Midnight Sky ( Book Three Of the Black Alder Series)

Unexpected Turns

Arabella POV

The ball was ending, and I was exhausted. Cassie and Sam had been tailing me all night, trying to get me to tell them how I got the wound on my face, but I didn't say a word. I just felt like I was slowly dying inside.

As the ball was concluding and people began leaving the ballroom, King Damon approached me. I had been keeping my face down all night — half because I didn't want to look at him after what he had done, and half because I didn't want him to see the mark on my face. But fate had other plans.

He gripped my arm with one hand and tilted my face up with the other.

"Who did this to your f*****g face?" he growled lowly.

I tried to think of a lie quickly.

"I fell and hit my face on something," I told him, but he gripped me harder.

"Do you think I'm f*****g stupid, Omega? Let's go," he said, starting to drag me toward the door.

I felt Royal in my head, bouncing aggressively.

Turn around, she commanded.

I locked eyes with the triplet Adonis. A rush of feeling hit me deep in my chest the moment I did, making me dizzy. I turned to another triplet beside him, and the feeling hit me again — the dizzy wave washing over me. Damon was still pulling me toward the door as I finally set eyes on Ares. The feeling struck me once more.

Mate. Mate. Mate. Royal yelled.

I looked at Ares, who was realizing the same thing. Mother fucker — I was mated to three wolves. The realization and the exhaustion of the night caught up with me all at once, and I started seeing black spots.

The last thing I saw before I gave in was all three Alphas rushing toward me.

Adonis POV

The moment I caught the scent of blueberries, I knew exactly who it was. I linked Kyle to bring the pack soldiers in.

When Ash had told me about Ares punching her, I had never wanted to kill my brother as badly as I did at that moment. But then Arabella's mate scent washed completely over me.

Once we reached the room and she looked back at us, the mate bond connected instantly — and it hit us hard. I watched it hit her too, and she looked terribly weak. We rushed to her as she passed out.

The king dropped her on the floor, which only made my anger worse. Ash was at her side instantly, picking her up in his arms. I felt the mate tingles of their touch through the bond. Her friend Sam rushed over but was blocked immediately by Kyle, whose eyes had gone black as he growled at her. She shoved him out of the way without hesitation and went to Ash to check on Arabella.

The man who had dropped her looked shocked, but I had him pinned against the wall by his neck before he could even process what was happening. Our pack soldiers piled in, surrounding everyone inside. All the other men grabbed their mates, looking around in confusion.

Damon struggled and cursed in my grip, but he was powerless. Silas growled through me, and that made him stop and shut up quickly.

"What is this about?" he demanded, a flicker of fear in his eyes.

Good. I intended to keep it there.

"OUR f*****g MATE," I growled and tossed him to the floor near Ares, who was standing very still, staring at Arabella.

I wasn't finished with Ares either, but I would deal with him later.

Damon stood up in a defensive stance.

"She is a simple omega — how could she ever be mated to you?" he spat as I circled him, ready to attack.

"She is mated to all three of us. I have been told what you've been doing to her. She is not leaving with you," I growled.

He stopped moving as one of his ally alphas came over and spoke quietly to him — most likely explaining the gravity of the situation. That seemed to pull him out of his stance. He stood up straighter and fixed himself.

A smirk crossed his face.

"According to our laws, she will stay here, but you three have to acknowledge she is your mate," he said, his eyes shifting to Ares as he spoke.

I walked over to Ash, who was holding Arabella. Ash was already glaring at Ares, waiting for his answer. Ares was still staring at Arabella's unconscious body before finally looking up at Ash and me.

Our eyes were black. Our wolves were out. Everyone in the room had gone quiet, all eyes on Ares.

It was common knowledge that he didn't want a mate. If he rejected her, it would shatter the bond. He looked like he was about to say no when I heard Ash through the triplet bond.

If you reject her, I will f*****g kill him — and then I will f*****g kill you.

I looked toward Ash at the sudden declaration. Ares's eyes went wide before hardening into anger. I shifted my stance in case he tried to go for Ash, but instead, Ares smirked and turned his gaze to King Damon.

"You heard my brother. She is our mate. Do you really want to be stupid enough to find out what happens if you try to take her away?" he said to Damon, smiling.

Ash and I glanced at each other. We weren't expecting that.

Damon wasn't either. His smile vanished instantly. He glanced at Arabella in Ash's arms, and Ash and I growled at the disrespect. He turned his attention to Sam next.

"You're coming with me," he said.

Kyle stepped in front of her immediately.

"Touch my mate, and you die," his wolf growled.

Damon's eyes went cold as he realized he had nothing left. Arabella was no longer his. He turned and walked out angrily, his alphas following behind him. I linked Clair and the soldiers to make sure he collected his things and left the pack lands.

Ares walked over to us, and Arabella stirred slightly.

"Take her to the guest room," he said, then turned and walked out.

Ash carried her to the guest room while Sam, Kyle, and I followed. I went to my room to find her a shirt and some shorts to sleep in. When I came back, Kyle and Sam were in a heated debate, and Ash was sitting on the bed watching Arabella sleep.

"What is going on?" I asked.

"She wants to sleep in this room tonight, but she belongs in my room," Kyle said, frustrated.

"I don't care where you think I belong. She is my best friend, and I'm not f*****g leaving her," Sam replied, crossing her arms.

"But you're my mate," Kyle said, stepping toward her to breathe her in.

"You don't know half of the s**t we have had to face where we come from. I'm staying here with her. When she wakes up, I will consider sleeping in your room," she said, pushing him away.

He stormed out of the room, pissed.

"Finally, someone to put him in his place," I said playfully, and she smiled.

"I figured you were her mate when you saved her. At the palace, the queen hits her constantly, and no one does anything. The king does worse. Thank you for saving her. She didn't say anything, but I know she was thinking about you. And she was lying earlier — she was forced into everything," Sam said, starting to explain further, but I held up my hand to stop her.

"We already know. We were told everything," I told her, and she nodded.

Suddenly, Arabella sat up, clutching her chest.

"It hurts — it hurts — what is happening?" she moaned in pain.

I felt the same pain a moment later, just not as intense, and then I knew. Ares was sleeping with someone. I swore I was going to disable him. I almost walked out when she groaned again — this time in real agony.

The pain I was feeling was bad enough, but I knew what she was experiencing was ten times worse, since she was at the other end of our bond. If Ares had never acknowledged her as our mate, she wouldn't have felt a thing. Normally you don't feel a partner's betrayal until you've been marked, but the rules were bent due to our Lycan nature.

Ash and I tried to calm her as she cried through the pain. Then we heard a pop, and I realized she was shifting.

Ash lowered her gently to the floor while I pushed the bed aside to give her room.

She cried out in pain. Ash and I each took one of her hands and talked her through it until, finally, she shifted.

When it was over, I marveled at her wolf. She was truly a sight to behold.

Ash POV

Arabella's wolf was so beautiful, I almost wanted to cry.

I knew from the report Adonis had pulled that she was special, but seeing her wolf in person was something else entirely. Her coat was so silver it could pass for white. She was almost the same height as ours — instantly confirming her royal status, since she stood far taller than an average wolf.

Once I felt the needles piercing my heart, I knew Ares was betraying her. f*****g bastard. But I couldn't focus on him right now.

I tried linking him, but he cut the connection. He was probably still angry from the threat I had made earlier. He would get over it.

I stood up and kissed her wolf on the head. She nudged her head lovingly against my legs, and then against Adonis's as well.

"Shift," Adonis commanded with his Lycan voice.

She continued rubbing her head against his legs. He looked at me, confused. No wolf could refuse our Lycan shift command.

It's because she is a royal alpha wolf, bred by an extremely powerful force. She does not have to respond to our commands like others do, my wolf Soren told me.

I got on my knees.

"Hi, Wolf Girl. You are stunning, and I can't wait for you to meet my wolf, Soren. But if it's okay with you, can we please have Arabella back now? She has had a long night and a hard life — as I know you've seen — and we want to start making things right for her, starting tonight," I told her, kissing her on the head again.

She nodded, licked my face, and then shifted back.

"Until next time," she said through our bond.

Sam took her clothes from Adonis, and I turned around, waiting for her to get dressed. When she was done, I moved the bed back, and Adonis set her back on it.

Thankfully, the pain of Ares's betrayal had faded.

"He is sleeping with someone else," she said, and my heart ached as I felt her sadness flood through the bond.

I held her until she was done crying, then wiped her eyes. She gazed up at me, and her eyes went wide as something clicked.

"The feral wolf," she whispered.

I nodded and kissed her head.

"Not feral — I just didn't want to scare you," I told her, smiling.

She nodded and let more tears fall, but they seemed happy ones, because she was smiling through them. Then she looked at Adonis. He knelt in front of her. Her long blonde hair had come loose from its bun and fell across her face. He pushed it back from her heart-shaped face gently and took her hand, kissing it. She smiled at him.

"Guess I'm invisible now," her friend said from across the room.

Arabella jumped, realizing Sam was still there.

"Never," Arabella said, holding out her hand and pulling Sam into a hug.

Sam spent a while telling her everything that had happened, and Arabella's eyes went wide when she heard that Ares had claimed her as his mate.

"He doesn't love me," she said sadly, lowering her head.

That upset both Adonis and me, but we both knew how Ares felt. I hugged her again, letting her breathe in my scent.

"He does, Bella. He is just stubborn and doesn't realize it yet. But we will talk to him," I told her.

She nodded and lay down. I knew she would be sleepy soon. The first shift is always the hardest on the body, and some people sleep for days after.

We tucked her in and kissed her on the head. Sam climbed into bed beside her, which annoyed me slightly — but I could tell it made Bella more comfortable, so I let it go.

"Goodnight, Bella," I told her.

"Goodnight, Beauty," Adonis said softly.

We walked out and pulled the door shut behind us.

"I'm thinking we finish what we started earlier," I said to Adonis.

"Look at you, reading my mind," he replied.

And we set off to find Ares.