The Lost Warrior Princess

Still Alive.

Nicolas’s POV

As I was waking, I was hit with that familiar copper taste of blood. My body worked on its own, grasping the arm of the person feeding me the gift of their blood. At first my swallowing was erratic almost animalistic gulping. My eyes and limbs felt heavy, it was like being in a haze that only blood could bring me out of.

After a few minutes of the warm liquid flowing down my throat I could feel my sliced flesh knitting itself back together, once I had taken enough to kickstart the healing process, my swallowing slowed and I was able to open my eyes. I had been expecting to see my beautiful mate being the one that was giving me her blood but it wasn't, I should have realised that from the taste.

Her blood was like the most addictive drug to me, this blood was bitter like if I was to take too much I would throw it all back up. But I hadn’t been expect the set of dark brown eyes looking back at me from a slightly pale face of the last person I expected to save my life.

Riley.

Riley had his arm held out with my fangs imbedded in his flesh. I carefully retracted my fangs from his skin and licked over the wound to help seal it. After I released his arm he slumped slightly next to me. I let out a deep breathy thank you to him, receiving a small nod back. I wasn’t sure what had made him help me but the way he was looking at my mate and I told me it was something personal that he had to work out himself.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” I asked my love. She laughed a little at my concern.

“You were just stabbed and almost lost all the blood in your body and you’re worried about me?” She smiled back at me, unshed tears in her eyes.

“Of course, you took some hits as well.” I replied, I wanted to touch her and tell her everything would be okay but I couldn’t, not with all these eyes on us. So instead I patted her hand and thanked her.

The commotion of people was starting to settle down as Alpha Gareth handed the now unconscious assailant to two of his warriors to take to the pack house interrogation cells. He was going to be thoroughly questioned and I hoped that I would be able to assisted in his questioning. He was going to pay for hurting my precious mate and upsetting her.

“Is someone going to tell me what the hell happened and why there is an intruder in my pack house?” Alpha Gareth asked angrily. I would be furious as well if I found a stranger trying to kill a guest in my home. Hell if we didn’t need to question him he would have already been ripped apart.

“I’m not sure Alpha, but I’m sure after some time in interrogation he will start talking.” Leo said from the doorway. “I will personally see to it that he is given the right amount of encouragement.” He growled out through clenched teeth.

“Alpha Gareth, why was it no one heard the commotion sooner?” I asked as I stood, Luna wrapping her arm around me to help steady me. I gave her a confused look, she normally wouldn’t be this close to me while Riley was around. When she looked up at me she whispered “he knows you’re my mate.” Turning to Riley he just looked conflicted, like something was eating away at him from the inside.

“I believe I can answer that, while I was diving through Riley’s mind to search his memories for any hint that he was the assassin I put a barrier up around the rooms so that I wouldn’t be interrupted. I figured that it would be easier to also put one on everyone else’s rooms incase, well, any funny business happened. I didn’t account that it would prevent us hearing anything in an attack.” Anya said, looking rather irritated with herself. I knew that look from when I was a child, she would get it when something didn’t work the way she had planned for it to work.

“You were diving through my thoughts? What the f**k?!” Riley snapped, “Y-you had no right to do that!”

“Riley, we needed to be sure.” Luna replied calmly to him.

“No! You don’t get it! She made me see things I never wanted to relive again!” He yelled. I looked towards Anya who only looked at Riley with sadness and pity in her eyes. What ever it was that she had seen it must have been horrible for her to feel pity for him.

“Riley, what are you talking about? What did she make you relive? I thought it was just to search for anything to do with a secret mission.” Luna asked stepping towards him only for me to grab her hand and pull her back to me. It hurt to move still but I didn’t have the best relationship with this human male.

“She. . . She made me see my sister. . .” He whispered. His posture went from rigid to slumped as soon as the words fell from his lips.

“Wait, I thought you said you didn’t have any family?” Alice said from her place next to Alpha Gareth.

“She, she died. . .” He trailed off looking at the floor. There was something about the way he said it that made me think there was more to it than she just died, he wasn’t telling the full truth.

“She didn’t just die did she? You killed her.” I stated plainly. His head snapped up to me, his usual hard arrogant exterior was gone and a broken boy stood in front of me. I was right, he didn’t even need to confirm it for me for me to know I was right, I could see it in his eyes.

“I-I didn’t know it was her they sent me after, they never gave me a name just that the person I was after was female and had leaked secrets to the werewolves.” He replied with tears running down his face.

“Riley?” My mate said in a soft voice. “Talk to me, tell me what happened. I want to help.” She looked to me with a pleading look in her eyes, nodding my head I let go of her hand. She slowly walked over to her team mate and put her hand on his shoulder. “Please, tell me so I can help.”

Looking at her he nodded, but he started walking over to Alpha Gareth. Stopping in front of him he stuck his hand out to him. I was a little confused why he had done that but my question was answered soon after Alpha Gareth grabbed his hand.

“Congratulations on finding your mate.” He said still sniffling a little.

“Wait how did you know?” Alice asked him, watching the exchange between her mate and her teammate.

“I could see it in the way he looked at you. My sisters mate looked at her the same way when I first met him, but it wasn’t on such good terms. He had been in his wolf form.” He replied. “Is there somewhere we can all go to talk? Just the team, it’s okay if the mates and the witch come.” He asked taking his hand back. Alpha Gareth nodded and lead us out of the room. As we walked out a group of female members from the pack were rushing in to our room with buckets of cleaning supplies.

After leaving the room and walking down the halls, we arrived at a door where two people were already waiting outside of it for us. The Beta female Lily was standing with the last member of the team, Alpha Gareth opened the doors and we all filed in and took seats in the large conference room.

“What’s going on? Lily said we were to come here as soon as possible.” Max said from his seat next to Alice.

“Riley has something to talk to us about, it’s Important and also very personal.” Luna replied.

“This room is soundproofed so not even my wolves can hear what is said in this room with the doors shut.” Alpha Gareth said from his place next to Alice at the head of the table.

“Ready when you are.” He directed to Riley who was seated at the opposite end to Alpha Gareth so everyone would be able to see him. Riley nodded and took a deep breath, he repeated that a few more times before he seemed to have his emotions under control enough to speak.

“I was sent on a solo mission, I wasn’t allowed to tell anyone about what I was actually doing on the mission.” He started before Alice interrupted.

“Wait, are you talking about the solo mission you got just over a year ago?” She asked. With a stiff nod in reply Riley continued.

“The mission brief was that I was to assassinate a traitor, that this traitor was feeding government secrets to the werewolves and they were a security risk. I wasn’t given a name or a photo to be able to identify my target just that they were hiding in an old cabin near the village I grew up in.” He took a breath before he continued. “I was to stake out the cabin until the traitor was alone before completing the mission. I was there for three days before the werewolf left, then I just had to wait for the opening. They were standing by the window when I finally took the shot.” He seemed to be getting more and more emotional the more he spoke.

“Riley please, I know it hurts but please tell us what happened next.” My little mate said softly from her seat next to me. She would make a perfect queen when the time was right, she was fierce but also kind and caring when she needed to be.

“After I took the shot. . . I, I had to go and make sure they were dead.” He took a shaky breath, “but when I got in to the cabin and saw who it was I froze, I had shot my sister. There was so much blood, so much.” Shaking his head as if to get rid of the unwanted memories but he kept going, continuing his story. “ After I realised what I had done I tried to help her, I tried to bandage her up enough to get her help but a wolf came in a knocked me away from her. She said he was her mate and told him I was her brother. He wouldn’t let me take her to the village for help, he wanted me to stick her on his back. She was bleeding out, I didn’t have a choice. I couldn’t take her with me to get help and he wasn’t going to leave without her, so I did what he wanted and then he ran off. I haven’t seen her since.” He finally broke down and let his emotions break through the flood gates he had put up.

To my irritation my beautiful mate stood and went to console him, Alice and Max followed her lead. After a long silence he spoke again. “I worked out as soon as my sister said he was her mate that the commanders had lied, she wasn’t a traitor she was just in love. They wanted her dead because she loved a werewolf.”

“Riley, what did the wolf look like? Was he grey with white tipped ears and feet?” Gareth asked from the other end of the table. Riley nodded his head, “was your sisters name Ivy?” He asked again, again Riley nodded his head. “Well, I can assure you, she isn’t dead.” Alpha Gareth said with a smile.

“In fact, she is in the Ice Fang Pack with her mate. She’s the Beta female.”

“She, she’s alive? I didn’t kill her?” Riley stuttered out. I looked to my mate, she was smiling. I knew that the relationship with Riley and my mate wasn’t great but she cared for him as a friend even after everything.

“Is that why you hate supernaturals?” Max asked him.

“I thought that they were the reason she was put on the hit list, I blamed them for her death. I should have realised it wasn’t her mates fault, he only wanted to love her. I’m sorry Luna, I thought I was protecting you because I couldn’t protect my sister. Please, let me help keep you safe. I was so wrong, I thought the worst of the Prince. I don’t know what came over me, it was like I didn’t have full over my own thoughts and body.”

“Riley, you should have just come to us and told us what was going on, we could have helped you.” My little mate said to him.

“Riley, you are forgiven. But, if you do anything to harm my mate either physically, verbally or emotionally I will kill you. If you try to make advances on my mate I will kill you in the slowest way possible. If anything happens to my mate because of a betrayal on your part, I will kill you. Do you understand? She is my everything now and I will end anyone that tries to harm her in any way.” I said glaring at him.

“Understood, I may have strong feelings for Luna that I don’t really understand but she deserves to have her happiness. That is all I have ever wanted for the people I care about, to be happy even if it isn’t with me. But understand Prince leach, if YOU do anything to hurt her or she dies because of you. . . I will cut that vampire d**k of yours off and feed it to the rogue wolves for dinner while you watch and then I will cut you up into tiny pieces before sending you back to your family.” He replied with a glare just as fierce as my own. I gave a vicious fanged smirk in reply. I would have fun torturing him if he harmed my mate.

“Ooookay. . . Now that has been made clear, can we please have a normal conversation, without the gross torture please.” Beta Lily said, making everyone laugh. I had forgotten she was even in here. My eyes caught Anya’s as a serious look graced her features.

“What is it Anya?” I asked in a serious tone causing everyone to stop their laughing.

“This means Alpha Gareth and Luna Alice as well as yourself and Princess Isabella are in more danger then we first thought. We need to get the treaty signed and fast so I can convene with my fellow council members. The human leaders need to be held accountable for their actions against the Goddess’ gift to all supernaturals.” She said seriously. “And then there is the matter of the two spells I found on our friend over there.”

“Um. . . Who’s Princess Isabella and what spells?” Riley asked abruptly making the room deathly quiet again. This is going to be a long day. I internally groaned. Goddess give me strength.