Inevitably Yours

QUINN

I barely had time to pull a sweater on when I heard Taylor and Diane coming up the stairs. “During the day?” she questioned. I shrugged but pushed Diane towards Belle’s room. Shortly after Rowan’s arrival, we had to do some rearranging to make space for all the kids. Our living room shrunk, and we sectioned off space for Belle. Junior had his own room, while Daniel and Rowan shared theirs. Junior popped his head out of his room.

“Mom, what’s going on? Are there rogues?” he asked.

“Yes, and you aren’t running out there to help. You can’t even shift yet, mister!” I scolded him. He frowned at me. “Get your brothers. I want all five of you in the same room.”

“Should we be worried?” Taylor asked.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“I hope not. It’s precautionary,” I told her. I tried to remain calm but had a weird churning feeling in my gut. A random attack during the day was unusual but not unheard of. I hoped this was just a dumb group of rogues. Attacking in daylight meant movement was more easily seen by innocent bystanders, and they were more easily caught.

Junior came out of Rowan and Daniel’s room with Rowan on his back. “You all go into Belle’s room for now,” I told them.

“Mommy, I’m hungry,” Daniel said.

“Well, wait until you try Fae food, young mutt,” someone said. I whipped around in shock. There stood a tall, hauntingly beautiful figure wearing some kind of robe-like clothing. Its pale skin was almost silvery, and it had long white blonde hair. Was this a Fae? “I believe you call it humane? I will be tasked to feed you, I suppose.”

“Who are you?” I growled, stepping in between him and my kids.

“What are you?” Taylor whispered.

“Taylor, slowly back away. Move toward the pups,” I silently told her. I could feel a lot of magic coming from him—more magic than I ever felt in the blessing ground.

“Oh, that is right. I only spoke with your lover previously,” it said. “My name is Arathorn, and I am Fae.”

“Why are you here?” I asked cautiously. I had a feeling I already knew. If he was talking about my ‘lover,’ he meant Michael. He had to be the thing that came to warn or threaten us when we blessed Junior.

“Is your memory so feeble?” Arathorn sighed, rolling his eyes. “I warned you dogs. All you had to do was not use magic in the realm.”

“I don’t do it on purpose. It just happens,” I defended myself. I didn’t exactly have control over everything.

“Well, I am afraid that you have caught too much attention. You and your offspring will be coming with me,” he said dismissively. “The King shall decide your fate now.”

“What does that mean?” I asked nervously. “What king?”

“She really couldn’t make you any smarter? Celestials be damned,” he g*****d. He seemed so inconvenienced to be here to take us away. “You bothersome thing. I have been commanded to come here and collect you to be brought before the Fae King. You and your little half-breeds.”

“What does your king want with my children?” I demanded. I stepped back, inching closer to Taylor, who I could tell was panicking. I knew all the kids were standing behind her watching this, but I couldn’t hide them now.

“Probably about the same as you. He’ll determine if you are worth keeping around as a pet; if not, you’ll be disposed of,” he waved me off. “Come now. Let’s get on with this.”

I was going to be sick. This couldn’t happen; I had to protect my children. They didn’t ask for this. I could clearly picture every little blue hair on their heads as I realized this wouldn’t end well. My mind raced with what to do. “Please,” I begged. “Just me. Leave the children. Just take me. I’ll go willingly.”

“Quinn, no-” Taylor started to hiss. I had to change strategies. If I went willingly, maybe I could keep the fallout to just me. Michael, Nic, and Taylor could protect the kids or get out of Stary. They could live, at least.

“You will come either way,” Arathorn started.

“The f**k she will!” Michael thundered. My stomach dropped as he stepped around Arathorn. He would fight him, no matter if he could win or lose. “Leave my pack now.”

“I will…” Arathorn answered. I swallowed hard. I couldn’t let Michael get hurt; it would kill me before this Fae King got what he wanted.

“Michael…” I begged him.

“…you don’t know who you married,” he told me. I could see that look on his face. That resolute look. His mind was made up, and no one on the planet could change it. If I left here, he was going with me. He didn’t have magic; he wasn’t Fae. Maybe I could bargain for them to spare him, send him back here, and keep me. I needed to get Arathorn out of this pack before something bad happened. He looked displeased at coming here; I could only imagine what could happen if things got worse.

“Then take us,” I offered, switching tactics again. Nic’s eyes started to bug out of her head.

“Nic, I need you to get them out of Stary. Don’t say goodbye to anyone. Get out. And make sure they know I loved them more than anything else in the world,” I linked her.

“Q, no. The f**k this is happening!” she silently shouted.

“I will take her deal….” M agreed. I wanted him to stay and shield our children, but I wouldn’t convince him to. I knew what had to be going through his head. He wouldn’t accept the inevitable; he couldn’t feel how strong Arathorn was. He had to go with me to try and stop this.

Arathorn agreed. Nic darted around us, moving behind me to Taylor. As Michael came to my side, I couldn’t bring myself to look behind me. I desperately wanted to see their faces one last time, but I knew if I looked behind me, I would be met with tears and fear. If I looked at them, my resolve would crumble.

My breathing came in shallow bursts, and the air felt like knives in my lungs. Michael’s hand gripped mine, but what should have been reassuring only amplified my guilt. This was all my fault. I was an abomination never meant to exist and had brought this upon everyone I loved.

Nic and Taylor shielded the kids as we followed Arathorn down the stairs and to the front. When we stepped outside, everything seemed to stop. I looked around, confused. “What’s happening?” I asked nervously.

“Oh, just something to make our departure easier,” he said dismissively.

“For who exactly?” Michael growled. I knew exactly what he was thinking. The kids just watched us walk away from them; they watched their parents being taken away. I wasn’t sure what was happening with everyone frozen around us, but at some point, the whole pack would know we were gone.

“Come now, I can’t keep this up forever in this realm,” he chided. His walk could barely be considered a walk. It was like he was gliding over the ground as he headed down the driveway.

“You should have stayed with the pups,” I silently told Michael. I needed to convince him to return. Something inside me told me this would all fail.

“If I stayed with them, I wouldn’t know where to come looking for you,” he replied. His face stayed stoic as we exited the packhouse driveway. We continued to follow this Fae male as he headed down the road. Was he really going to just march us out of the pack?

Sapphire whined in my head. She was pawing at me, trying to take control and run. But I knew; I could simply tell by the magic I felt around him. Running was futile and probably worse in the end. “Is Eros okay right now?” I asked M.

He shook his head slowly. Both our wolves knew going along with this wasn’t good. We kept walking, entering the woods eventually. Arathorn stopped for a moment and looked around, then continued looking for the right spot. I still couldn’t believe that I was so much of a threat that I had to be removed. Weren’t there other hybrids in my family? Didn’t we come from a Fae? Were they all removed like I was?

“We’ll play nice until I can figure out how to get us out,” Michael said in my head. “Just wait for my signal, and at the first chance, we’ll get out.”

“How?” I asked him.

“I don’t know yet, but we will. We aren’t going to be their prisoner forever,” he answered. I shook my head and looked down. Michael squeezed my hand in his, probably trying to reassure me.

“It’s over, M. We have to accept it. Who knows what they can do? If we cooperate, maybe they will make it painless, but we aren’t getting out,” I told him. Our night started with playful cuddling, and here we were, marching to our death.

“I don’t accept it,” he declared.

Arathorn stopped walking, and we stopped a few yards behind him. “Here’s the damn door,” he scoffed.

“Door?” I asked aloud.

“You mortals can’t see them, but doors to other realms are littered everywhere. This realm is sort of an intersection, so to speak,” he absently explained. I felt like we would learn so many things that were entirely contrary to our understanding of the world, only to be killed.

He waved his hand through the air; then it was like he pulled back a curtain acting as a scenic backdrop. Beyond the seemingly folded reality was a pasture, a very bright and sunny pasture. “Alright, let’s go,” he said, waving at us to proceed.

Michael looked down at me, and I looked back up at him. A coldness crept over my skin; this was terrifying. Whatever Michael was feeling was completely overrun by my emotions. “I let you take the lover; just go through the door,” Arathorn whined.

Michael tore his gaze away from me and narrowed his eyes at the Fae. He didn’t say anything, thankfully; I didn’t think it would benefit either of us to insult him. Slowly, we approached the strange doorway. I held my breath as we stepped through together. Arathorn followed us, dropping the curtain he held. I looked over my shoulder as it fell and was amazed that everything seemed to fall into place like we hadn’t just left Stary Pack.

“Hurry it up,” Arathorn snapped. “The King won’t wait all day.”

Michael gripped me tighter. Arathorn trudged through the pasture, and we followed. We crested a gentle hill, and at the bottom was a road where horses waited. As we got closer, I realized they were massively taller than any horse I had ever seen.

Arathorn approached one of the horses, petting its muzzle before turning to us. “Hands,” he demanded. Neither of us moved, confused by his command. He rolled his eyes, and in a blink, both Michael and I had our hands bound together with a rope leading to Arathorn’s hands. “It would do you much better to simply obey,” he droned.

He mounted his horse and yanked with our ropes in his hand, almost making me topple over. Silently, he pulled us with him. Michael’s anger was palpable as we nearly ran to keep up with the giant horse. He wasn’t struggling quite as hard being taller than me.

The road led to a village, and I soon realized that we were gaining attention. I felt like an animal being led to slaughter as all these tall figures watched us pass. I tried to link Michael, but he said nothing.

The village gave way to what looked like a shopping district with even more people. The embarrassment continued as Fae made a wide path around us. My body ached from holding my arms up and half-running for so long when we finally approached a fence that was easily twenty feet tall. A gate opened, and Arathorn pressed on up a long drive.

My foot caught on a stone along the path, causing me to clamber forward. I lost my footing and only avoided the ground because of the rope around my wrists. The horse didn’t stop as I struggled to get my feet back under me. Michael watched in pain, unable to give me his hand.

When I didn’t think I could take anymore, we made it to a set of stairs leading to open archways. Arathorn halted on his horse and slid off gracefully. I was panting when he acknowledged us. “Let’s go, dogs,” he droned. He pulled on the rope and made us follow. Thankfully now the pace was just a walk.

Michael looked like he wanted to say something, but he kept his mouth closed. I knew he would be too angry to play nice with these people. If I had any chance of them letting him return to our home, I needed him not to make anyone mad.

We seemed to walk endlessly through hallways and corridors. Every time we turned, I hoped we were close to our destination. My feet screamed in protest with every step, and my arms ached. I couldn’t even try to look around because all my focus was on moving forward.

At long last, Arathorn led us through a pair of double doors that opened to a small courtyard. An ornate throne was set behind a small fountain, and smaller but still decorative chairs lined the sides. Flower beds sat between these chairs, occupied by all manner of what I assumed to be Fae.

Arathorn stopped before the large throne, the occupant not paying much attention. He waited quietly, disinterest written on his face. I was beginning to think nothing interested him. I looked at Michael, who was surveying the courtyard discreetly. If he was looking for an opening, this was not it.

“Why would you bring these animals here?” someone drawled from our right.

Arathorn slowly turned to face him. “I only work at the behest of his majesty,” he said, bowing slightly. The Fae he spoke to sneered. He had icy blue hair and tanned skin. His clothes looked lavish, like everyone else in the courtyard. His muscular build was the only true indicator that he was male.

“Tsk. I doubt the king ordered cattle,” he said.

“So these are the ones?” the one I assumed to be the king interjected.

“Yes, your majesty,” Arathorn answered, again bowing. The king looked us over, then sat back in his chair.

“And the other thing I asked?” he questioned Arathorn pointedly.

“Any time now,” Arathorn answered.

The king waved his hand. “Just get rid of them. I have no use for a dog with Fae magic.”

“Salihn cannot be persecuted without proof!” someone to our left stood and shouted. The king sighed as if he just didn’t care.

“Why not just throw them back? What harm do they pose to us in their realm?” another argued from the right. The courtyard erupted in discussion. I stepped closer to Michael, an uneasy feeling washing over me. Why were we even here?

“If I may,” someone cut through the chatter. Everyone quieted down, and the king gave him a lazy look. “We do not know if the runt truly poses any true threat to us. I can sense a power in her, but can she even wield it? She is not Fae, not truly. Test the creature. If she proves to be jeopardous, we will take precautions. If not, toss them back.”

“That, Arathorn. Do that. Three trials to test the abomination,” the king said dismissively. “Just find a pen to keep them in the meantime. Their odor is nauseating.”

“As you wish, your majesty,” Arathorn bowed. He spun on his heel and yanked the ropes, pulling us abruptly to follow.