The Isle (Chronicles of the Irish Princess Book 1)

The Isle was much larger than I had expected. There was a farming community just outside of town, Aunt Em had mentioned about possible moving out there when she and Don were ready to leave the castle. Past the farms there was a wooded area. Uncle Don said it was a good hunting place and that it had a few good hiking trails that went around a small lake deep inside the forest. The forest went on for a few miles and then it opened up into a space where there was another castle. It stood at least five stories tall in the middle and added another two to each tower. The stone exterior was worn to the elements but still stood gloriously in the sun. As the car pulled around the front it stopped in front of a grand staircase than led up to the main level. The castle was similar to that of the one featured in the Princess Diaries movies.

"This is was formally used as my home when we first moved the wolves to the isle. It has an extensive training ground and work out facility and three separate wings with multiple levels. In total there are approximately twelve wings one is for staff and one is my personal quarters. That leaves the remaining ten wings we would need to house our packs."

"King Oran, this is beautiful. Do you think they would be able to cooperate with each other?"

"They used to all do very well during the holidays and during our mating retreat."

"I'm sorry, mating retreat?"

"Yes, back when I was younger it was a tradition that had started to help our population increase."

"Oh, that makes a lot of sense actually."

"The last one we held before moving was actually where Kai's parents met."

Kai looked to his grandfather, "They never told me that."

Oran shook his head. "There is a lot they never told you, son. Mostly because they didn't want to burden you."

Kai became very quiet then hiding deep within his thoughts.

"It looks so familiar," I said.

"That’s because I was paid a small sum after we first closed it to be used in a couple of movies you might have been obsessed with as a child. Gary and I became good friends back in college and when he asked to film here I couldn't say no."

"This is the same castle?"

"Yes, and it was my honor to have such a great franchise come to the Isle."

"You went to college in the US? How do humans gain access to the Isle?"

"It isn't that hard. There are many that know of its existence, but few know about the people who live here. Many think of us as just an island under the domain of Ireland."

"That's amazing," I responded.

"We kept most of the island under wraps while they were filming and locals were instructed to appear as human as possible."

Oran led us inside keeping the tour at a moderate pace. Walking in we were greeted with immaculate paintings and works of art from all over the world. There were statues that lined the halls and a large marble fountain that sat in the middle of the room. The walls were made out of a special rock that looked like glass, maybe quartz, the color was soft and reflected earth tones, unlike harsh white marble. While we were walking in I got distracted by the wonderfulness of the inside and Kai grabbed my hand to keep me going. The way he grabbed it said there was something wrong. After a bit of pushing at the wall he had made in his mind, he finally let me in.

Kai, are you okay?

No. I always wondered how my father died and my mother lived without him.

Something you should maybe talk to your mom about huh?

Yeah, but now I'm a little pissed off. Like how much did they actually keep from me.

Well let's not worry about it now, we can't change what happened. We need to focus on the Packs. Getting them here is easy, keeping them from killing each other won't be. That many males from how many countries and so few females. Do you think that it will end well.

Not really, but uniting the packs for war is going to keep things a bit more civil.

We continued our tour through the main level, dining hall, kitchen, library, conference room and the grounds before heading back. I sat between Oran and Kai during the ride and it was very awkward. I could feel Kai's frustration about what Oran had said and I knew the questions were beginning to add up. I took his hand and rubbed my thumb against his wrist trying my best to calm him. Sarah, Luca and Oran were discussing the way things there should work and how training would go.

Are you going to go to your mom when we get back? I asked him.

No, I don't even know where I would begin. I have so many questions and I'm just so angry.

So what do you want to do?

Go back to our room alone.

Oh?

Yep.

He started sending me images of what he wanted to do to me. I tried to remain calm and collected for the rest of the ride. When we got back to the main castle Malakai immediately began pulling me to our room. It honestly didn't feel weird anymore, it felt natural, like it was always meant to happen. My transformation continued from the normal human that knew nothing, to a supernatural Princess that would one day be Queen to several different werewolf packs. From time to time, it didn't seem real but, I slowly began to realize how important my family was.

"Kai, what's going to happen at the ceremony?"

"What do you mean, we are getting married."

"You don't feel like something is going to happen?"

He looked down at me, "Do you? Is it because of us or because of Aideen?"

"I'm not sure if it's anything other than nerves, but I feel something. I can't place it yet."

"Leah, just relax. I'm sure this is just general wedding nerves and it's nothing to worry about." He began to play with my hair knowing that it would eventually put me to sleep. "All that matters is that we love each other and no matter what we are going to make it through this. Through hell and high water baby. I promise you."

I smiled, "Alright, I guess you are right, we are still months away."

"Luna, it's almost one in the morning."

"Really?"

"Mhmm, we should probably get some rest."

I laughed, he was probably right. "Yeah, probably." I tucked into his side then and let him lull me to sleep with his singing. I still didn't know what he was singing, but it was beautiful and soft, just like some Irish songs my father used to sing to me.

When I woke up it was still dark outside. I went out to the balcony for some air. The temperature had dropped enough to make the gardens a little foggy. But through them I saw a shadow walking. I couldn't see the person's face because of the hood that covered it, the cloak looked medieval and was draped around them. It was clear that they knew I was there as I couldn’t feel if they had any power or if they were something. The figure turned and maneuvered back out of the garden the way it had come. I went back inside unsettled and woke Kai.

"What's wrong love," he asked sleepily.

"There was someone walking through the gardens. I couldn't see their face but, they knew I was there, like they were looking for me."

"Could you tell if it was a woman?"

"Yes, it was. I could see the outline of her skirt. It was black too."

He shot up out of bed and called for a guard. Then he ordered them to take a group out to the gardens and look for the hooded figure. When he came back to me the door was left open. He pulled me next to him and draped an arm around me. Soon we were joined by my aunt, uncle, Oran and the head of security.

"Not to worry my lady, you are safe here. We will find this woman."

"Thank you, Moriarty." I said to him.

"Leah, what were you thinking?" Em asked.

I looked at her, "I got up to get some air. I didn’t think it was a crime."

"That isn't what she meant, Leah, you are very important, you need to be more careful."

"More careful? Well maybe there should be patrols at night on the grounds not just in the castle. Did you ever think of that?"

"There is." Kai said alarmed. "Moriarty, who was supposed to be on duty?"

"I'm not sure but I will find out."

"Do that. The princess and I will be in later for a full evaluation of the staff. We need to know who is loyal to the thrones."

The guard came running in then. "Sir we've checked the grounds. All we found was this." He held up the black cloak. "There is no sign of anyone."

Moriarty nodded. "Back to your posts gentlemen. Angus, see to it that you and someone you trust is out there going back and forth on shifts for the rest of the night."

"Yes sir."

Finally everyone had left our room and it wasn't so stressful. Kai lay with his arm around me holding me tight.

"Leah, the castle will be on alert for a while now, because of this. Please make sure you don't go outside without a guard if I cannot be with you."

"Okay. I didn’t mean all this you know."

"I know Luna, it isn't your fault. I should have talked to him about the staff once we got here. I never once thought of there being someone here on the inside for her. " He sighed. "I just want you safe. You are way too important."

"I know and from now on I'll be more careful. I didn't think about it because we are supposed to be safe here."

He ran his hand up and down my arm. "You're right. We should be. We can fix it in the morning. Rest."

I kissed him. His touches had sent tingles up and down my body. I felt the warmth between my legs, it wouldn't go away. When he kissed me, it grew warmer and i felt my body shift on its own to rub up against him. He moaned at the contact and we pulled apart. The look in his eyes told me that there was something he wanted.

"Leah, c..... Can I touch you?" He sounded so afraid to ask.

My response was a nod, we had been fighting our feelings for so long, now this had just felt right. His hand came up under my shirt and gently grasped my boob. It felt surprisingly good and I responded with a moan. For Kai it was like a switch had been turned on. His hand traveled down from my chest and dipped below my pants. He hesitated and looked at me as if he needed my approval. I nodded, and when he touched me I couldn't stop the moan that escaped my lips. Kai was being so gentle and caring with me. His touches sent me over the edge and all I could feel was heaven.

When I had finally come down from the high, Kai had the biggest smile.

"So, beautiful." He murmured, it was clear that he was tired. I played with his hair

Minutes later he was fast asleep I could tell he was dreaming from the way he was breathing. It wasn't a good dream either. I scooted closer and slipped my arm under his shirt hoping that my touch would make things better. He shivered then calmed into a deep and peaceful sleep. The sound of his even breathing led me back to sleep as well.