And just like that, I was conflicted. The mean a-hole who sent guards to Shifter Island to kill students and teachers also took pity on widows? Talk about a gray area. I wasn’t sure whether I liked him or hated him.

We stepped into a great room. The stone was polished onyx with dark green and blue carpets lying over the shiny black expanse. Bright silk pillows in various shapes and sizes were scattered over the carpets, some clustered in bunches and others solo. My gaze traveled up the aisle and…

Holy crap.

There, sitting on an honest-to-mage throne, was a giant of a man, but he wasn’t what stopped me in my tracks. I stood, gaping, slack-jawed, and shocked at the women at his feet, lying prostrate on the floor and … what the hell? Were they praying to him? Like he was a god? Maybe if he married me and took in all my children after my husband died, I’d worship him too. Who knows?

“What is this?” His deep voice rumbled across the space, and my attention snapped upward. The women on the floor stood, kissing him on the cheek, and then they left the room.

He was better looking than I expected. Long black hair feathered around his chiseled shoulders, slick with water, and his strong jaw and sharp nose were appealing.

“Sir…” The army fatigue dude stepped forward with Rage. “Chinook ran an unsanctioned mission and brought in—”

“I brought you the son of the alpha king, My Liege,” the asshat who’d kidnapped us said and dropped to one knee. Melody did the same, followed by the army dude.

“Indeed?” the king asked. “I thought you were instructed to keep watch over the wolves at Dark Row, Chinook?”

Chinook paled and bobbed his head. “But when we smelled them, I led a contingency of warriors there, and we followed the alpha heir back to Shifter Island where we captured them … for you, My King.”

The king pursed his lips, and his gaze went glassy and unfocused for several seconds before he straightened with a grin.

“Steele,” King Ozark said, giving the army fatigue dude his attention. “Who was in charge of the contingency of warriors left at Dark Row?”

Army fatigue dude, aka Steele, stood, and his gaze darted from the king to my least favorite selkie. “Chinook.”

The king nodded and then rotated his head slightly. “Melody?”

The female selkie raised her head. “Yes, My Liege?”

“Stand up,” he said, waving his hand at her to rise.

She froze, unmoving.

“Stand up.”

She jumped to her feet, her eyes wide.

“Now, you were with Chinook, weren’t you?”

‘What the hell is he doing?’ I asked Rage, glancing at him out of the corner of my eyes.

Rage shrugged. ‘No idea. It’s either a demonstration for us or because of us.”

I wanted to ask what that meant, but my attention jumped back to the female selkie as she bobbed her head.

“Can you confirm that he gave the order to follow the wolves?” the king asked.

Melody’s gaze bounced from the king to Chinook and back before she said, “Yes.”

King Ozark stroked his chin. “So the reward for bringing me these two wolves should rest solely on the shoulders of the selkie who risked so much to accomplish this daring feat, should it not?”

Chinook raised his chin and grinned.

“Melody?” The king’s prompting was accompanied by a stern look at the female. “Does anyone else deserve credit for his daring decision?”

“No, Your Majesty. Chinook made the decision. The rest of us were just following his orders.”

Holy frickin’ mage. I glared at the selkie, fuming as I spoke to Rage. ‘If Chinook gets props for—'

‘Wait,’ Rage said to silence me.

“Steele,” King Ozark said, rising from his throne. “Your blade.”

‘Is he going to get a knighthood?’ I snarled. Why did the dirtbags always get ahead?

Steele drew his sword and handed it to the king.

The king took the blade and then stepped in front of Chinook—who was no longer grinning. In fact … was he shaking?

“There’s a reason I give orders. Always a reason. And your disregard cost us two selkie warriors—”

“But I brought you the alpha king’s heir.” Chinook raised his head and gritted his jaw in anger. “His first heir!”

King Ozark swung, and the blade sang as it sliced through the air—

My eyes bugged as the weapon disappeared into one side of Chinook’s neck and out the other side. Something warm sprayed my legs, and I blinked. No way … no way!

Chinook stiffened, and then his head toppled forward, falling off his body and bouncing once before rolling onto one of the green rugs. His body sagged, slumping toward me as blood gushed out of his severed neck.

Rage yanked me close, out of the trajectory of the beheaded selkie, but it was too late. I was covered in blood.

Holy Mother of Mages. The king didn’t mess around with his punishments.

“There’s no place in my herd for a self-aggrandizing jackass who can’t follow orders,” the king muttered. He wiped the blade on his pants and then held it out to Steele. “Your blade.”

Steele swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat as he took the blade.

“Now, where were we?” the king asked as he ascended his throne. He sat and then turned his attention to Rage and me.

Rage met the king’s gaze, and I could see the vein pulse in my mate’s neck as he lowered his head in respect to the man. All right. So this was happening. I followed his lead, glancing out of the corner of my eye to see when Rage lifted his head.

King Ozark looked at Rage with a grin. “Are you indeed the first heir?”

“I am Courage Midnight.” Rage licked his lips and then pointed at me. “And this is my fated mate, Nai Crescent.”

“How lovely.” King Ozark turned to Steele. “Kill them and send their heads to the alpha king.” He issued the command and then glanced down as if to inspect something on his lap.

Wait. What?

Steele turned toward us and pulled his blade as Rage yelled. “Wait!”

The king looked at him with a raised eyebrow and then rolled his eyes. “Let me guess: let you go, and you’ll give me useless gold”—he narrowed his eyes—“or a false promise of reuniting our races and allowing the island to become Shifter Island once again? I’ve heard these lies all before. Your people do nothing but lie.”

Fur rippled down Rage’s arms. Was he going to shift—oh, right, the magic powder … that canceled magic.

My mate stepped forward. “Let me go, and I’ll give you the current alpha king’s head, and as first heir, I’ll become alpha king. Then I will have the power to reunite the shifter races on the island once again. This I swear on my father’s grave.”

Whoa.

The king cocked his head and narrowed his eyes as he leaned forward. “You’d kill your own uncle?”

“Absolutely,” Rage said without hesitation. “He’s a monster. I don’t align with his beliefs—now that I better understand them. I’ll do what’s best for my people, and that’s to stop this war between our races.”

Holy mage. Rage was going to fight for the alpha spot early? Pride and fear wrestled inside of me, churning my gut.