Ruins of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #3) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,28

her battles for her, but at night, I’d kept the evil away so she could rest. I’d slit the throats of the monsters that had wanted to hurt her. Men had been drawn to her scent, even the subtleness of it as she hid the temptation with her magic. I’d murdered them for tracking my girl down, and she’d never even known they were there drooling over her. I didn’t want her to get hurt, but I had needed to see how she worked, her strategy, and her plan to clean house.

I hadn’t expected this slip of a girl to walk into castles and set them on fire from the inside. I hadn’t anticipated her to be a fucking Trojan horse, using human tactics that this world hadn’t seen before. I hadn’t thought her pretty little ass would beat mine to castles and bring them to their knees without me. I assumed I’d arrive, save the day, and show Aria what it would be like to work together. Instead, Aria had waged battle alone, laughing and dancing while she decimated an entire keep like they were children, all while wearing a unicorn raincoat.

“If I were you, I’d get to fixing her before you lose her,” Brander offered.

Killian smirked, his eyes sparkling with mirth. “Or don’t, because some of us want her for ourselves. You were right. Up close, she’s intoxicatingly delicious. I went into battle with the worst case of blue balls. Watching that battle queen fighting beside me only made it worse.”

“Maybe next time, focus on the fucking road and avoid the trap, asshole,” I snarled.

“Easy enough for you to say,” Killian laughed soundlessly. “I had a woman against me who couldn’t sit still. Her need for you enhanced her sweet scent, and fuck if I didn’t want to divert with her and make her scream as you do. The thing is, she wanted you, asshole. She issued an alpha challenge before we ever left camp,” he snorted, and I swallowed hard, knowing it had to have played hell on them.

“Bloody hell,” I snorted, Brander echoing my statement.

“She issued the challenge to Lord Andres, but it was wide open for any male close enough to hear. Aria didn’t understand the rattle that escaped or why she’d made it, other than to assume she was backing us up. She’s lucky we got there in time. Andres would have hurt her to assert dominance. Aria is an alpha, and whatever the fuck is slumbering within that girl is a fucking killer. It’s too young, though, which is dangerous.”

Killian was right. Once a challenge was issued, it couldn’t be taken back. Aria wouldn’t have known that. Killian had to have gone through hell to ignore that call. I patted him on the back as he chuckled, shaking his head.

“Go fix the damage, Knox. Aria gets enough hate from me, and maybe Greer is right. Maybe you don’t deserve her, and she’s better than all of us. She didn’t deserve last night, though. That’s on us for being so fucking twisted and jaded that we can’t see past the hate we breathe.”

Chapter Eight

Soraya

I had watched Aria all day, noting the pale color of her face while her eyes remained on the ground. Ilsa had failed to end her life, but whatever had happened, it hadn’t been good. She looked lost, broken, and worse, hopeless. My stomach had tightened seeing the men leave the tent covered in her blood after screaming had erupted from inside.

Ilsa was going to be pissed that she’d failed in her plan to eradicate Aria Hecate from the Nine Realms. Siobhan had crafted a truth potion for the King of Norvalla, but she’d placed something else into it as well. I’d watched her in the tent with the king aimlessly pacing around, his anger palpable. I’d felt worried for Aria, noting that his hands had balled into fists.

The king’s fingers pushed through his tawny-colored hair, eyes sharp and focused as they scanned over me like I wasn’t a threat. His brand now marred my wrist, marking me as a slave and owned by him. I hated him for it, but was also impressed that no one had mistreated me since arriving. I’d witnessed others of our kind as slaves before, using us for whatever they could imagine. To them, we weren’t even living beings anymore, just a commodity.

One owner had lined the witches up, taking a turn with each one to breed the evil out of us. Another had cut