Chapter 24

Chapter Twenty-Four

Tucker

It didn't sit well with me letting Lake leave my side. I didn't want her away from me. The only thing keeping me from losing it is that she stopped crying, and her emotions weren't all over the place anymore. I could feel her and knew she wasn't far. She was actually in Corbin's room with Harmony and Karsyn.

From the thoughts coursing through her, she wasn't exactly sure what to think of either of them. She wanted to like them, but considering her past, she's never truly had friends.

"Does Lake still have her night-light?" Callum asks, drawing me from my thoughts.

"Yeah, out of everything she owned, which wasn't much at all, that was the one thing she clung to and asked to bring with her when I brought her to the clubhouse," I tell him, cocking a brow. "You gave her a light that had my markings on it."

"I did because the Moon Goddess told me that she would be your mate." The confession catches me off guard. Out of all the different things I'd thought, I hadn't even thought that.

Interesting.

The Moon Goddess has a way of doing things to tangle with fate when she feels like it. It pisses me off that she'd taken all of my streak from me, but in a way, what happened with them, made me who I am now. I'm harder than I was. Deadly. I'm not an Enforcer of this club for no reason. I thrive on causing the enemy pain.

"Why do you ask about the night-light?" Justice asks before I can.

"That night-light isn't just any old night-light. The wood is carved from that of the land that belongs to the Fae," Callum announced. "When Lake's mother escaped, she'd been holding onto some branches. She claimed that the wood was from a tree known to be able to kill a Fae but also was deadly to the Drakon King himself."

"I don't get how it'd be deadly to the Drakon King. Does it work on the other dragons as well?" What exactly does he mean by it being deadly to the Drakon King? I mean, shouldn't it affect them all?

"It's deadly because the, unlike the other dragons, the Drakon King is different. He's both dragon and Fae. It's why he hates Nyx so much, because Nyx shares his blood."

"And because Nyx shares the same blood with Lake, he's able to track her," Jair finishes for his brother.

And this fucker wants my mate as his dragon bride. He's sick and twisted. I get some things need to stay in the family, but not that. Even shifters aren't that wild about incest. They're about pure-blooded. Some shifters look down on those who mate with humans or others not their species. For centuries, my own streak did. They didn't look outside tiger shifters.

Now, I wasn't just mated to a woman who wasn't a shifter. She was both human and nymph. I don't even want to think of what they'd say. Hell, I couldn't give two shits if they wanted to cast me aside. I'm the damn tiger prince and can pick who the fuck I want. And my fated mate is the one I'd choose every damn time.

Lake's thoughts come across the bond, and I'm guessing she not only felt but heard my thoughts. There's no keeping her out. I won't hide anything from her. Meaning, she probably knows exactly what else we're in here discussing as it filters through my mind.

The last thing I need is for her to know what's going on, but I'm not about to hide it from her either. As much as I hate it, she has a right to know.

Something spears through my mind, one of her thoughts about the night-light and it only pisses me off more.

"Hold up," I snarl, lip curling, and level a glare on Callum. "You made a night-light out of wood that could harm a Fae? Your daughter, my mate, is part Fae. Why the fuck would you give her something that could do anything to her?"

Callum narrows his gaze as well, palms flat on the table, and comes out of his seat. "I did what I had to do. It might have if it had cut her, but it didn't. I made sure of it when I shaped the wood and smoothed it. I created something special for her so that she'd never lose it. The wood can be sharp enough to pierce Zurri's skin. It would weaken him enough to kill him."

"And why hadn't you done it before?" Corbin asks.

"Who says I haven't tried?" Callum sneers, darting eyes to my Prez. "Trust me, I tried. My brother nearly lost his life when Lake was only ten. But it's not me that has to kill him. Or even go up against him." Those eyes of his come straight back to me. "Thing is, Zurri isn't stupid. He's calculated. Will send Drakon warriors before coming himself. He prefers to sit on his throne and watch from a distance rather than deal with those beneath him."

"And how do you know all this about Zurri?" Justice quires.

"You have a bastard like him after your daughter, you learn every damn thing you can about the enemy," Callum remarks, and I have to agree.

"So, who exactly is supposed to be the one to kill ‘em?" Abel grunts, lounging back in his seat and looking relaxed, but those of us who know him best, know he's anything but. He's ready to fight whoever he has to.

"Who else do you think, kid?" Jair growls, shooting Abel a look.

From the way I've seen Lake's uncles react around Abel, they're surprised at the sight of him. They don't know how to handle the news. Just as I'm sure Abel's struggling with the fact he's got more than just Lake now, but uncles. It almost makes me wonder how his mom will respond to the fact her mate's family now knows about him.

That woman can be a bit intense with her protectiveness toward Abel. She hadn't been able to have any more cubs after him, so she tends to make it a habit of popping up often. Luckily, she's off on some vacation with some friends of hers. It's a good thing since it'll give him time before he has to tell her.

"It's got to be Tucker," Callum answers as he pops Jair on the back of his head. "It has to be him. But even still, you need an army behind you. Zurri won't go toe to toe. He won't fight fair in any fashion."

"Then it's a good damn thing he's got us," Dane growls, rolling his head on his shoulders. The popping of his neck could be heard throughout the room.

I cock a brow in his direction and grin. "You ready to get that fur singed, brother?"

"Fuck you, man, I'm just looking forward to a fight. I'm itching for it."

"Then, let's get this all sorted," Corbin states. Before he can continue, the door opens.

I shouldn't be surprised by it, but still, I find I am when Orpheus steps in with several of his men with him.

"Sorry to intrude, Corbin," Orpheus remarks, his expression blank. "We wanted to offer our assistance in taking care of the problem that's coming to your door."

"What do you know of it? Other than what you already know?" Justice asks cautiously.

Orpheus's eyes darken for a split second before he shrugs. "I know that the Drakon King is preparing to come to Redwich. I give him maybe a day, no more, before he makes his move. It could be as soon as in the next hour, though."

"Fuck." Just what I need.