Queen of the Lycan, Karina Espinosa [accelerated reader books .TXT] 📗

I glanced at Alexander, silently pleading for help because I had no idea what it could be. My most valuable possession was the damn crown I received at my coronation, or maybe the MacCoinnich family ring. Other than that, I didn’t own anything that was worth much.

“I have an autographed Coldplay album …” I mumbled, knowing how stupid I sounded.

Fenrir scoffed, “We’ll talk about your poor choice in music another time, but right now I don’t think Abaddon is looking for a Coldplay collectible.”

“That’s its name?” Bash asked. When Fenrir nodded, Bash chided, “You should have told us about it sooner instead of fighting us. People have been hurt because of this!”

Bash wasn’t wrong. The Highlanders had already been attacked by this Abaddon demon. At least I thought so. If we’d known about this threat earlier, maybe they would’ve had a chance.

“If little wolf is the obstacle, then that’s more than enough of a reason to get rid of her.” Fenrir stepped closer to me. Alexander and Bash closed in on me and growled protectively.

Ophelia held up a hand to stop them all. “She may be the problem, but she is also the solution.”

Fenrir threw his hands in the air and scoffed, “Bloody hell! What have you seen, old woman?” He ran a hand through his hair in frustration.

“Enough to tell ye she cannae be killed. Defy me if ye want. My sisters and I are ready,” Ophelia threatened, tightening her grip on the staff.

Fenrir narrowed his eyes and stared me down. The air crackled with tension and poised muscles, ready to strike. “Let’s meet tomorrow to figure this out. I’ve had enough of this.” He turned around, clasped Raven’s hand, and walked into the forest until they were out of sight.

We could have attacked right then and there, but we didn’t. I watched their retreating backs without raising a hand against them because I was exhausted. Besides that, I had a lot of questions. If meeting with Fenrir tomorrow would get me those answers, I’d do it.

14

I didn’t know how much longer I could keep this up. My energy was lower than it had ever been after returning to the castle from our impromptu battle with Fenrir and his Valkyries. We sent for Dr. Harris once we arrived, and after checking on me, he went to tend to the wounded with the help of Tavish. They wouldn’t let me visit Cosima’s apothecary without my guards, which meant if I wanted the help only a witch or warlock could provide, I had to be craftier.

I entered the ballroom where they’d established a triage area and approached the warlock, who was busy bandaging a guard’s leg.

“Hey, Tavish,” I whispered, tapping him on the shoulder.

He peered over at me and startled when he saw who it was. “Yer Majesty!” He bowed. “Are ye okay? Do you need my assistance?”

I waved off his bow. “You’re a warlock; you don’t have to do that. I’m not your queen.”

He blushed. “It’s purely out of respect, Yer Majesty.”

I nodded graciously, then noticed my father on the other side of the ballroom, helping tend to the wounded. I pitched my voice low as I asked, “By any chance …” I scrutinized his bag of goodies, “do you have a stamina potion?”

His brows furrowed and he tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. “A stamina potion?” he repeated. “For ye?”

I bit my lip. “Yeah … I just need a boost …” I glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention to us. “You know, like a jumpstart.” I smiled weakly.

“Are ye sure yer okay, Yer Majesty?” he asked again.

My palms started to sweat. “I’m perfectly fine, just really tired.”

He twisted his mouth to the side and finally nodded, his long, hippie hair falling over his face. “Okay, well, I have one with me that I can give ye. It’s nae very potent, but—”

“That’s okay! I’ll take it!” I cut him off like a crackhead feening for my next hit.

Tavish dug into his bag and searched through multiple jars of tonics before finding the one he was looking for. He pulled out a small vial that contained a bright red liquid. When I reached for it, Tavish pulled it out of my reach.

“Ye know it’s nae good to take too many of these,” he warned.

“Yes, I know. It’s just for today,” I promised.

“Very well.” He reluctantly handed it over.

I snatched it out of his hands, uncapped it, and tossed it back in one shot. I winced from the bitter taste, but didn’t really care about the flavor. The instant it slid down my throat, an invigorating surge of energy coursed through my body. My skin tingled and my muscles felt firm. It was as if I’d been shocked with one thousand volts of electricity.

“Thank you, Tavish!”

“Yer welcome, Yer Majesty.” He bowed and excused himself to get back to work.

I bounced out of the ballroom, feeling wired and ready to tackle an army on my own. My guards were waiting for me.

“Where to, Yer Majesty?” Liam asked.

“My office. I’m meeting the candidates for the Queen’s Council this evening. I need to prepare.” I blinked multiple times, feeling the energy flow through me and trying to calm my racing heart.

The Queen’s Guards escorted me to my office where I found Bash waiting for me with Ranulf.

“Sorry I’m late!” I offered brightly, heading behind my desk. “What did I miss?”

“What did you miss?” Bash looked taken aback. “Did you forget everything that just happened?”

I rolled my eyes. “I know all about that, but did you fill Ranulf in on the Council hopefuls?” I glanced at Ranulf. “Where were you, anyway?”

“The forest was filled to the brim with those women. We were overpowered,” he grunted, obviously displeased. “But Sebastian told me what happened on the shoreline. I don understand Ophelia. She wanted to keep ye a secret, so why reveal ye now?”

I shook my head in consternation. “Your guess is as good as mine, but I have