Dangerous Love: The Rogue Queen

“Your Majesty, please hear me out—”

A large man slammed his fist down on his throne in rage. “No! You know our laws! She trespassed on our land! There are no exceptions!”

His fury was evident in his words; they were cold, holding venom.

“She’s a werewolf, Your Majesty. She meant no ill will. We found her belongings not far from where we captured her.

“She’s running from something.” The wolf was trying his hardest to fight for Aylin but was not well received in his intentions.

“Irrelevant!” the king bellowed. “Quill, you will do your duty. Execute the prisoner!”

“Your Majesty, if I may—”

The king shot the man to his left a glare.

“Quill knows our laws very well. He’s our best warrior and tracker. Perhaps there is something to this prisoner. He wouldn’t arbitrarily do something like this.”

Letting out a frustrated sigh, the king roughly ran his hand through his hair. He knew that his beta, Angus, wouldn’t steer him wrong.

Though he knew what the laws were, Angus wouldn’t put his life on the line for just anyone. “Fine. But Quill, you will pay the price if this is a waste of my time.”

Bowing, Quill started to sweat at his words. “I understand, Your Majesty.”

The moment the king stood, everyone parted so he could walk in front.

Fear gripped everyone, in particular, Quill, who knew his life would be over if his hunch was wrong. A distinct tension filled the air the closer they all walked to the cells.

When they arrived at the main door to the cells, the king stopped dead in his tracks.

Putting his nose in the air, he smelled something that made his eyes dilate and shift to black—a haunting mix of jasmine and roses.

He pushed the door open so hard the knob nearly got stuck in the cement wall.

“Where is she?” the king hollered.

“This way, Your Majesty,” Quill answered.

The three men came upon the dim cell, seeing Aylin’s darkened form, hands chained to the wall, her eyes closed, breathing shallowly.

Taking a deep inhale, the king smelled the aroma coming from this prisoner. He clenched his fists and glowered at her. “Where was she found?”

“We found her about a quarter mile inside our eastern border. She probably didn’t know where she was. Seemed lost,” Quill replied.

Angus and Quill noticed the tension in the king. “Majesty, are you all right?” Angus inquired.

Aylin shifted slightly, and her aroma filled the king’s senses further. Every muscle in his body tensed.

Seeing the sleeping wolf in his cell angered him. Not because she was locked in a dank, filthy cell, but because he knew what smelling this woman meant—the one thing in this life that he had always tried to avoid.

“Mate,” he whispered.

***

Opening her eyes, Aylin saw three darkened forms standing on the other side of the bars, staring at her, each larger than the last.

A sudden aroma filled her senses, a beautiful combination of pine, musk, and cinnamon. She tensed immediately, the silver chains searing her already damaged flesh.

“Mate?” Kaia squealed in her head.

“That’s impossible,” Aylin responded. It was the first time in weeks Kaia had made an appearance since she was blocked out after she left the pack.

Quill and Angus both stared wide-eyed at their king, then at Aylin. “What should we do with her then, Majesty?” Quill asked.

“Bring her!” the king bellowed.

He stormed off with Angus following closely behind him.

The clanking sound of the lock made Aylin cower as the third man came toward her. Bringing her knees to her chest, she tried to make herself as small as possible. Maybe he would go away.

“Take it easy. I’m not going to hurt you,” the man told her.

Whimpering, there was no way that Aylin was going to believe a stranger who chained her to a wall.

Her heart was thumping in her chest, and she started to struggle against the chains in a vain attempt to get away from her captor. “Pl-please,” she begged.

She squeezed her eyes shut, but the sudden clanking of the chains hitting the floor snapped her eyes open. Whipping her head up, she saw the man was still crouched in front of her.

He reached out his hand, and she noticed how large it was. Hesitant, she placed her small hand in his large one. When she tried to get up, she faltered, catching herself against the wall behind her.

Taking a step forward, Quill put her arm around his shoulders, and he picked her up bridal style, seeing how weak she was.

Aylin was trembling violently in his arms. “Don’t worry, little one. You’ll be all right.”

His kind words helped her to relax slightly, but terror was still gripping every fiber of her nerves. “You may be the answer.”

Closing her eyes, she rested her head against his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart.

***

Aylin woke surrounded by silk sheets and a goose-down comforter. Jerking up, she fell out of bed, wondering where she was.

The last thing she remembered was being carried out of the cell, but she didn’t expect to wake up in such a luxurious place.

The walls were a deep blood-red, with dark wood furniture and a four-poster bed with the same deep red silk hanging all around the top. Never before had she seen anything like it.

“I was wondering when you would wake up,” a deep voice said.

Standing up, Aylin backed up into the wall after seeing a muscular man sitting in a chair near the bed.

He had shaggy brown hair, hazel eyes with yellow flecks, black slim-fit jeans with black boots, and a tight-fitting white T-shirt.

Aylin continued to back herself into the wall behind her. The unknown man chuckled slightly, seeing her panic. “Relax, little thing. You’re safe.”

“Wh-where am I?” Aylin stuttered.

He rose from his seat, and she was amazed at how tall he was, at least six foot three. “You’re in the castle of the Rogue King at the Royal Outland Silver Blood Pack,” he answered coolly.

“Rogue King?” she repeated.

Rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably, he flushed a little. “Yeah. You’re lucky that you’re even alive.”

Deep down, she almost hoped that the king would kill her. “Why am I alive then?”

The question begged Quill to wonder what happened to this girl that she would ask such a question. It pulled at his heartstrings.

“I made the decision to bring you back here after we tracked you in the woods. Where did you come from anyway?”

“Nowhere,” she whispered, rubbing her arm uncomfortably. “I’m no one.”

Furrowing his brow, Quill wasn’t sure if he should venture to ask why, but his curiosity got the better of him. “Why would you say that?”

She didn’t even raise her head to answer his question. In fact, she was silent.

Seeing how skinny she was and the deep bags under her eyes, he could tell that she had been on her own for a while.

Something had happened to her that deeply broke her to the point that she welcomed death. “Are you a wolf?” he asked after a moment of silence.

“Yes.”

Sighing, Quill didn’t want to question her any further, knowing he wouldn’t get anywhere with her. “What’s your name?”

“Aylin.”

“Nice to meet you, Aylin. I’m Quill, head warrior and tracker to the king. I’m also the delta.”

“Nice to meet you too,” she whispered, keeping her eyes down.

He walked toward the wardrobe and opened the doors, revealing suitable clothes for her to wear. “Here are some clothes you can change into, and the bathroom is right here.”

He opened the door for her. “The king would like to speak to you as soon as you’re ready.”

As he was leaving the room, Aylin asked a question that surprised Quill. “Why did you bring me here? You should have just left me in the woods to die.”

Dropping his shoulders, he sighed deeply. “Because I had a hunch about you, and I hope I’m right. Otherwise, it’s both our lives.”

Aylin closed the door behind him. She had no idea what Quill was talking about. What hunch could he possibly have about her?

There was nothing special or significant that would make her stand out among anyone. Especially not to a rogue king or his tracker.

Aylin had heard stories about the Rogue King. How cruel and ruthless he was, not only to his pack but to trespassers on his land. No one who ventured onto his land ever came out alive.

Most believed that they were killed on sight, or the king took pleasure in doing it himself.

Dragging her tired body into the bathroom, Aylin thought she should be clean for when she saw the king.

If he killed her, then at least she would be somewhat clean, though she’d heard stories of the torture inflicted. Clean or dirty, it didn’t matter, really.

Flicking on the light, she saw the bathroom was immense. The walls were red, with black striping around the top.

A flat white Jacuzzi tub was off to the right, and a shower stall was built into the left side of the room. The glass doors were clear, with a large shower head pointing directly downward.

Next to her was an expansive sink with brushed gold fixtures and a mirror framed in gold.

Aylin was impressed with the room before her. This was nothing like she had ever seen before.

Her old house was very simple, left to her when her parents died. The most color she had in her house was the blue of her bedroom.

After stripping down, she started the shower, allowing the bathroom to fill with steam. She stepped in. The hot water felt good against her aching bones.

As the water cascaded down around her, she saw brown swirling around the drain.

Standing under the water, Aylin contemplated what would become of her or if she should take matters into her own hands. The king would kill her anyway, so what difference did it make?

Suddenly, she had a flash of Daemon and her old pack. Grabbing her hair, she pulled at it and let out a scream that reverberated against the glass doors.

She screamed for everything she had gone through in her life and for what was to come. Mostly, she screamed for the loss that still weighed heavily on her heart.

Pulling herself from the shower, she grabbed the fluffy black towel that was set on the counter next to the sink and dried herself off.

As she gazed at her reflection in the mirror, Aylin didn’t recognize the face that stared back at her.

Her once beautiful mane of chestnut hair was stringy, her deep-blue eyes had turned dull, and the bags under her eyes were prominent.

There was a time when she was vibrant and full of life. That time was long gone, and she was unsure if it would ever come back.

As she walked back into the bedroom, she was surprised by Quill’s sudden presence. He seemed alarmed. “Are you all right?”

Confused, she cocked her head to the side. “Yeah, I guess. Why?”

“I was coming back to see if you were ready to see the king, and I heard a scream.”

“I’m fine,” she lied. Turning her back, she looked inside the wardrobe to see what was appropriate to wear in the presence of a king.

“People who are all right don’t scream like that.”

Ignoring him, she thumbed through the clothing.

Sighing, Quill was frustrated with her lack of communication. “I’ll be outside when you’re ready.”

After laying her hands on a white sleeveless dress, Aylin threw it over her head. Though it was chilly in the castle, she didn’t care.

Of course, she also had nothing to wear on her feet, but that didn’t bother her in the least.

She ran her fingers through her tangled hair, trying to get as many of the knots out as possible. Though the knots were large, she felt no pain as she dragged her fingers.

She opened the door to Quill standing guard, waiting for her. “Ready?”

Simply nodding, she followed him to meet her fate.