The Rejected Werewolf Princess by Didiadeyemi

CAMILLA'S POV

As if on cue, everything stopped and the darkness dissipated. It seemed to retreat back into Ryker's skin and I watched the entire thing unfold. The moment the air was clear, I slowly looked up and relief filled me when I saw that his eyes were back to normal. I threw my arms around his neck and he wasted no time in pulling me impossibly closer and burying his nose into my hair.

“I am so sorry,” he whispered but I could barely focus on his words. I was just glad to have him. I was glad that he was alive. “I almost killed you."

“It doesn’t matter. I'm here now, and so are you."

I pulled back from him and finally took in the scene in front of me. There were so many bodies and I could tell just by looking that although the woman and the child were unconscious, the male was dead. Blood was pouring out of his nose and ears and his chest was still. I gauged Ryker’s face for any kind of reaction but it was carefully still.

“I'l mind link the guards to meet us here,” he said finally before turning to me. “Are you-" he swallowed. “Did I hurt you?"

“No,” I told him earnestly. I wasn't lying, he hadn't gotten the chance to hurt me yet. I reached out for him and gently stroked my hand down his face. He let me for a second, his eyes closed as he leaned into my touch. “We are fine, you did it, you beat them and that is the most important thing.”

“I would have killed them,” he announced as he opened his eyes. He glanced over at the woman and child that were still unconscious. “I was going to do it. I wasn't out of control of the magic. It was me, I knew exactly what I was going to do.”

“But you didn't do it” Many sentences in this chapter have been removed because you are not reading them on J o b nib.c(o)m.'That doesn't mean that I still don't want to," he ran his hands through his hair. “I saw Juan and Christine. I saw Audrey. How did I not see the witches? It doesn’t make sense.”

“I don’t know,” I wished I had an answer for him, it would have made everything easier but I didn’t. “I saw them as they were"

“Were they in my mind? Did they find a way to warp my perception of reality? What kind of witches are they anyway? They didn't try to kill me, they just wanted me to kill-" he paused mid-sentence. “Something isn't adding up."

“That, I agree with, but look at the bright side, that could have been your test. I heard one of them say something about a test. What if it was your test and you passed?”

“So what? I am now completely joined with the magic?”

“I don’t know, I'm just saying that there has to be something positive that came out of this. We will find it”

He just hummed but didn't say anything else until the guards returned. The unconscious woman and child were bound and gagged and carried to the palace dungeons. I still didn't believe they were just witches but to be safe, we had them placed in the specially designed cells to nullify magic. Until I was sure what we were dealing with, I wasn't going to take any chances with anyone's safety.

We went to Ansel first. To say that he was shocked to see us both would have been an understatement. He opened and closed his mouth a few times but no words would come out. He was chained to the wall and judging by the smell of burning flesh emanating from his wrists, they were silver chains.

“You went through a lot just to get us out of the palace” Ryker drawled as he stood in front of Ansel’s cell. Ansel at least had the decency to look a little terrified. “How did you know we wouldn't check before leaving?”

“You love your children,” he answered simply. “Any parent would act first and think later if they thought that their child was in danger.”

“How did you know that Ryker would go to the kids and I wouldn't? You had those people already waiting for him,” I added and Ansel shrugged. He turned away from both of us and I knew he was done speaking. “Whether you speak or not, you will die the most painful and brutal death imaginable.”

“All the more reason I should remain silent. If I speak or not, I will die, I might as well die with a little dignity.”

Ryker moved before I even had the chance to process what was happening. He reached through the bars and dragged Ansel by the shirt pulling him until he was flush against the silver. His scream could only be described as ear splitting. His hands were strained against the chains holding him pulling at the already burned flesh and his face against the bars was charring with each passing second.

“You act like you have a choice in the matter, Ryker growled before pushing him back. Ansel was crying- the once great elder of the palace was in a cell with tears streaming down his face and I felt no ounce of guilt or remorse. “You will tell me who the fuck those people are and you will do so now or I swear, I will make the rest of your life as miserable as possible. You will cling to the promise of death because that will be the only place you will find refuge and even that will not be granted to you."

Ansel sniffled and took a step back. I glanced over at my mate, he was furious, which I expected so this was nothing out of the ordinary. I wanted to comfort him but I didn't want to risk him appearing weak in front of Ansel so I remained fixed in my spot only going as far as to send gentle assurance down our bond. His eyes flashed to me for a split second, letting me know he felt me and he appreciated it.

“It was never meant to go this far,” Ansel said finally. “I just wanted them to scare the pack so that I would save them, but they are persuasive. They sing things to you and you want to do it. They can warp your reality with just a few words. I didn’t know what I was walking into.”

It sounded suspiciously similar to what they tried to do with Ryker.

“Who are they?”

“An ancient supernatural breed. They are dangerous and the only thing they love more than themselves, is their family. If you were to kill one-"

“I killed one,” Ryker said and Ansel’s eyes widened.

“Then goddess help us all”

I would have been a liar if I said I wasn't terrified but I kept my hands crossed over my chest as I spoke. “What are they?”

I heard a loud scream come from the top of the steps and I turned to Ansel who smirked. “They are sirens.”