, heat boiling through her veins.

Drake let out a piercing whistle. “It is true, and you know it. Do you really think that the only female ever born with vampire blood in her, the heiress to both the Kayrs and the Kyllwood legacies, and the keeper of the dreamworlds is supposed to mate a common soldier?” He scoffed and grasped her arm. “Nobody in this world has ever chosen Paxton Phoenix. Not his birth father, not even his birth mother. Not my people or your people. Fate has decreed that you shall be a queen. Start acting like it.”

The door slowly opened. “Why all the pomp and circumstance?” The heavy gown was weighing down her shoulders.

“A bit of pride, perhaps.” Drake shrugged. “A long time ago, in one of your dreamworlds, I told Paxton Phoenix that one day you would choose me. I would like to see his face as you do so.”

She tried to shake him off, but he tightened his hold, adding more bruises on her arm to the ones he’d left the night before as he pushed her outside. “You have got to be kidding me,” she gasped.

“The Kurjans are entering a new phase of our history, and this is just the beginning.” Drake smiled and strode out into the now-sunny day. The beams shone down on the snow, making each inch sparkle like the diamonds on Hope’s dress. A red carpet led from the doorway to the center of the camp. Kurjan soldiers, all in their best uniforms, lined the way to the right, while Cyst soldiers, their white scalps shining in the sun, lined the left. The buildings were straight ahead.

There was no escape.

Several cameras, complete with camera operators, stood on the buildings, zeroed in on her. She wavered. “What in the world?” she whispered.

“New era for the Kurjans,” Drake said. “We’re getting married in front of the immortal world. The Realm will have no choice but to accept us.”

“Why are you kidnapping enhanced females?” she asked suddenly, hoping to catch him off guard.