Fated Betrayal: A Paranormal Erotic Romance (The Twisted Destiny Saga Book 2) (12 page)

CHAPTER 18

As soon as the White Realm palace throne room materialized around them, Ryan pulled Cora to him and yelled irately, “What the fuck was that? I told you to pull back your fucking magic!”

“He needed to die!”

“You should’ve been thinking about our child, not him! You need to
listen
to me!”

“Why, because you’re the man? The big bad Alpha? The Wolf King?”

Incensed by her verbal attack, Ryan growled at her, “
Because,
I’m your husband and I’m trying to protect you
and
our child, you idiot!”

Ryan was well aware that Vazra, Nathanial, Shaye, and Josh were all staring at them, witnessing their argument, right in the middle of the throne room. But he didn’t give a damn.

“Idiot? I was saving all our asses!”

“Shaye had it covered. When I tell you to pull back, you damn well pull back!”

“You are not the boss of me, Ryan!”

Ryan ran his fingers through his hair with exasperation. “Sometimes I forget how immature you can be, because of the sheltered life you led up until you met me. When you call me to you—through painful telepathy, by the way—needing my help, you can bet your ass that I
am
the fucking boss of you! In a situation like that, you shut the hell up and listen to what I say, because I’m trying to help you, woman!”

“You started it by attacking Luca!”

“Different situation. You’re the one who’s pregnant, not me!”

“You lost control, just like I did!”

“
Because
…Jesus Christ! He had David fuck you! He had him touch what’s mine!”

Her expression shifted instantly at his words and the mention of David touching her against her will. She broke down and collapsed to her knees crying. “He…I don’t remember anything…I don’t know what he did to me…he…oh my God…”

“David did
what
to my daughter?” Vazra thundered.

Ryan shook his head at him.
Not now.

He knelt down beside Cora and wrapped his arms around her, shielding her from everyone else’s view. He knew she wouldn’t want anyone to witness her breaking down. She was a tough little thing, but she’d been through a lot lately.

Ryan heard Nathanial telling Vazra, “Her loss of control was because of the child.”

“Yes, I know.” He took a breath and then said, “Shaye, could you kindly fetch Marella?”

Ryan looked up and saw Shaye bowing respectfully to Vazra, before hurrying off to do his bidding. His gaze strayed to Nathanial and he was surprised to see him looking really uncomfortable. Why? What had brought that on? Was it…Marella? He’d been fine until her name had come up.
Strange. Maybe they know each other from the past.

Josh joined Ryan and stroked Cora’s hair gently. “It’s okay, sis,” he told her.

“Sis, huh?” Ryan asked.

“That’s right.”

Ryan smiled at him and then gathered Cora in his arms and climbed to his feet with her. “I’m gonna take her to bed.”

Vazra nodded. “Settle her in and we’ll be right up.”

As Ryan carried her out of the throne room, he looked down at her and told her softly, “I only do the things I do, because I love you so fucking much. You know that, don’t you?”

She nodded tiredly and mumbled, “Yes. I’m sorry.”

Ryan chuckled. “It’s okay. You’re not yourself right now, my love. It’s our troublesome wolf child inside of you.”

#

Ryan sat on the edge of the bed, his arm around Cora as she lay still while Marella’s hand was pressed gently to her belly. Nathanial and Vazra stood beside one another at the foot of the bed. Shaye had distracted Josh by giving him a tour of the White Realm palace.

After several excruciatingly long minutes, Marella finally removed her hand and cocked an eyebrow in surprise. “It is too dangerous to risk you both combining your magic to remove the mark,” she said, her gaze fixing on Vazra’s, but avoiding Nathanial’s.

“Marella, Nathanial and I are not new at this. We will not cause Cora any harm,” Vazra said.

“You will, because the baby is ready.”

“Ready?” Ryan asked, not understanding the significance of the look passing between the other kings and Marella. “
Human
realm terminology, please.”

Marella chuckled and told him, “She is ready to give birth. Just another couple of hours now.”

Cora shook her head. “What? No, the baby is…it’s only been a few weeks.”

“This isn’t a human pregnancy. A regular wolf can be born within four months, Cora. And
your
child is more than wolf. Your white magic has brought the baby to term much sooner. Trust me, you will give birth tonight.”

Ryan saw the fear in Cora’s eyes.

“It’s all gonna be okay, my love. I’ll be right here with you,” he told her, stroking her hair as he pulled her against him.

“You will need my help,” Marella told them. “As Cora is not wolf, I will need to use white magic to facilitate the child’s birth.”

“Okay,” Cora said, putting on a brave face.

“What can we do?” Vazra asked.

“The baby is both white and dark magic. I need the two of you to create an elixir to help ease the pain of such a…hybrid birth.”

Vazra nodded and turned to Nathanial, eyeing him expectantly.

“Yes, I am willing to assist you,” Nathanial confirmed.

As Vazra led Nathanial out of the room, Ryan crossed to Marella and whispered, “This isn’t going to be an easy birth, is it?”

“If I don’t help her with my magic, the birth will kill her, Ryan. Even
with
my magic it will be excruciating. The elixir that I sent Vazra and Nathanial to make will numb the pain to a more bearable level.”

Ryan rubbed his face roughly and looked away to hide his emotion. “All right,” he choked out. “What can I do?”

“Hold her down.”

“Fucking hell.”

CHAPTER 19

Vazra and Nathanial both stood calmly outside Cora and Ryan’s bedchamber. Cora’s agonized screams echoed through the palace.

Shaye stood against the wall opposite them, biting her nails.

Josh paced up and down between them.

“Is she supposed to be screaming like that?” Josh asked. “I mean, I’ve heard women give birth before—a couple of illegitimate pregnancies among some pack members that I won’t go into detail about—but
this
? I’ve never heard a woman scream like this.”

“She will be fine,” Vazra told him. “Marella has dealt with many supernatural births before. Cora is in good hands.”

Even with our elixir, she is still in so much pain,
Nathanial communicated telepathically to him, all of a sudden.

Vazra’s gaze snapped to his. It had been so long since the two of them had communicated this way that it had caught him off guard. It took him a moment to actually summon a response.
I know. Marella said this is an extremely difficult birth. You and I may have to intervene. She will summon us, if it becomes necessary.

Understood.

“I can’t believe this,” Josh muttered, worriedly, as another ferocious scream came from Cora.

“It just proves that nothing good can come from sleeping with Ryan Winters,” Shaye jested in a clear attempt to lighten the mood.

“It would have been useful if you could have told his tons of psychotic exes that over the years. Would have saved me a lot of trouble,” Josh commented.

Nathanial laughed at his comment.

Vazra raised his eyebrows at Josh.

“Uh…not
tons
…I was exaggerating.”

“
Hold her hands down, Ryan!”
Marella ordered from inside the room.

“She’s trying to summon her power,” Nathanial said, realizing what was happening inside the room. “Against Marella.”

“A natural reaction for any sorceress in agony,” Vazra said in Cora’s defense.

“
Almost there, my love. I promise. You’re doing amazingly well,”
Ryan’s voice came.
“Squeeze my hand. Good…uh…fuck…okay…break it then…whatever you need.”

“It will heal within hours,” Nathanial said aloud.

“Quicker, with my daughter’s blood coursing through his veins,” Vazra corrected.

Nathanial snarled, “Still obsessed with the need to be right at every turn, I see.”

“Don’t,” Shaye told them both.

They both looked at her, taken aback that she had the balls to challenge two kings.

“This isn’t about you,” Shaye added. “Save it for later.”

The two of them smiled with amusement and broke her gaze.

“
This is all your fault, Ryan! You put this wolf child in me!”
Cora bellowed.
“You should be the one giving birth to it! Fuck!”

“Are you sure your daughter is not part wolf, Vazra?” Nathanial asked.

Vazra chuckled. “I’m beginning to wonder.”

“No. Breathe. You cannot pass out, Cora. Fight it. We’re almost there now.”

“I…I…can’t…it hurts…too much….”

“Yes, you can, my love. You can!”

“No…I’m tired….”

“Ryan, go get him. Now,”
Marella ordered.

The door to the chambers burst open and Ryan eyed Nathanial. “She needs your dark magic.”

Nathanial nodded and strode through the door. Ryan managed a nervous smile at the other three and then shut the door.

“She will be fine,” Vazra told Shaye and Josh, as much for them as for himself. “She is stronger than us all.”
And she’s about to make history. The last non-wolf to give birth to a wolf baby did so over three hundred years ago. Ryan’s mother, Oriana.

“Tell me what you need, Marella,”
Nathanial’s deep baritone boomed from within the room.

“Use your dark magic to stimulate the baby’s wolf essence. He’s resisting my pull.”

Vazra started in surprise as he heard Nathanial telling Cora in a gentle tone that he’d never heard from him before and had had no idea he even possessed,
“My wife gave birth to a wolf and she was a non-wolf like you, child. Ryan’s mother. And you are stronger than her. Your power has already far surpassed hers. So, you see? You can do this.”

The power of Nathanial’s dark magic shook the door.

“Yes, it’s working. I see him,”
Marella’s voice came.

“Yes! Get out! Get out of me!”

“That’s right, my love. Good,”
Ryan said with a chuckle.

A final roar came from Cora and then she fell suddenly quiet.

Vazra, Josh, and Shaye eyed one another fearfully, each of them waiting with bated breath for another sound to come from within the room. Any sound. Anything at all.

And then the tiniest little growl came from within, followed by amused laughter. A few moments later, they heard heavy footsteps approaching the door.

Ryan opened it and they all gasped in unison as they saw the baby he held in his arms.

“My son!” he announced, tears welling in his eyes.

Vazra, Shaye, and Josh gathered around.

“Ryan! Bring him back here, please. He’ll catch a chill,” Marella called to him.

Ryan smiled at the three of them and said, “It’s safe to come in now,” before turning on his heel and approaching Marella, who held a blanket out to him.

“Like this,” she said, demonstrating the proper way to wrap up his son.

Ryan nodded his understanding and took his son back from her. He crossed to the bed where Cora lay exhausted and drenched in sweat. He perched on the edge of the bed and passed her their child. Vazra watched happily as his daughter gently cradled her newborn.

“You did well, Cora.”

She smiled back at him. “Thanks, father.”

Marella crossed to the other side of the bed and told her, “Bottles all the way. He’s not a human baby and you’re not wolf. His teeth will be too sharp for you.”

Cora cringed and nodded her understanding. “Thank you, Marella.”

“You are most welcome.”

“Thank you for your magic as well,” Cora told Nathanial, who stood at the foot of the bed with the others.

He nodded respectfully.

“Yes…thank you,” Ryan said.

“You are welcome, Wolf King.”

Ryan smiled and then wrapped his arms around Cora and held her tightly to him as he gazed down at their son.

“Did you hear him growl?” Cora asked Vazra, Shaye, and Josh.

“Most babies cry, but Ryan’s child greets the world with a frustrated growl,” Josh quipped.

“He was frustrated?” Cora asked with amusement.

“He was
agitated
by the situation,” Ryan clarified.

Everyone laughed.

“At least he didn’t shift,” Cora said.

Ryan, Josh, and Nathanial exchanged a look of amusement.

“What?” Cora asked. “What’s so amusing?”

“It will be a few years before he is able to shift, my love,” Ryan explained to her.

Josh and Nathanial nodded their confirmation to her.

“Oh…I wonder whether he will be white, like you?” she said excitedly.

“He will be,” Nathanial said. “He is a pureblood wolf—born, not made.”

“Now there are two in the universe,” Vazra commented, smiling at Ryan.

“What’s his name?” Josh asked.

Ryan shook his head. “Uh uh. No name for a few days. The moment we name him, we will be announcing his existence to the world. Cora and I would like a few days with him before we have to discuss his destiny and all the politics surrounding that.”

Vazra saw Nathanial tense at Ryan’s words. He moved to protest, so Vazra cut in quickly, by saying, “Nathanial, you are welcome to remain in the White Realm until the child is named. Same rules apply, though. No feeding from the faeries.”

Nathanial rolled his eyes. “I am well aware of your rules.”

“And, yet, you still enjoy breaking them.”

“It was one brief indiscretion, centuries ago.”

“With dire consequences.”

During one particularly infamous visit to the White Realm, Nathanial had taken several faerie women to his bed and made the mistake of drinking from them. They had been more than willing so that hadn’t been the problem. The problem had been that faerie blood was like a powerful drug to vampires. It awakened the darkest, most ruthless part of the monster within. It had resulted in Nathanial killing all of the women he’d bedded and embarking on a killing rampage, which Vazra had quickly managed to stop with his magic.

“No waterfall either,” Vazra added.

Nathanial growled low in his throat, but he didn’t argue. Instead, he simply said, “Give me a room with thick curtains.”

“I will make the necessary arrangements.”

“I need to feed. I am weak from too long spent in the human realm,” Nathanial said as he headed for the door.

Vazra followed him out saying, “I will see to it.”

* * * * *

Ryan rolled his eyes as he watched the two kings still going at it as they left the room.

“Cora should rest now,” Marella said, looking at Shaye and Josh.

They both nodded their understanding.

“So, I’ll be snuggling up with you in your room then?” Josh said to Shaye.

“No, Josh! Go to Vazra. He will find you your own room,” Ryan said.

“I’m sure Shaye won’t mind. She enjoys the company of wolves,” Josh said, winking at Ryan slyly.

Ryan rolled his eyes. “Yes, let’s reference mine and Shaye’s past as often as possible in front of my wife.”

Cora laughed. “It doesn’t bother me.” She grinned at Shaye. “Sorry for what you had to go through with my husband.”

Shaye chuckled. “Indeed,” she said, winking at Ryan.

He smiled knowingly at her.

“Out! Now!” Marella said, ushering them both to the door. “Let her sleep, Ryan,” Marella ordered before leaving the room and shutting the door quietly behind her.

“Look at his little claws,” Cora said, stroking their son’s hand gently.

“He has them on his feet too.”

“Really?” Cora gasped. “Oh my God, is that why Marella needed to use her magic during the birth?”

Ryan cringed as he revealed, “Without it, he would’ve…shredded you.”

Cora looked up at him, her eyes wide with shock. “What? Why didn’t you tell me that before?”

“Oh, yeah. Sure. That would’ve been a great thing to tell my wife, right before she went into labor. You want to go back in time and relive it, with me telling you that, and see how it pans out?”

“No. Never. I am
never
going through that again,” she said, gripping his hand tightly.

He hissed and pulled away, offering her his other hand instead.

“Shit, I broke your hand, didn’t I? I’m so sorry. Let me see.”

“No. It’s fine. It’s already healing. Just no strong grips for a couple more hours.” He shifted his weight on the bed and reached out for their son. “Let me take him, my love.”

Cora pulled away. “No,” she protested.

“Just while you sleep for a while.”

“But—”

“Cora, please.”

“Okay,” she said, reluctantly handing him over.

“So possessive already,” Ryan jested.

“I love him,” she said, as she nestled down into the bed.

“I know. I love him, too. Sleep now. We’ll be right here.”