His Lost Mate

Chapter 11

Freja

The Blood Moon territory is near Great Falls. It’s almost four hours from Kalispell; the home of the Crescent Moon pack. Blood Moon’s pack lands are massive. It’s the largest territory in the United States, which makes sense because it is the home of the king and queen. The houses are beautiful. They remind me of the homes in Crescent Moon’s territory. Honestly, everything here is beautiful. The scenery, the buildings, even the people are beautiful.

Alaric arranged for our arrival with the king last week. I’ve had enough time to prepare myself to face the people I would possibly start a war with. I want to avoid that as much as possible, but it may be unavoidable.

When we pull up to the castle, yes there is a castle, the king and queen are waiting for us outside. I find that kind of strange but maybe they are just showing us respect. That will likely change once they find out why we’ve travelled here. I’m almost afraid to get out of the car, but there’s no turning back now.

We bow to the king and queen and Alaric says, “King Robert, Queen Kathryn. Thank you for this meeting.” The king gestures for us to rise and takes Alaric’s hand, “It’s been a long time, Alpha Ragnulf, I hope all is well in your pack. What has brought you here?”

Alaric turns his head to me and gestures for me to join them. “This is..” before he can finish, the king holds his hand up for him to stop. He stares at me for a moment, like he’s trying to figure out how he knows me.

“It can’t be,” he says. “You are the lost princess. You were thought to be dead. What is your name?”

“Freja,” I say. “Freja Fredrickson. I am the daughter of King Allen and Queen Francesca.”

“You’ve come to claim your throne, haven’t you?” King Robert says, not really asking.

“Yes, I have.”

“Well, I suppose we should talk about this inside,” he says. He turns to walk inside and we follow him. He’s not what I was expecting. I was expecting your typical king; old and dressed in royal clothing. He’s wearing a black suit with a white shirt. He doesn’t look old, but I suspect he is much older than he looks. And he’s a handsome man. The queen is equally as beautiful. She has long dark hair that contrasts against her milky white skin. Her black dress hits just below her knees. She’s wearing the tallest heels I’ve ever seen; I’m afraid if she missteps she’ll break her ankle.

Ares holds my hand as we walk into the castle. It’s huge. And I thought Crescent Moon was daunting. I’d much rather be back there right now. I’ve grown so comfortable there; like it’s my home. I am in awe of this castle. The floor is white marble with specks of gold. The walls are lined with textured Victorian wallpaper. King Robert’s office is on the second floor. It’s much like Alaric’s office, but on a bigger scale. There’s a wall of books that catches my eye. I trail my fingers over some of the books. I notice a few old classics. The Odyssey, The Count of Monte Cristo, Pride and Prejudice, The Art of War.

“Do you like to read, Freja?” King Robert asked me.

“I do. It was the only solace I found while I was held captive,” I tell him. My heart breaks a little thinking about the many years I spent in a dungeon or a prison cell. Ares brushes his thumb over my knuckles, offering me comfort. I can feel that he is as anxious as I am, though.

“How long were you held captive?” He asks.

“My whole life. Alpha Alaric and my mate, Ares only found me a month or so ago when I escaped,” I say. He nods but he doesn’t seem too interested in my story. Either that, or he knows how difficult it is for me to talk about it.

“You know, I’d heard there was a challenge over in your region, Alaric. Was that you?” King Robert asks. “Yes, I challenged Alpha Derrick after we rescued Freja. He killed her parents and kidnapped her,” Alaric answers.

“That bastard. I never did like him or his family. Never did think he was fit to be an alpha,” King Robert looks disgusted. “He was a poor excuse for a man and a shifter.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” I say to myself, but King Robert chuckles.

“Let’s all have a seat and get down to business,” he says and sits behind his desk. “I’m sorry my son couldn’t be here today. He’s taken a little vacation with his mate.”

I look over at Damon. His fated mate rejected him and mated with the king’s son. His face remains neutral but I know he’s not happy hearing about his fated mate with another man. I feel bad for him. I don’t know if he’s talked to Claire yet. I want them both to be happy. His eyes meet mine for a moment before he looks back to the king.

“Freja, as you know, I have been king since your parents died. Twenty-two years. I can honestly say that I am glad that you are here,” King Robert says, shocking everyone in the room. “I am ready to retire and pass down my crown. I only have one condition. My son will take over as king and you will be his queen.”

“What?!” Alaric shouts. Ares growls loudly. There’s no way in hell I will be queen to his son’s king.

“No,” I say. King Robert lifts his brow, “No?”

“I am mated to Ares. Your son has a mate as well.”

“Bonds can be broken,” he says. “These are my terms. Take it or leave it.”

“No! This is my birthright. I will not agree to your terms. I will be queen and Ares will be my king. You can’t do this.”

“Ah, but I am the king, I can do whatever I want. And what I want is for my son to be the next king. That is his birthright,” he says calmly, but I can tell he’s getting angry.

“I will not agree to your ridiculous terms,” I start to say, but he interrupts me, “Then we are done talking.”He stands up and everyone else does the same. Everyone except for me. I remain seated. He may be done, but I am not. This castle belongs to me. I am the rightful heir to the throne and I’m not giving up. The throne will be mine.

I look out the window and see the sky has turned dark. The wind is whipping through the trees, snapping branches. Lightning cracks across the sky and thunder booms. Ares puts his hand on my shoulder and leans close to my ear, “What are you doing?”

“Are you trying to scare me, little wolf?” He says as he walks around his desk. He sits on the edge of the desk in front of me. His eyes turn dark and outside the sky lights up and thunder roars. Rain pours down and hail beats at the windows. He is doing this; he is in control of his power. Lightning strikes right in front of the window behind him, shattering the glass. Papers go flying and rain soaks everything in the vicinity.

“This is how you wield your power, Freja,” he says and I’m amazed at how much control he has. I have always tried to hide my ability. I learned to keep my emotions in check, even when Derrick tried to torture it out of me.

“How?” I ask. “How do you have so much control over it?” He smiles and the sky clears up. “Practice,” he says. My abilities are tied to my emotions. When I lose control over my emotions, particularly when I’m angry, I can change the weather. But I’ve never really had any control over it. King Robert doesn’t seem angry at all. Annoyed maybe, but not angry.

A thought pops into my head. He is not my enemy. He only wants what he thinks his son deserves; the throne. I need him as an ally. I can see now that the war is not with him. The war will be with the council. The council believes the blessed wolves are an abomination. I wonder if they know the wolf they appointed king is a blessed wolf.

“The council doesn’t know, do they?” I ask him and he shakes his head. “You know they’ve been killing off the blessed wolves,” I say.

“I’d heard rumors, but I didn’t want to believe they would do that to their own kind,” he says.

“We can’t let them keep doing it. I will not agree to your terms, but I need you on my side. If I’m going to take down the council, I need every ally I can get.”

“Take down the council? Are you mad? Are you trying to conspire against our leaders?” He gets up from his desk and whispers in his guard’s ear. “Everyone out. Except for you, Freja.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Ares says. I put my hand on his and say, “It’s okay, I’ll be fine. Go.” He’s not happy. In fact, he’s furious, but I have to talk to King Robert. Ares looks like he’s about to shift and tear Robert apart. “If one hair is out of place, I will rip your spine out through your mouth,” he threatens the king. I’m shocked by his bold words. Surely the king will not let that slide.

King Robert nods his head and Ares walks out of the office along with everyone else. “He’s very temperamental, isn’t he?”

“Only when it comes to me,” I chuckle. Ares has been very protective of me since he rescued me from Alaska. I rarely have a moment to myself. Either he is with me or I have guards following me around. I don’t mind always having someone around, though, because I spent most of my life alone. Or with people that hated and tortured me.

“So, you want to rebel against the council? How do you plan to do so?” He asks. I haven’t really planned that far. My first step was to take over as queen, and while that is going better than expected, it’s not really going very well.

“I don’t exactly know yet,” I tell him.

“Don’t you think you should figure that out before you try to form an alliance?” He’s right, I can’t ask people to help me if I don’t know how I’m going to take down the council. I put my head down and say, “You’re right. I have no idea what I’m doing here.”

“Despite what your mate may have said about me, I am a good person. I will help you,” he says.

“Why? You know I’m not going to agree to mate with your son.”

“The council has been doing wrong for a long time. Take your family, for example. Your parents were murdered. What did the council do? Nothing. They appointed a new king and queen before they were even buried,” he says. He seems angry. The death of my parents seems to have benefited him and his family. I already know the council had my parents killed. He doesn’t. Maybe he has suspicions, and that’s why he’s willing to help me.

“The council killed my parents, but you suspected they had something to do with their death. They killed them and left me in the hands of a cruel alpha while everyone thought that I was dead.”

“Do you have proof of this? You can’t just accuse them of this heinous crime without any proof.” I cringe because the only people that would be proof of the council’s treachery are dead. Derrick and Theo are both dead at the hands of the Blood Moon pack. I doubt anyone else from the pack would know anything. I don’t think anyone knew who I was, other than someone to hunt and torture. There’s only one other person I can think of that could be used as proof.

“I don’t know if she’s still alive,” I tell. “Derrick’s brother had a mate that was or is on the council. Her name is Tasha, but she may have died not long after Theo was killed.”

Tasha is a long shot, but she would be my only hope. If she is still alive, she will surely deny any involvement with Theo and the council’s connection to the killings of the blessed wolves and my parents. Derrick knew how to lie without being detected. I would bet money he learned from the council.

“We will have to find her then. You’ll need proof before going before the council,” he tells me. “Freja, the council is not your only enemy here. There are packs that hate the blessed wolves.”

“I know. I came from one of them.”

“No, you came from this pack. This is your home,” he smiles and I can feel something. I hear something in the back of my mind. “Freja,” I hear him say in my head. It’s the pack mind link. My eyes go wide as I stare at him. “You have always been part of this pack. Since the day you were born.”

“I will not mate with your son,” I tell again. He laughs, “I know. Besides, he doesn’t even want to be king. He’s too busy taking vacations. I needed to make sure you wouldn’t give in so easily. And I couldn’t imagine that gold-digging mate of his being queen. She would be the fall of us.”

“You know you’ve royally pissed off my mate?” We both laugh because I said royally. “Pun intended.”

Ares

Freja has been in his office for a while. I’m getting more and more anxious by the minute. I can’t mind link her because there is some kind of block in the office. Robert must have a device that he can turn on and off. It would not be smart to block out all communication at all times. My dad clears his throat and brings me out of my thoughts, "Settle down, son. She's fine."

"I won't settle down until she walks out of that office, unharmed," I link back. I don't trust Robert, not after his terms. "You know we have bad blood with Blood Moon."

"No, you have bad blood with Asher. King Robert is a good man. I can't say the same for his son, though."

Asher stole Damon's mate, Celeste. Damon and Celeste found out they were mates when they turned eighteen. At first, she accepted the bond, but when the king came to our pack for a visit, Asher set his sights on Celeste. She decided she wanted more than 'just a soldier.' She broke her bond with Damon and mated with Asher. Damon was heartbroken for quite some time. All he did was mope around like a lost puppy. His heart finally healed, and now he's lovesick over Claire. He really knows how to pick them.

"Sit down, Ares!" I feel my dad's alpha tone and I have no choice but to sit. He rarely uses an alpha command on me. I sigh as I sit next to him. He pats my knee, "She's fine. They'll be done soon. Just relax. You know she's not going to break your bond."

Soon is thirty minutes later. Robert's office door opens and she appears, smiling. Her eyes meet mine and her face turns to concern. "What's wrong?" She asks. "Nothing. I'm just glad that you are okay," I tell her.

"Why wouldn't she be okay? I'm not a barbarian Ares," Robert says. "We've come to an agreement. Would you like to tell them, Freja?"

She nods, "We have to find Tasha. Hopefully she is still alive. We will need her as proof of the council's involvement in the killing of my parents and the blessed wolves. Oh, and King Robert is going to help control my power."

"And what of his terms?" I ask, almost not wanting to know the answer. She hesitates for a moment and I start to get nervous. She can't do this. My heart starts beating faster as I wait for one of them to answer.

"Freja will be queen, don't worry about that Ares," Robert says, non-chalantly. "And you, Ares, will be her king. But not until we can bring peace to our people and take down the council. Those are my new terms." Relief washes over me. Freja grabs my face and kisses me, further helping me relax.

"My king," she says though the mind link. I almost can't believe what I'm hearing. She did it, she actually convinced the king to give up his reign. And she did it on her own. I feel bad for doubting her ability. I should have known she would be able to come here and take what's hers.

"I would like to invite you all to have dinner with us tonight. Dinner will be served at seven. Don't be late," Robert announces. My dad shakes his hand and agrees to dinner.

"I don't think I'm dressed for dinner with the king and queen," Freja whispers to me. I chuckle, "You look fine, but if you're really concerned, I'm sure my mom packed you something fancy to wear."

"I did, and you will look beautiful. Just as the future queen should," my mom says. "Not that you don't look beautiful already."

Robert has made arrangements for us to stay the night. Dinner was as expected, too fancy for me. But I guess I'll have to get used to that considering Freja and I will be king and queen one day. Freja looked amazing in the dress my mom packed for her. It was navy, the official color of the Crescent Moon pack. It had a slit that went up to her mid thigh. I wanted to slide my hand up her thigh to her p***y all night. The neckline showed off her breasts, driving me more insane. When she came down the stairs, my d**k stood at attention. It took everything I had not to throw her over my shoulder and take her to our room. She knew exactly what she was doing when she put that dress on and put her hair up, showing off my mark on her neck.

After dinner, Robert suggested we take a tour of the grounds. I took Freja to the garden, because I knew she would love it. She loves sitting in the garden my mom has worked so hard on back home. The garden at the castle is beautiful, and Freja's eyes lit up when she saw it. There's a fountain in the center. It's surrounded by shrubs and rose bushes. Roses are her favorite. "Ares, this is amazing. It's beautiful. This whole place is beautiful. I can't believe this will all be ours one day," she says.

"One day, my queen. One day we will be able to sit out here everyday. As much as we like," I tell her and put my hands on her hips. "But right now, I want nothing more than to take you up to our room and get you out of this dress and make love to you."

I step closer to her and press my erection into her backside, showing her how much she turns me on. She presses herself back into me, and my hand slides down her thigh to the slit of her dress. My fingers find their way up her dress, up to her wet p***y. She's not wearing panties. "f**k, Freja. You're going to be the death of me." She laughs and says, "Take me to bed and make good on your promise."

We make our way through the castle, and since I've been here before, I know which halls to take without being seen by anyone. She stops me and pushes me up against a wall and kisses me hard. I growl into her mouth and turn her back to the wall and slip my hand up her dress again. She moans into my mouth. I slip my finger into her and she shutters. "Ares," she moans. The sound of my name on her lips makes my d**k even harder. I palm my d**k to relieve some of the pressure while pumping my fingers in and out of her. Her walls start to clench around my fingers, and I know she's close. I put my hand over her mouth, "You'll have to be quiet, my love. Don't want anyone to hear you." She closes her eyes, but I tap her cheek, "Eyes open. Look into my eyes as you c*m, Freja."

Her moans become louder as she clenches harder. She leans her head back against the wall and starts to rock her hips, drawing herself closer to cumming. I push my fingers further into her p***y and curl them in a come-hither motion. She grabs onto my arms and shutters. She's so close, "c*m for me baby. c*m on hand." With those words she cums so hard her whole body shakes. She never takes her eyes off mine. She's so beautiful, I can't take my eyes off of her. "I'm so proud of what you've done today. You will make a fine queen," I whisper in her ear. I bring my fingers to my mouth and slip them into my mouth. Reveling in her taste.

Throwing her over my shoulder, I find our room and toss her onto the bed. I rip the dress at the slit and unzip my pants. I can't wait to be inside of her. I grab her by the back of her knees, and slide her to the edge of the bed and thrust into her. We both growl with pleasure. Her back arches off the bed and I grab at the neckline of her dress and rip it down the center, meeting the ripped slit. She whimpers when I palm her breast. She bites the side of her lip, trying to suppress her moans. "You don't have to be quiet in here, these walls are soundproof," I tell her.

"I want you to f**k me, Ares. Just as you like," she says. I have to restrain myself because I don't want to hurt her, but I know just the right amount of pain to bring her pleasure. I unbutton my shirt and toss it on the floor. I flip her to her stomach and thrust into her, gripping her hips. Trailing my fingers down her spine, goosebumps appear on her skin. She moans, and I grab her hands. I hold them behind her back and pump into her. She's getting close to cumming again. I slow my thrust, I want to tease her just as she did in that dress tonight.

"Ares, please, I need to.." she says. "You need to what, my love? c*m? Oh baby, I'm going to drag this out. Just as you teased me tonight, I'm going to tease you. This will be your punishment." She whines and I can't help but laugh. I thrust painfully slow into her, dragging my own orgasm out, until I can't hold out any longer. When I feel myself on the edge of cumming, I lean down over her back and whisper in her ear, "Cum." It's a command, even though I know I cannot command her. She moans loudly and rides out her orgasm. My body goes rigid as I c*m inside of her. I fall to the bed beside her and she turns to her side, facing me.

"If you keep ripping my clothes, you'll have to buy me a new wardrobe," she says, smiling.

"I will buy you everything you want."