Cherished Lady: Part II

17-Artemis

I woke up in a panic. I had that same feeling of dread I did when the rogues were near. Turning on the lamp I looked around the queen's sitting room. I had been sleeping here while the queen was ill just to be close at hand.

Rubbing my eyes I got up from the couch and checked the balcony doors. They were still locked. Next I rushed into the queen's room and was slightly relieved to see that she was still sleeping soundly. But I still had the feeling of dread.

Dalton! I sat down near the queen while I waited for Dalton to pull himself from his sleep.

Artemis?

Dalton something is wrong!

What's going on?

I have that feeling again, like when the rogues came.

Shit! I'm coming now. How far away are they?

That's the problem I don't know! I just know they are close.

Ok, Stay calm. I'm on my way and I'm bringing people with me. Where are you?

Queen's quarters.

Perfect. Security there is beefed up. Stay there. We'll come to you.

CRACK! My whole body flinched at the sound that came from the other room.

I ran to the door I had left opened and looked into the sitting room. A hole had been punched through the balcony door and a hairy masculine hand had slipped through in an attempt to open it. I quickly shut the door and scrambled back to the queen's side.

DALTON! They're here!

Fuck! Ok Artemis I need you to hide. Find someplace quiet. I'm running to the guard commander now. He'll mind link the guards there and they'll be in to help you in just a few minutes. Just stay low and stay quiet.

My breath was ragged as I tried to keep the terror I felt at bay. I looked around the room desperate to find a place to hide. I was startled when a hand grabbed me in my panic.

"Artemis?" The queen whispered concerned. "What's wrong" I didn't have a chance to answer before the bedroom door opened. The queen connected the dots. "Quickly Artemis you need to hide under the blanket. Quickly!"

A giant bulky man with blonde hair slinked his way in. Upon seeing the two of us he gave us a menacing smile.

"Brent,′ the queen whispered. I looked at her face and she was terrified. She knew who this person was. The man chuckled back and began to stalk towards the queen. I wasn't going to let him touch her.

Springing into action I dove at the man digging my nails into him. Instead of nails, claws and teeth found flesh and began ripping away at the intruder. The man lost is balance and we both fell over crashing through something. We tumbled down a hard rough surface and landed with a thud.

Looking around I realized we had fallen out the window and landed on the roof below. An alarm somewhere was blaring. In my panicked rampage I had shifted into my wolf. I scrambled to my feet to stare at the brute.

My wolf started to take charge again, forcing my body to leap onto him before he recovered. I could feel as her hind legs tried to claw at his belly while I held on for dear life. Within seconds we were thrown off again this time being thrown to the ground below. Looking up to the overhang I saw another young man with dark brown join the brute. I recognized him. It was the same guard who had helped me the first time I served tea to the queen. What was he doing?