Heir of Broken Fate (HOBF Book 1)

The next morning, Hazel and I wait for Emory to arrive in the foyer. Hazel wrings her hands behind her back, chewing on her lip. Hazel informed us to all be on our best behavior today; we desperately need Emory’s help on the spell, and she doesn’t take too kindly to trained warriors. Hazel told Lenox to shut his fat mouth, Nolan not to glare, and Axel and Knox to not do the “broody intimidating thing”—her words, not mine. Not surprisingly, Ace didn’t get a tongue lashing, which Lenox pointed out and abruptly earned a smack in the stomach from Harlow because Hazel had already informed Ace last night, alone in her room.

A single knock on the door has Hazel rushing forward, revealing a stone-cold Emory on the other side. She’s all business today after processing the information we dumped at her feet yesterday. She’s wearing fine tailored clothing that represents the water element, cool tones and blue fabric. She strides into the room, offering a small welcoming smile as I do the same. I look down, noticing she’s carrying a white leather case.

“They’re all waiting in the sitting room. We would have done this in the office but there’s not enough space,” Hazel chirps.

I look Emory dead in the eye and cut to the chase. “Knox and Ace are here—you met them yesterday. There’s three other males, all trained warriors, and Harlow, another female.”

Emory’s spine straightens. “Thank you for the heads-up.”

I turn, Hazel and Emory following behind me as they catch up. Hazel gives her a quick rundown on how she ended up in Azalea. I tense when she mentions the border cross; I can’t think of that night without thinking about Easton.

My smile is strained when I enter the room. Everyone is sitting around the coffee table in an assortment of chairs and sofas. No one pays me a lick of attention besides Knox, who frowns, noticing my tense expression.

I can’t get anything past this man.

No, you can’t. Care to tell me what upset you?

I sigh, memories of the previous moment floating through my mind so Knox can see it for himself. I take a seat beside him as the girls enter the room. My body relaxes the moment his hand touches my lower back, staying there as he gently strokes the small area of exposed skin.

Hazel introduces Emory to everyone. I’m pleasantly surprised they all listened to Hazel’s verbal warning and toned down on their antics for the day.

“I take it from the otherworldly essence pulsing throughout the room that that’s the book,” Emory states flatly, taking a seat in a chair at the end of the coffee table.

Harlow clicks her tongue. “Emmalyn has used several different spells, combining them to not only cast the entrapment spell around our lands but to mind control and create potions that poison Fae magic over time. Then there’s also the issue of the stolen Fae.”

Emory turns her eyes to me as I cut in. “There’s a compound in the human lands. Kidnapped Fae have been sent there to work as slaves. They can’t hear, see, or speak to those not working in the compound.”

“So Emmalyn has created a clusterfuck of a spell,” Emory says dryly.

Hazel chuckles. “That’s what I said.”

Emory leans forward in her chair. “Can you show me the individual spells?”

Hazel slides the open book to Emory. We all patiently sit in silence, staring at her as she reads. My stomach sinks as her face drains of color.

“She truly used the king and queens as a sacrifice,” she breathes.

I place my hand on Knox’s thigh on instinct, squeezing it in support.

“She couldn’t have cast the spells individually; it would have been more taxing. It’s easier to cast them together, all at once,” Emory muses, turning the page.

Knox tenses beside me as Emory frowns. “What is it?” he asks.

“She would have needed to link it to something, to keep the entrapment spell secure,” Emory says quietly, reading the next page.

“What would have enough power to hold such a dark spell?” Nolan asks.

“Anything with a life force to equal the power of the dark magic,” Emory mutters, still not lifting her head from the book.

“Could destroying the object break the spell?” Knox asks.

“In theory, yes, but I don’t think it’s going to be that simple.”

Lenox looks from Emory to the book, his lips tightening. “Why?”

Emory lifts her head as she grimaces. “The only thing I can think of with enough power equal to a source of dark magic this strong is the Tree of Life.”

Knox’s entire body locks, Lenox sputters out expletives, Axel outright looks disgusted, and Nolan’s face has turned wholly white.

“That’s why the land is dying,” Knox whispers.

Harlow clicks her tongue. “Clever bitch.”

My entire body turns to ice. “The very life force that’s connected to magic, to the Fae in these lands.”

“If we destroy it, everything and everyone in this land, including magic, would die.” Axel shakes his head in disgust. “That’s why she linked the spell to it. No one can destroy it without killing everything and everyone in these lands.”

Hope faded from everyone’s face this morning as Emory said nothing else would be big enough to hold the spell, that it indeed would be tied to the Tree of Life. What had bloomed in all their hearts, that made their smiles more carefree over the past couple of days, had been killed with one sentence. I refuse to watch another beautiful city of people lose hope.

“Take me to the Tree of Life,” I blurt as I enter Knox’s study.

He’s seated in his chair behind the desk, placing the paper he was reading down at my entry. “Now?” he asks, standing.

Happiness soars in my heart. He never questions me or my ideas; he simply joins me on each crazy and insane thought I have, and I adore it. I adore him for not controlling or diminishing my new confidence in speaking freely.

I smile up at him as he rounds the desk. “Yes please, if you’re not too busy.”

He lowers his head, laying a gentle kiss on my cheek before whispering into my ear, “Reports can always wait.”

I ignore the flutters in my stomach from his words. In the foyer, when he holds out his palm for me to take, I simply slide my hand in his, wrapping my arms around his neck as he cradles me to his chest and flies.

I can’t help but think to myself how different it feels compared to when I first arrived here months ago. When I would scoff, roll my eyes, and be displeased at how close I had to be to him.

As we approach, Knox whispers in my ear, “The Tree of Life is so beautiful at night. It’s—”

His eyes narrow, his entire body beneath me turning to stone. My heart stops cold when I notice what made Knox so tense. Lines of guards march around the tree, all in the same gray fighting suits with the red emblem logo as the ones around the demonic compound.

I blink. “Are those the queen’s guards?”

“They have never in my life had guards posted around the tree. This isn’t the queen.”

I wrap my hand around Knox’s arm, clinging to him as tightly as I can as I make us invisible. My body crackles with energy before we disappear into the night sky. Knox’s shields snap around us at the same time, masking our scent and energies from the guards below.

“We need to get a good count on how many there are,” I breathe.

“There’s too many to control. Even if we could break the spell, just getting in there would be a suicide mission.”

I look closer at the tree, noticing an archway in its thick trunk, similar to the one at the compound. “This is how she made the compound; she already had a similar version to go off of to recreate,” I whisper.

Knox continues circling as he counts how many guards are stationed around the tree. I stop listening once he reaches a thousand. I place my hand over my chest, the pendant resting on my breastbone cold. Nothing is veiled. Lifting my head, I scan the skies; they could be invisible like us, but I don’t sense any aerial legions flying.

Knox reads my mind before I can ask. “The riders don’t have the type of power to use invisibility. It’s extremely rare. Even I can’t do it.”

If it was any other time, I would have teased him for the statement, yet looking down at the Tree of Life that keeps everything in these lands—including the man holding me—alive, turns my blood cold.

After scouting the area for other possible traps or armies of guards, Knox flies home, the ride more silent than ever. We stroll into the dining room to find everyone already seated for dinner.

“We found the missing guards. Over fifteen hundred are posted around the Tree of Life, each one as lifeless as the others.”

Forks drop into plates, chairs squeak as they sit back, and wine sloshes over glasses.

“How did no one see them? Why are there no reports?” Lenox barks.

“That’s what I’d like to know,” Knox says, turning to Nolan.Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.

Nolan’s face turns red, rage simmering across his face. “Are you accusing me of treason, Your Majesty?” he asks coldly as he stands.

Hazel’s eyes widen next to Ace as Harlow chokes on her wine.

“Since when do we address each other formally?” Knox asks, hurt lacing his words.

I take a step back to get out of the crossfire, when Nolan’s eyes flick to mine, his face contorting and twisting. “Did you put the idea in his head?” he spits.

I lung for Knox’s arm to stop him from snapping something he’ll later regret, yet it isn’t Knox that snaps, it’s Axel. “Speak to her like that again, I fucking dare you,” he says deadly quiet from his seat, his body locked tight, pulsing with anger.

“She’s human! There’s Fae trapped in the human lands near her house and you’re telling me to watch myself?” Nolan bellows.

“She turned Fae before she crossed the border. Delilah was never human,” Knox says casually, making the room turn silent once more. “Nevertheless, this discussion isn’t about Delilah. It’s about reports that I haven’t received.”

“I didn’t hide anything from you. I truly haven’t heard anything about guards being stationed there,” Nolan swears solemnly, truth ringing in his words.

“That’s all I wanted to clarify,” Knox states.

Taking my hand, he leads me to my usual seat beside Axel. My stomach churns, my appetite completely lost. I don’t know what I’ve done to make Nolan so distrustful of me. I’ve never hidden anything from anyone in this room. The second I look up, my eyes connecting with Nolan’s bewildered face, he storms out of the room.

“Thank you,” I whisper to Axel once everyone resumes eating. A small nod is my only response.

“I’m just glad I wasn’t the one to get Axel’s death glare.” Lenox shrugs, digging into his food. “It’s made grown men cry.” Lenox shivers. “I still remember the first time he glared at me like that.”

Harlow smirks. “Oh please do tell us what you did to piss him off.”

Axel rolls his eyes. “Is this the Goddess Gaia incident?”

Lenox sputters, “It was more than just an incident! You threw me out the window!”

I throw my head back on a deep laugh; Hazel’s gasp only makes me cackle harder.

Axel’s face is animated, the most happiness I’ve seen in his eyes before. “That felt so satisfying,” Axel says dreamily, making Harlow and Knox snicker.

“I could have died!” Lenox protests, flinging his arms out beside him.

Axel levels a stare. “You can fly, dipshit.”

“You’re lucky I could still fly with how drunk I was,” Lenox grumbles.

“Please tell me what he did that made you, of all people, throw him out a window,” I beg.

“The first day of spring is spent worshipping and celebrating Goddess Gaia, thanking her for the blessings she’s sowed to you the year prior and praying for an abundant year ahead. It was nightfall and I was dead asleep. We had all been up drinking and celebrating the new harvesting. I thought we had all stopped and gone to bed.” Axel pointedly glares at Lenox. “I wake up to Lenox’s face right in front of mine, blabbering on about how he could hear the roots of Mother Gaia blessing the house’s roof.” Axel slides his gaze to mine. “Legend has it that Mother Gaia grows roots, blessing the houses of those that she’s chosen to favor for the year.” Axel shrugs. “I simply helped him get to the roof.”

My stomach hurts from laughing so hard, my breathing starts to wheeze. “You thought you could hear Goddess Gaia’s roots?”

“I was really drunk,” Lenox mutters.

Hazel bursts out laughing at his reddening face, everyone around the table cackling with laughter as Lenox swears he heard the drag of the branches across the tiled roof.

The moment I enter Knox’s room, his hands are on me, his lips trailing kisses down my neck. “You weren’t kidding when you said you couldn’t keep your hands off of me,” I tease.

“You’re so beautiful when you’re happy. Every time I heard you laugh at dinner, my cock twitched.”

“You’re hard from my laugh?” I sputter in disbelief, chuckling.

“Yes, and I’m very happy to hear you laugh again.”

I roll my eyes. “You’re insufferable.”

Knox bends as he picks me up, draping me over his shoulder. “You love my quirks.”

My heart catches at that word, that very deep word.

Love.

I shove it out of my mind.

Digging my elbow into his back, I prop my chin up on my hand. “Care to tell me why you’re carrying me over your shoulder?” With each step, we get further from the bedroom.

“I’m running you a bath.”

I sigh. “You have absolutely no protest from me.”

Knox lowers me to the ground as his dark chuckle rumbles out of his chest. Stepping away, he fills the tub, lathering the water with lavender oils. I begin taking off my clothes. Any decency I had around him left the moment he saw me naked.

Knox leans back, watching me with hooded eyes as I slowly lower myself into the water, my muscles relaxing as the heat soothes them.

I open my eyes to find Knox also undressing. “What are you doing?”

“Having a bath,” he states smoothly.

My mouth waters as he peels off his clothes. He wasn’t lying before about how hard he is. His cock is pulsing as it stands to attention. Water sloshes everywhere as he enters. He offers his hand and I take it, letting him maneuver me so my back is flush against his chest, his long powerful legs bent beside me on either side as I sit between his thighs.

Knox picks up a bar of soap. Dunking it in the water, he begins lathering suds into his hands, the vanilla scent filling the bathroom. He nudges my arms and I lift them above the water, sighing further into him as he slowly begins to massage the soap into my skin. I tilt my chin back, my chest rising and falling as he reaches my neck, my breath hitching when his thumbs run down my pulse points. His hands slowly trail down to my breasts, kneading them, making my core clench with each featherlight, teasing stroke against my hard nipples. When his hands edge lower, a small whimper leaves me. His hands descend into the water and wrap around my thighs, spreading me wide. My lips part as I pant. I feel hot and needy from his teasing, a delectable form of torture.

“Let me take care of you,” he whispers.

I sigh when his hands, lathered with lavender oil, begin to knead my back, massaging the tense muscles. I moan as he works a particularly tense spot. I close my eyes, my body going languid in his.

As each second passes that my body relaxes, my breathing begins to pick up, my breasts feeling full and heavy as he touches every part of me, except for where I need him the most. When his hands slowly glide to my breasts, I sigh as his large palms cup them, kneading the tender heaviness.

I arch my back as my lips part, my hips swiveling, begging for relief. Knox pinches my nipples, making a loud moan fall from my mouth as the pain sends electricity directly to my core.

“So sensitive,” he murmurs.

My hips buck, seeking his touch as he teases my sensitive nipples, rubbing circles around the tight buds. His canines gently scrape down my neck, eliciting a full-body shiver.

“So responsive,” he whispers, dragging his hand under water.

His fingers glide down my stomach, disappearing between my thighs. The moment they touch my clit I yelp so loud I surprise even myself. Knox groans into my ear as he slips two fingers inside me, slowly pumping me as his thumb swipes side to side over my clit. My hips roll with his movements.

“That’s it. Ride my hand, Angel.”

His words make my core clench around his fingers, his groan making my hips roll faster. Water sloshes over my sensitive nipples as he teases and tweaks them with his free hand. Tightness coils in my stomach, building with each passing stroke, turning my body to liquid heat as he curls his fingers inside of me, brushing that spot inside me that makes me feral.

“Come,” he growls.

That one single word, the demand in his tone, makes me explode, shivering and moaning as ecstasy writhes through me, my hips jerking wildly as I ride out the orgasm.

I flutter my eyes open, turning around to face Knox, splashing water over the sides of the tub as I do. His eyes are hooded, his pupils flared as he pants. The sight of him so turned on from my own pleasure makes my skin tingle, pressure building within me again. I can never get enough of him. I straddle his thighs, raking my hands down his chest, my hand disappearing under the water. I lean forward, capturing his mouth as my hand wraps around his cock, squeezing. He grunts low into my mouth, his tongue darting out to stroke mine, slow and deep, as if we have all the time in the world.

His large velvet cock pulses in my hand, his hips bucking when I swirl my thumb around the tip. I situate myself, then lower onto him, moaning as he fills me to the hilt. Knox’s head falls back, a deep groan leaving his mouth as I slowly begin to grind on him. His hands slide up my thighs, coming around to knead my ass, guiding the rhythm of my hips, picking up the pace. He opens his eyes, the intensity of them making my core clench around him, sending a shudder through his body.

“Beautiful,” he whispers gutturally.

He lowers his head to my breasts, biting my sensitive nipple before he twirls his tongue around the hard bud. The tingling in my core expands to my whole body as he sucks hard on the other.

I sink my hands into his hair, gripping him tightly and shoving his face into my breast, needing more.

“You want to come, Angel?” he purrs around my breast.

“Yes,” I beg. “Please.”

“Say it,” he orders, his hips picking up the pace of his thrusts. “Tell me what you want.”

My head tips back as the pressure builds higher, heat pooling between my legs as my back arches, begging for him to touch me everywhere.

“I want to come around your cock,” I pant.

Knox smashes his lips to mine as white light surrounds us, the tub of water disappearing before we land in silk sheets. I yelp as I realize he teleported us to his bed.

His growl is feral as he rasps, “Say it again.”

He stops moving his hips, making me squirm beneath him. “Knox,” I whimper. “Make me come.”

Knox lifts me up, and I only have time to wrap my legs around his waist as he places his hands on my shoulders, holding me down. He pounds in and out of me so hard and relentlessly, I scream.

His cock brushes against that spot inside of me with each thrust, the tightness in my core building so fast I can’t control it. My body shakes around Knox. “Oh gods, oh gods.”

“I may be your god, Angel, but you chant my name as I fuck you,” he grunts.

I scream his name as his canines flare, biting my shoulder, claiming me. My hips buck wildly, trying to match his intense pace. Knox groans at every sound I make. Every whimper and moan has his cock expanding inside of me, stretching and filling me. When he snakes his hand between our bodies and brushes his thumb against my clit, I combust. Shaking uncontrollably, I gasp out his name over and over, my core clenching and convulsing around him.

My own orgasm sends him over the edge. His wings burst out when he comes as he whispers words nestled into the crook of my shoulder. Floating through my own bliss, I can’t hear exactly what he says. Still inside me, he lifts his head, smashing his lips to mine. His cock twitches every so often as I soak up everything he pours into me.