Defying the Lycan King-Chapter 13: The Mysteries of Kira

Derek pushed open the heavy library doors. "What have you got?"

Kai’s voice drifted across the room, reading from a tablet in that easy, teasing tone he always used.

"Kira Thornclaw, twenty years old, sophomore year, studying Law and Inter-Pack Governance at Aethelwulf Centralis University, straight-A student. Best friend, Jessica Ashfang..."

Derek tuned him out, crossed to the sideboard, and poured himself a generous measure of whiskey, then knocked it back in one burning swallow while he tried to get his head around the woman in his home. He was furious at Rolf and his pack for making a fool of him, yet after talking to her last night, he was not sure what he wanted to do next.

Something was definitely wrong, and it was not just about the deception.

He wanted to know who had been poisoning her, why, and how she was able to survive that amount of poison for so long. There was also the mystery of her mother to consider, because even though Derek did not know Rolf intimately, he knew the man never acted without a hidden motive, especially considering what Rolf had done to Derek’s own family in the past. He needed to know why that bastard had given him this strange girl for a wife.

"Your Grace? Derek!"

He blinked and focused on Declan, who was giving him a puzzled look. "Have you been listening?"

"Lorenzo found aconite extract and fadevine in her bloodstream," Derek said quietly. "She has been ingesting them for years."

"What?" Declan and Kai said together.

"How is she still alive?" Declan asked.

Derek shrugged and poured another finger of whiskey. "Beats me." He glanced at Kai. "Anything in her medical records?"

Kai shook his head. "Nothing major, just a few injuries, some accident reports, occasional fevers."

"Accidents?" Derek’s brows drew together as he took the file Kai slid across the desk.

"Yeah." Kai tapped the tablet. "Once she was brought in after inhaling smoke when her room caught fire. Survived a rogue attack as a teenager, a few scratches, that sort of thing."

Derek scanned the reports, his frown deepening with every line.

"You think those accidents were ordinary?" Declan asked.

"Definitely not," Derek muttered. He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, still concentrating on the papers. "She told me Rolf hates her because her mother died giving birth to her. She has no memories of the woman, no photos, nothing. But what bothers me more is how quickly he remarried, barely a year after losing his supposed love."

From the dates Kai had pulled, Kira’s birthday had only been at the end of last month, which meant she was little more than a year older than the real Chloe.

"This is getting complicated," Declan said, scratching his head. "This is not what we signed up for." 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"No, it is not."

"We are treading on very dangerous ground. She could be a spy," Declan insisted.

Kai barked out a laugh, causing both Declan and Derek to turn toward him with glares. "Sorry, what?" Kai grinned. "You really think that girl is some master manipulator?"

"Do you have a better idea?" Declan snapped.

Kai raised his hands in mock surrender. "My team would have spotted it if she had any hidden agenda in her profile."

"Well, maybe your team is not as infallible as you claim," Declan shot back through clenched teeth.

"Coming from the man who could not spot a spy even when she was staring him in the face," Kai retorted. "Took me one look to figure her out, remember?"

"That was different. She was my significant other."

Kai burst into laughter again. "Significant what now? Just say you were blinded by love. Declan, you are too boring."

"Enough!" Derek growled, and the room fell silent. Declan and Kai always bickered like schoolboys. Declan hated how lightly Kai took everything, while Kai loved needling Declan for being too serious.

Well, Kai enjoyed needling everyone, and it baffled Derek and the rest how the ladies thought he was charming when he was mostly just annoying.

Derek found the whole thing exhausting.

"This is not the time to squabble like rival wives," he said flatly. Declan shot Kai one last glare while Kai smirked. Declan was clearly stung by the mention of the time he had fallen for a girl who turned out to be an enemy spy. "We need to figure out what Rolf is playing at."

"I still say she is just caught in the middle," Kai offered. "She does not strike me as the scheming type, more like someone plotting how to murder you in your sleep for dragging her into this marriage."

Derek sent him an icy look. "That is supposed to reassure me?"

Declan leaned forward. "I think Rolf, or whoever he really is to her, sent her here to catalogue our weaknesses. She is smart; it would not take her long."

Derek had considered that too, but he had promised himself he would not regret choosing a revenge bride. If Rolf thought he had won with this deceit, he was in for a nasty surprise.

"Remember how Rolf infiltrated your father’s court," Declan pressed. "There were other ways to conquer the werewolf territories without going through this entire sham of a marriage."

"Did you forget that I needed a wife to claim my throne, Declan?"

"You could have chosen any Lycan girl."

Derek turned to him fully. "My decision is final, Declan. Deal with it."

"I just hope you do not catch feelings for a werewolf," Declan said through gritted teeth. "You know how dangerous that would be for all of us."

"I know what I am doing, Declan. Drop it."

"They killed my father!" Declan snapped.

In a blur, Derek crossed the library and got in Declan’s face, pheromones flooding the room. "They killed my entire family. Never bring this up again. I am not asking, I am commanding you as your King."

Declan lowered his gaze and bowed his head in total submission, remaining that way until Derek stepped back and reined in his power. Derek squeezed his eyes shut until his eyes, which had almost bled into a predator’s red, returned to their amber shade. He pulled Kira’s phone from his pocket and handed it to Kai. "See what you can dig up, and install a tracker. I refuse to be caught off guard again."

Kai bowed dramatically. "Your wish is my command, Your Grace."

Derek headed for the door, then paused. "And Kai, I know you gossip like an old market woman. None of this leaves this room. Not the fake marriage, not the strangeness around the girl, not a word to anyone, not even Nana. If it does, I will banish you for real this time."

Kai clutched his chest dramatically. "You wound me. My agency is not the best in Lycan territory for nothing, give me some credit, brother." He zipped his fingers across his lips and tossed away the imaginary key. "My lips are sealed."

Derek ignored him and turned to Declan. "Tell Connor to prepare a convoy. We are visiting Rolf right after breakfast."

"Yes, Your Grace," Declan said.

The three men left the library together, unaware that Ruby had been hiding behind one of the tall bookshelves. She had snuck into Derek’s private library earlier, hoping to find answers to her questions, and the goddess had handed her everything on a golden platter.

So the King’s marriage to the werewolf girl was arranged and fake, just as she had suspected. Relief washed through her, but it was quickly soured by the fact that, fake or not, he had still married a werewolf.