Blood and Tears (all 9)

Chapter 8

My bedroom door flew open, and I arched an eyebrow at the woman who was so disrespectful. The woman was middle-aged but she was tall with bleached blonde hair. Her skirt was black and barely covered her butt, and her top was no bigger than a bandeau. Her fingers were manicured with bold bright red polish. Her feet were in red stilettos which showcased her toned legs. Her brown eyes shot angry darts at Gabriel, barely giving a glance at the others.

Gabriel groaned. "What do you want, Pam?"

My eyebrows rose at the way he spoke to this woman. He obviously knew her, and so did the others. Alistair and Sean's response about this woman told me that they didn't care much for her. So the question is- who is she?

Her eyes turned towards me and widened. "Holy shit, it's a girl! Wait, you are a girl, right?"

I blinked. I patted myself. Yep, they were still there. "The last time I checked, I am."

A sigh of relief escaped her. "Thank god. I was worried that Gabriel was becoming too close to these men." She sniffed, sticking her nose in the air. "Even if he swung that way, they aren't suitable for him. The heir to the throne should have someone of high standing and of a good bloodline."

I blinked again. Amara raised her head and bared her teeth in rage. This time I didn't push away her feelings but let them course through me. Although I've only known these men for almost a day, they were better than anyone else I've ever met. "And why wouldn't they be?"

Pam scoffed. "They are commoners. They aren't meant for nobles like us. Now tell me who are your parents."

I smiled. "Oh, my parents are dirt poor commoners. You know, the commoners who are the backbone of this country. The ones the nobles depend on, growing and buying their food and products."

Her eyes glared at me, but I was too busy smirking at her to care. Gabriel spoke, his voice was hard. "What do you want, Pam?"

She transferred her glare to Gabriel. A sickeningly sweet smile appeared on her face. "I wanted to know why you cut your journey short. King Hendricks of Lycandros wants to know how the mission went and has offered his help." She tilted her head. "Also, I want an explanation as to why my maids are no longer in prison."

I noticed that the shifters had retreated and their human sides were in control. Mr. Blackbourne stepped forward. "Ms. Coleman, the information concerning our mission is classified since it is still open. The second is because Prince Coleman has released them from their imprisonment."

Pam, who happened to be related to Gabriel, turned red in the face. "You had no right! They were my maids. They tried to kill me!"

North growled. "They were imprisoned because they served the wrong wine!"

She sneered. "I am the steward of this kingdom. My word is law!"

Gabriel roared, standing up to face this woman. His appearance started to change, signifying that his powers were surfacing. His hair bled to a red that reminded me of fire. His eyes were shifting from seafoam green to crystal blue every few moments. "I am the rightful ruler! You are only steward until I graduate from the Academy. Take my words, Pam," his power flared out. His power caused Pam to stumble backwards. "Unless you start behaving like a steward instead of a spoiled bitch, you won't have a place when I take my throne. Unless you'd prefer one in my dungeons. I know how you treat my subjects. I won't allow you to do it again. Act out one more time and you'll find a room in the dungeons sooner than you thought."

Pam's eyes were blown in fear, and her face had turned pale. Her eyes had changed to a royal blue. I lifted my eyebrows in interest. How did a falcon shifter become steward of a nation and guardian of a spellsinger?

I watched as Pam tried to curtsy without her butt popping out. "Yes, my king. Forgive me."

Gabriel looked down at her with sadness then with anger. "Leave, Pam."

She nodded before basically running towards the doors. Before she could step through, Gabriel spoke. "Also don't speak about my family like that ever again. If you remember, you once were a commoner and aren't blood related to me." With a glare of his seafoam eyes, he snarled. "Don't ever fucking forget that."

As soon as she disappeared, I leaned back on my mountain of pillows and smiled. "Well, that was interesting. Who was she by the way?"

Kota chuckled before giving me a small smile. "That was the Steward of the Arcadia Kingdom, Pamela Coleman."

I looked at Gabriel who was sitting in an armchair. He looked tired with dark circles underneath his eye. "From what I heard, she isn't blood related to you."

Gabriel shook his head with a laugh. "Fuck no. She is my stepmother. The council decided that she could be in charge until I graduated from the Academy. Just one more fucking semester. Then I can do what needs to be done."

I raised an eyebrow. "And what needs to be done?"

His crystal blue eyes met mine and he smirked. "Weed out the traitors in my kingdom and make sure that King Hendricks doesn't invade my kingdom."

I raised my eyebrows again in surprise and looked at the nine. "And why would King Hendricks want to invade your kingdom?"

Victor was the first to speak. "He wants to invade OUR kingdom because he wasted his natural resources and knows that Acardia is a cornucopia of natural resources. We are one of the richest kingdoms."

"And weed out the traitors?" I asked.

Luke answered next. "We know that some of our staff in this palace is handing information to King Hendricks about our weaknesses. That's why we were near Creepy Hollow. A spy of ours gave us information that the soldiers in the station nearby a village had been withdrawn and was vulnerable to an attack."

"And was it attacked?" I leaned forward and bent my elbows on my legs. I placed my head on my hands, intrigued at the situation.

"We were able to lead them away from the village," Silas said.

I smirked. "So the lycanthropes are King Hendrick's choice of invasion?"

Sean laughed. "You're smart. You catch on early. Yes, King Hendricks is the Wolf King. He can control any wolf shifter loyal to him and any lycanthropes. The lycanthropes are his choice of the first wave. Weaker than others but dispensable."

"So," I winced, not wanting to say this.

"What, Ms...." Mr. Blackbourne asked, clearly asking me what I was going to say and for my last name. I was willing to answer the first but the second was a big no.

"My last name is something I hate so I don't consider it my name." I said as I looked at the comforter. I had stopped calling myself Sorenson the night I left my family.

"What would you like to be called?" Sean asked softly.

I smiled. "Armani. I'd like to be called Sang Armani."

Kota chuckled. "Armani, Persian for freeman." His green eyes met mine. "I like it."

I smiled. "So do I. The other thing is. You do know that Pam is a traitor, right?"

Ah finally got a update published. college is killing me so updates with all of my stories will be slow. anyway what do you guys think? Like it? Hate it? Annoyed with pam? I am. Hope you enjoyed it!