From The Ashes

Chapter Twenty-Six

When we all piled in through the door of the safehouse, we were greeted by Queen Stella, who seemed to be the only person in the room that was aware of our presence.

King Ruben was bent over the coffee table talking lowly with a man I had never seen before. His back was to us, so I couldn't get a good look at his face, but his shoulders were hunched over whatever it was on the table and tight with tension.

I assumed with was the mysterious Beta I had only just learned about. Queen Stella cleared her throat, and King Ruben's eyes snapped up to us finally. He grinned.

"You're all back. What do you have to report?"

He began to rise from his seat, gesturing for us to come closer. The man rose as well and turned to face us.

I watched him closely, as he seemed to size us all up. His dark hair was cropped short, almost like a buzz. Thick, dark eyebrows furrowed over dark brown eyes, and his lips were pressed tight into a sort of grimace.

He was huge. He stood a couple inches taller than King Ruben, who was already over six feet, and his muscular mass rivaled Valen's. He glared at Artemis and I with open hostility.

I could feel Valen tense beside me, and Von let out a small grumble. Finally, the man spoke.

"Your majesty, are you sure it's in the pack's best interest to have these two here? Mates or not, they're apart of Moonlight pack."

His lip curled up as he stifled a growl. I glared at him, my eyes flashing. Artemis grabbed my shoulder, sensing my rising temper. King Ruben just chuckled.

"We are not apart of the Moonlight pack," I spat back at him.

I ground my teeth to keep from snarling at him, but I refused to lower my direct eye contact. Beta or not, I wasn't about to let him disrespect me or Artemis. He shifted his stance.

"You're not apart of this pack yet either, are you?"

Before I could respond, Artemis pulled me back slightly and stepped forward.

"She is Valen's mate. Once they complete the ritual, she'll be apart if this pack regardless of an initiation. I am Von's mate and we have already completed the ritual. I severed ties with Moonlight the night of the attack. I warned King Ruben beforehand. To assume that we mean harm to this pack when we've already turned our backs on our old one, is insulting to say the least. Wouldn't you say so, King Ruben?"

She turned in the king's direction, a small smirk playing at the edges of her lips.

I was impressed. Usually, Artemis slung harsh words as easily as she breathed. Instead, she was playing this smart and involving our mate status's and the King.

Von was really rubbing off on her. I turned to him and grinned, as he beamed at her with pride.

King Ruben shrugged his shoulders.

"They're correct, Anton. Indigo severed her ties when she first came to us, and Artemis was quick to follow her. They've proven themselves to be nothing but loyal to DarkBlood so far." This time, Anton did growl.

"But what about her powers?" he said while jabbing his overly muscular arm in my direction.

"What about them?" I stepped forward once more, the challenging tone in my voice was crystal clear.

"Would you like to see a demonstration in person? We could arrange that." I cocked my head to the side and folded my arms over my chest.

"She could seriously hurt someone," he said to King Ruben without even looking at me.