Forbidden Queen

Anna

I sigh with relief as we leave the tent. I don’t think they believe me but at least they haven’t killed me straightaway. How could I have been so unlucky as to be captured by the Royal Pack. The only thing that could have been worse is if my father’s wolves had managed to take me back home.

I wonder what they will do if they find out who I am. Kill me straight away? Try to use me as a bargaining tool, a hostage against my father? That would be pointless. My father would rather see me dead than concede anything to the Royal Pack. In fact, I am pretty sure he would probably kill me himself if he knew that I had been caught by the Royals.

I need to find a way to escape before we get to the royal kingdom, once someone from Riverside starts to question me, they will know that I am lying. I have been there once, but I don’t know it well enough to convince someone that I am from there. It was the best place I could come up with. I don’t know anywhere well outside of the Black Moon Pack.

I look at Daniel, my guard, my mate. I wonder what he is thinking. He hasn’t spoken to me yet or acknowledged what we are to each other. He hasn’t told anyone, and I wonder if he will. Is he ashamed to have me as his mate?

Just as I start to give up hope that he will ever talk to me he says.

“I will take you to my tent so that you can rest. We will be up early tomorrow; we still have a long way to travel before we reach the royal kingdom. Have you eaten?”

“Not since yesterday” I tell him. I had brought food with me, but I knew that it had to last until I reached my uncle, so I had eaten sparingly. I couldn’t afford to stop and hunt for food in my wolf form. I had to keep going to put distance between me and my father’s pack.

“I will take you to our kitchen, there should still be food available.”

“Thank you.” I am grateful. He might not be prepared to acknowledge me as his mate but at least he is trying to care for me.

He takes me to a large tent which appears to be the camp’s temporary kitchen. Inside it is empty but for cold food and snacks which are laid out on a table.

“When warriors come off sentry duty and patrols, they are often hungry, so the cook makes sure that there is food available throughout the night” he explains. Grab a plate and help yourself.

I pick up a plate and start to load it with food. I suddenly feel starving. Now that I have begun to relax, I realise that my escape from my old pack has left me tired and hungry. When I have finished filling my plate Daniel escorts me to a table where I can sit and eat my food.

We sit in silence. Once I have finished my meal I yawn. My energy levels have crashed and all I want to do is sleep.

“I will show you to our tent.” He leads me out of the kitchen, and we walk to a small tent in the centre of the camp. There will be no escaping from here the tent is surrounded by too many wolves.

Daniel seems to guess what I am thinking and says “the camp is heavily guarded, we have sentries around the perimeter, and squads patrolling all night. It would be dangerous for you to run. Nothing will happen to you here if you are innocent” he says. I can see that he is trying to warn but at the same time reassure me.

The inside of the tent feels cosy, and much more comfortable than sleeping on the forest floor as I have been doing for the last couple of nights. I didn’t dare try and take camping equipment with me, carrying the extra weight would have slowed me down.

There are two camp beds each with a sleeping bag and a pillow on top. Daniel gestures that I should take the bed on the left. I am so tired. I haven’t had a full night’s sleep since I left my pack. The camp bed and sleeping bag feel like the height of luxury, and as soon as my head hits the pillow, I fall asleep.

Daniel

I have been longing to find my mate. Watching my brother and my friends find theirs and seeing how happy they are, has made me envious. I know that a lot of wolves don’t find their mate in their own pack, and some have to wait years to meet them, but I had hoped that I wouldn’t be so unlucky.

And then there she was. At the lowest point of my life, when I was mortally wounded, expecting death, she appeared before me and saved my life. As grateful as I am to have her. As desperate as I am to claim her, I am suspicious. She is a lone wolf; one we suspect could be working for Lucius. Would the moon goddess be so cruel as to pair me with my enemy?

The best thing I can think of to do is to confide in Katy. Ask her advice as my friend.

…………

The next morning, I wake Anna up.

“I will get one of the female warriors to escort you to the showers so that you can get washed and dressed. I will then take you to breakfast.”

She nods. She still looks tired, but more refreshed than yesterday. I resist the urge to take her in my arms. I hadn’t slept well last night. Lying so close to my mate unable to touch her or claim her had been torture. The sooner we found out who she was the better.

Karen one of the Royal Pack warriors arrives to take Anna away to get washed and dressed. I estimate that I have 30 minutes to find and speak to Katy before she returns. Hopefully, I will be able to talk to her without Alex being there. I am not prepared for everyone to know yet who she is to me.

When I arrive at Katy’s tent, I realise that I am in luck. For once Alex is not there.

“Can I talk to you” I ask her. “Anna is with Karen she is helping her get washed and dressed, and I needed to speak to you in private.”

“Is it about the fact that she is your mate? Katy asks me.

“Yes, how did you know” I ask surprised that she has worked out who we are to each other.

“Just the way you were touching and looking at her last night. You have to remember that Alex and I couldn’t claim each other straight away. We had to keep our bond secret. I know what that looks like.”

“What should I do?” I ask her.

“Have you spoken to her about it yet?”

“No, I don’t know how to. It is all so complex, until we know who she is and if she is a threat, I don’t trust myself.”

“Well, I think you should” she tells me. “No good will come of keeping it a secret. It isn’t like the situation Alex, and I faced. No one will kill her or you, just because you are mates, but if you keep this secret then people will start to become suspicious. You need to talk to her about it, and when you do, I will tell Alex and Joseph.”

I nod. I am unsure what they will say but I know that they need to be informed. If Katy tells them that will help. It is good to know that she is on my side. I realise that this is the best result I could have hoped for.

“I will speak to her tonight once we have stopped travelling. That will be the only opportunity that we will have to spend time alone.”

“Good” Katy says. “I think she is lying about who she is, she obviously doesn’t trust us, but I don’t think that she is a threat or that she means us any harm. I think she will make you a good mate.”

“I hope so.”

…………………..

When I get back to our tent, I find Anna is there waiting for me. She is washed and dressed, in clothes that Karen has found for her.

“Thank you” I tell Karen as she leaves.

Turning to Anna I say, “I will take you for breakfast now.” I grab her arm and walk her to the kitchen tent. “We won’t have long to eat breakfast before we will have to help pack up the camp.”

She nods but doesn’t say anything. She is very quiet, and I wonder how I am going to talk to her about us being mates.

“We will be travelling with the healers today in their ambulance” I tell her. The healers’ vehicle is always close to the centre of the convoy, to keep the healers safe in the event of an attack.

“Do you fear attack? She asks.

“Yes. We are expecting that at some point the Black Moon pack will find out where we are and try to ambush us. They want to abduct, perhaps even to kill Katy.

I can see fear in her eyes, and I want to reassure her. “Don’t worry we are prepared for them.”