The Hybrid Queen Unedited

The sudden burst of cold weather had me bundled up in winter clothes and coats before anyone else in the Pack House. It had only been just over three weeks since the wedding and we were on our way to the last Pound on our list to liberate the Wolves inside. So far I had not found anyone other than Kat from my former Pack. I was not holding my breath. Two of the Pounds looked like they had been deserted and the ones inside had broken free. If there was anyone from my old life still alive, they would be long gone by now having heard about Elijah and his pursuit of Reid. I didn’t blame them if they did flee. Elijah had decided to set up a team to look at each and every file of anyone still inside a pound. Anyone who was convicted for murder would be killed on the spot. We came to find out that Reid had his hand in more than one Pound, using guards and inmates to do his dirty work. I sighed as I watched the shades of brown and green rush by me. The trees were becoming more and more bare. Soon, everything would die and the forest would become a frozen wonderland. Elijah had said he could not wait to see my black haired wolf in the wild snow of the forest. I had smiled at him, knowing that the forest was not truly ours anymore thanks to Morgana’s Coven. She had made it clear that we were not welcome on her lands unless invited. She knew we did not intend to trespass and would only summon her when we needed to yet she insisted we stay on our land only for the protection of her Coven. It was odd, because she seemed to only be speaking to Elijah when she had said this. She had bid him a farewell and said she would see me soon. I sighed. I needed this peace to last and the budding rivalry between Robin and Elijah bothered me. Robin always seemed to want to pick the fight. Raven on the other hand, I had absolutely no problem with her. She had been respectful and nice so far. She even offered to come to the Manor and teach me all I needed to know about my Craft.

Elijah had not been big on that idea at all but said he would think about it. We were getting close now. I could smell the Pound and the scent of wolves coming through my cracked window. I raised my eyebrows at Elijah as we got closer. “It’s so strong,” I commented. Elijah nodded. “It should be. This is the biggest Pound in the US,” he said as the car rolled to a stop. Elijah was out of the car and opening my door before I was able to get it myself. I really should have known better than wearing a skirt and heeled boots. Mud and debris covered the path up to the door. There were other Pack Members already here, having hauled the Prison guards outside and keeping them on their knees. As we walked up the path, one of the gerd jumped up and rushed into the woods. Cal moved to chase him down but Elijah shook his head.“Let him go. He is not a danger to us,” he reminded him. Cal sighed and turned back to face us. “Before you go inside, you should know that there is more than we can accommodate at the Manor. We took them to the courtyard,” he said. I sighed and followed Elijah inside. It was easy to find the way to the courtyard. There were loud whispers and some were crying. When we reached the end of the hall, Elijah looked down at me. “Have I told you how proud of you I am?” he asked me. I smiled. “I could hear it in your thoughts,” I answered. Elijah smiled and then pushed the door open. I had seen the horrors that hid behind the Pound walls. This amazed me more than anything else. And made my heart ache and my stomach gurgle. Huddled around the courtyard were young girls, most of them hardly out of their teens. Some of them are much older then me. More around Sophia’s age. They had been here a long time. “Have the records been checked?” I asked Elijah. He sighed and nodded over to a wooden table that was propped against the table. There were stacks of records on it. “There are mostly children and elderly here,” he said in a hushed voice. “Have you come to deliver us, Miss?”I turned and found a girl, no older than about seven or eight, holding a dirty, tattered blanket and dressed in a ripped, overly large t-shirt. Deliverance. She wanted to die. She thought I was here to kill her. I felt my hand go to my stomach and Amilia’s words echoed in my head again. I did my best to keep them quiet and push them back down before Elijah could hear. I had not yet spoken to Elijah about it. And seeing this girl now, she could have as well been mine. I bent down to her level and smiled at her, reaching to brush a strand of crusted hair from her face. “No, dear,” I told her and smiled. “I have come to take you home. You are all free now. You may stay with us or you can go and try and find your families. Your Mate’s,” I said and looked back up at Elijah. The small child before me gasped and bowed her head. “You are the Queen!” she said, loud enough for everyone to hear. Every child and elderly gasped and stepped away from me. I sighed and shook my head at them. “You are all free,” I said, loud enough for my voice to echo off the stone walls behind me. “You can walk out of these doors and live your life however you wish and no one will stop you. For those of you who have nowhere to go, we have a home for you. You are more than welcome,” I said, looking around the courtyard. “We offer you a place with us. A family. A safe place. No one will question you. You will be safe,” I said, looking each of them in the eye. I wanted them to believe the words I was saying. I looked up at Elijah who nodded and followed me back down the hall. Once back outside, at the main entrance, I walked out to find Cal and Amilia leaning against an empty bus, waiting. “They didn’t want to come?” Amilia demanded. I shook my head. “Give them some time,” I said. Elijah sighed and shook his head. “Elio has requested the strongest fighters of this batch,” he said and slid his phone back inside his coat pocket. I rolled my eyes. Elio had been at the wedding and had introduced himself to me as soon as he was able, being one of the first people to approach us as we were seated at our table. Elio had lost to Elijah in the fight for the crown and was still quite upset about that. He was in his mid thirties and was still mateless. I found it odd that he had never found his Mate. I worried about Elio and Luke coming for the throne. Elijah told me not to worry about them. The fact that he wanted strong wolves at his command bothered me. He would be disappointed to know that he would not be getting any. Unless he wished for small children and elderly. Elijah nudged my shoulder and nodded back the way we had come. About thirty adults and more children, all under the age of fifteen, walked out of the building. I sighed and looked up at Elijah who smiled.

We had saved the children and wolves here. We had made it to the throne and now ruled together. We were Marked and Mated and no one would break us apart. As much as I wanted to believe that, I know it not to be true. We still had enemies out there, looking for us, plotting against us. Reid.The High Priestess, Morgana. We would need numbers. I waited for all of the Strays to board the bus and then walked back to my car. Elijah followed suit, talking with Cal and Amilia as he went. I knew there were many trials yet to come and I knew I would be ready for them. I would be ready for anyone who would come after me and my family.