Ruins of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #3) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,97

and pulling it over my head.

Knox backed away, slowly looking over his dressing job before he tilted his head, grabbing for something behind me and placing it on my head. I narrowed my eyes on him as he adjusted my crown.

“Perfect, Queen Aria Hecate.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

Knox escorted and handed me off to Brander to stay next to him while my body still fought to overcome whatever he’d done to it. Brander frowned, lifting his eyes to follow Knox’s stiff back before sliding his gaze to me. His attention focused on the crown, shifting to the tears, silently rolling down my cheeks.

“Bloody hell,” Brander groaned. “You brought her down with your rattle, didn’t you?” he called to Knox’s back. Knox stiffened and dropped his head before turning to glare at Brander.

“If she continues threatening to breed or fuck other men, I’ll do much more to her than that. My creature won’t allow her to continue pushing him. It’s better for Aria that I rattle her sweet body than for Lennox to use it. He’d be much more brutal getting his point across. Considering Aria keeps offering him that sexy fucking throat of hers, I’m surprised she hasn’t been more than subdued. Try reasoning with her, Brander, because she has no fucking idea with whom she is dealing. If you think you can get it across her fucking thick skull, go for it.”

Knox stormed away, leaving Brander and me staring after him. He lifted his hands as he reached the doors, shattering them, causing me to flinch. The entire castle trembled from the intensity of Knox’s magic, filling it with a smothering amount of power that I was certain he’d wanted me to feel.

Brander’s hand touched my cheek, his thumbs pushing away the tears. He righted the crown on my head, which had shifted when I’d recoiled from Knox’s magic. Like me, Knox’s magic was from the land. Only when he’d used it, it hadn’t answered. He’d taken the magic by force.

“Your body needs a few hours to recover from the rattle, Aria. You should think of Knox’s beast as the ultimate killer. Lennox is a hunter with only a few basic needs. Smelling a woman in heat drives his need to ease her ache by gaining access to her womb. Normally, he wouldn’t hesitate to take her by any means necessary. The only thing that prevented Lennox from claiming you brutally, the way he wanted, is Knox. He’s been at war with his monster since the first scent of your body in Haven Falls, and it hasn’t eased. Knox has protected you because his beast wants to pin you down and fill you with his scent, marking you so fucking deep that you won’t ever escape. It knows little else other than to claim its prey in the most violent way possible. Lennox is a brutal, lethal predator, which you’re very aware of, having met him. He is the strongest creature ever to be born within the Nine Realms. No other male would challenge Knox for you, Aria.”

Brander pulled me with him, slipping his hand into mine, but I pulled back, stopping him. “I need a minute before going out there,” I whispered, forcing the mumbled words past my swollen tongue. “What the hell kind of rattle was that?” I leaned against the nearest wall, and the crown slid down my head. Brander caught it before it fell to the ground.

“The sound made by a king when he’s proving his absolute power and wants you to be very aware of that fact. You’re not in your world anymore. Here, the strongest is king. The rattle you just heard was that of the High King of the Nine Realms, and he’s the one who placed a claim on you, Aria. Now, fix your pretty hair, dry your eyes, and walk out of here like you own the fucking place. You just challenged the high queen, and she has eyes everywhere. You can’t afford to look timid, weak, or uncertain about who you are.”

“Knox is the High King? I saw two people inside Gerald’s throne room, Brander. The King of Norvalla, and the High King.” I narrowed my gaze as he smirked, lifting his eyes to lock with mine.

“You saw Killian posing as the King of Norvalla, and Knox in the back prepared to murder everything and everyone inside the room where you hung. Knox was out of his fucking mind when we figured out where you were. When we reached the party, he