#Chapter 451- On the Edge
Ella
My eyes flick to Jessica’s to find her gaze already on me. I stare at her, hoping she can intuit, hoping she has the courage to run when –
“If you think my human sister is a bitch,” I say, taking another precise step forward, forcing Xander to rise his foot to take his final step back. As that foot falls, I bare my teeth. “Then just wait until you really meet me.”
And as Xander places that foot down, and it falls on the edge of the stair that he didn’t know was there, I bare my teeth and transform in a flash.
Xander’s foot slips and slides unsteadily to the step below, unbalancing him. He flings out an arm to balance himself and while he keeps one hand steadily on Jessica –
As I hoped, the hand he flings out for balance is the one that holds the knife.
The moment she feels the cold press of it leave her neck, Jessica screams and rips herself away from Xander. His hand is still knotted in her hair and I swear I hear it rip from her scalp as I leap for him, but I can’t turn and see
Instead, I’m already in the air in my wolf’s body, sailing for him, my teeth bared. His eyes are wide as my paws slam into his shoulders, as I take him down to the ground.
A garbled scream falls from his mouth as he whips the knife in his hand toward my side, but it’s too late.My teeth are already closing around his throat, digging deep.
The dagger cuts me, I can feel it, but it slides away from my skin to clatter on the ground as Xander’s body crashes into the stone steps. My jaws close, my teeth meeting, and instincts take over as I shake my head, ripping the life from him as I tear his flesh.
I feel him go still beneath me quickly, leaving no time for a last gasp or a final word.
I did my job well.
My chest heaving, I stand above him for a moment, looking down into his face, making sure his eyes are dead.
And then I disdainfully step away, wanting nothing more to do with him, wanting the taste of his putrid blood out of my mouth.
I transform back into my human body as I continue to stand above him, my shoulders still heaving, and I drag an arm across my face, wiping the blood away from my mouth with my sleeve as much as I can.
Guards converge around us, shouting orders and I blink suddenly, brought instantly away from my primal instincts to protect and back to my reality, where I’m standing above a dead man on the palace’s steps.
My first thought is for Jessica, and I turn, seeking her –
But suddenly, I see flashes ahead of me and turn wide-eyed back to the stairs. Because I realize with quick horror that while I concentrated only on Xander, and Jessica, and the guards…
That this is still a palace in the middle of a city on a night when we hosted a very large party.
And that the stairs ahead of me are crowded with people who look at me in shock. And press, who snap pictures of their Queen covered in blood.
There is a momentary pause when I panic and stare out at the flashing cameras, but then suddenly – quite suddenly – everything is chaos. An arm grabs me and I look up into Conner’s face, blinking in surprise to see him there
And I turn when I hear Jessica’s voice, screaming her sister’s name
“I have to get to Sarah,” I say on a gasp, knowing that she needs to be healed.
“You have to get inside, Luna,” Conner says, his voice worried. I tug at his arm but he won’t let me go, so I glare up at him. “Seriously, Ella,” he says, his voice low as he whispers his words, “you’re covered in blood, and the Alpha is going to flip out if he sees you here like this -”
“But she -”
“She’s breathing,” he says, nodding to me, “she’s conscious – let us take her inside, you can heal her there -”
And I look up at him, blinking a little, and then I nod, agreeing to it, realizing that he’s right. Because I am panicking right now, and trying to do everything at once, and completely forgetting that I’m a Queen and not some vigilante who can just do what she wants
Conner, seeing that I understand, nods once to me and then stands straight, supporting me as I step away from Xander’s lifeless form. Conner’s hand is still supportively around my arm as we begin to stride towards the entrance to the palace.
“Jessica!” I shout, seeing that the girl is scared and struggling against the guards who hold her back from her sister, at whose side medics are already gathering.
Jessica whips her head to me, her eyes scared.
“Come with me!” I command, holding out my free hand. The guards hesitate but then let the girl go as they see my serious face. Jessica rushes to my side, wrapping her hand in mine, whimpering in fear as she does.
I pull her close to my un-cut side, wrapping my arm around her. “The doctors are going to bring Sarah in,” I say quietly, “don’t worry, all right? I’ll keep you safe.”
“Do you,” she says, looking back, “do you promise she’s all right?”
“I promise, Jessica,” I say quietly, meaning every word of it. “We just all need to get inside, okay? And Sarah needs people to lift her, and you and I?
We’re too little for that. The doctors – they’re going to help bring her in.”
Jessica nods shakily, pressing herself closer to my side, but she trusts me and lets me guide her to the door.
We’re almost there when suddenly a large form fills it, and my knees go almost shaky with relief as I instantly recognize my mate.
I want to throw myself in his arms, but I’ve got Jessica with me now know that I can’t. Not yet. and I
Conner removes his hand from me now, knowing that I’m safe, and he steps back as Sinclair takes a step forward, his face livid and scared and breathless all at once.
“Ella,” he growls, stepping close to me and glancing momentarily down at Jessica and over at Conner, assessing them as threats in his panic.
But I reach up and place my hand on his cheek, shaking my head. “I’m fine, it’s fine,” I say, nodding fervently.
He releases a slow and steady breath. The rage and fear still burns in him, I know, but it’s tempered now with the knowledge that I’m okay. He opens his mouth to say more but I nod down at the little girl.
“We need to get her in,” I say, my eyebrows going up.
He hesitates, wanting to storm out and assess the situation, wanting simultaneously – I know – to yell at me for taking whatever risk it was that I just took
But he masters himself, glares at me a little, and nods as he realizes that I’m right. And then the King steps behind Jessica and I and escorts us into the palace.
We move quickly through the halls, heading immediately for our rooms, where we know we’ll be safe and I’l feel more at peace, with my mate and my baby and my family all near. Conner comes with us, briefing Sinclair on the details as we walk. I keep a hand on Jessica’s shoulder, not wanting to be separated from her for an instant.
“Sarah needs to be brought to us,” I say to Sinclair, who still glares at me but nods once. He, in turn, looks over his shoulder at another of his guards and nods to him, letting him know to pass the order around. Then we all move steadily through the halls towards our room.
We get there quickly, luckily not passing many people in the halls who would see poor Jessica’s tear-stained face or my bloody face and clothing. But when I press open the door, Cora’s appalled gasp is enough to make up for it.
“Ella!” she shouts, dashing over to me and throwing her arms out, clearly wanting to wrap them around me, to hold me and make sure I’m okay.
“Cora, no!” I gasp, stepping back. She hesitates and I gesture towards her pretty new sweatsuit. “Cora you’re all in white -”
“Oh my god,” she mutters, burying her face in her hands. “You’re so ridiculous, Ella – I can’t believe that’s what you’re worried about – ”
“Jessica,” I say, getting down on one knee as Sinclair closes the door hard behind us. “Do you remember Cora?” I ask, pointing up at my sister.
Jessica looks up at Cora and nods.
“She’s a doctor,” I say, hoping the words are reassuring. “She’s going to have a look at you, all right? Make sure you don’t have any bumps and bruises that we need to fix. And while she does that, I’m going to go get changed into something cleaner, okay?”
Jessica hesitates, clearly not wanting to be separated from me, but then nods shakily as Cora reaches out a hand.
“Come on, kid,” Cora says with a smile, tugging Jessica away. “Does anything on your body hurt?” Cora asks as she leads Jessica over to where Roger stands with wide, scared eyes, not understanding what’s going on. Relief courses through me when I see Rafe sleeping in his godfather’s arms, blissfully unaware of the drama and the violence of the night.
Jessica begins to speak and I loose a long breath, glad that she’s in good hands.
And then I look up at my livid mate, and nod once, heading for the bathroom. My heart wrenches to not go immediately to my child, to take him in my arms, but…
Well, I am all bloody. And my mate and I need to talk. Sinclair understands immediately, following me into the bathroom where we can speak privately.
And he slams the door hard behind him.
