Page 112 of Those That Defy the Realm

The last few weeks have been intense to say the least, although things are starting to quieten down now. We’ve finally got the time we all need to decompress. The cabin has become our sanctuary each evening, and today we finally have nothing pulling us out of it, so we plan on shutting ourselves away for the entire day.

Rory, Ty, and the agents from Froan sailed us all the way back to the island the wolves inhabit. They spent five days here recovering and laying low. The whole continent was rocked by the incident at the prison facility. The press was a maelstrom of fact and fiction. Theories and scaremongering were rife.

Did vampires still reside amongst the population? Why was an old war facility still manned by a high-level authority department? Was it human rebels that managed to slaughter the entire team in an act of defiance?

Protests broke out in the capital about the public being kept in the dark. More shockingly, a few other picket lines appeared calling for justice for the vampires. However, the authorities were quick to suppress those.

It hadn’t lasted long, reassurances were issued from the president, statements were printed across every news outlet and broadcast. When no evidence of vampires turned up, the hype quickly died down. The government even ruled the deaths at the facility a training exercise gone horrifically wrong, which extinguished any remaining unrest.

Of course, we were all tense through that initial week. Rory and Ty had immediately wanted to return to Froan, to the pack they had built in case they were needed, and because they didn’t want the males there to feel abandoned. But they were refused on all sides.

They are back there safely now, and with more determination than ever to ensure the safety of the vampire population.

Which now includes me.

I’m still adjusting to life as a supernatural being; not eating feels bizarre, and my new senses and strength are taking a while to adapt too. But I am embracing it. As Rory told me, now that I’ve unlocked this part of myself, I feel a rightness in my own skin that I didn’t realise was missing. I’ve not joined the pack yet, knowing we would be staying here for several more weeks. Rory offered me the bond before she left, and I will be taking it once we return to Froan.

And Henry and Ash have made it easier. They’ve both been so attentive and patient. Their support has been unwavering and unconditional. And our bonds have settled into place with ease. We’ve been granted a deeper emotional connection than I thought possible, I can literally feel their emotions with barely a thought. Whether they’re in front of me or somewhere across the island, I know exactly how they’re doing.

It’ll make Henry’s and my return to Froan a little bit more bearable. We’ve got another month here, thanks to Morris’s team sorting out leave with our jobs. No one can really argue when the authorities call and say they’ve recruited you for work and will compensate the company handsomely for our absence.

Henry is still doing some remote teaching, but mainly because of the loyalty he feels to the students who were truly blossoming under his tutelage. But he won’t be returning to West Scotia. Fillias’s pack have gone deep underground now, there’s no trace of them, which makes it too dangerous for Henry to return to his post in any physical capacity.

No, he’s returning with me and then plans on splitting his time between Ash and I until we can get Ash approved to return to Froan with us. The visa amendment might be a non-starter, but from the meetings Ash has been having, they’re pivoting to include citizenship to any and all mates. It’s probably going to take a while to go through, but we won’t give up. And I’ll use all the leave I can to come and see him when I can.

It’ll be hard but we are trusting that it won’t be forever. And we now have a lot more of a forever to look forward to.

We’ll also have to sit down with my parents and brother. I’ve spoken to them since everything went down. It was a difficult conversation to navigate but I didn’t want to spill the news of our heritage to them when I’m a thousand miles away. They were all worried but accepted my absence when I spun it as a honeymoon of sorts. I’m sure they held back a thousand questions, but I’ll deal with that when I can talk to them in person.

“What are you doing over there?” Henry’s sleepy voice cracks a smile across my face. He rolls onto his side to face me, stretching out his hand to reach for me.

“I woke up and fancied reading for a while.” I hold up the book.

“That’s my book.” He’s entirely too cute when he’s in that state between sleep and fully lucid.

“Indeed, it is. I thought it was about time I read it, and with the sequel coming out soon. Ash gave me his copy.”

“Ash had a copy?” He looks over his shoulder at the guy in question, who is still sleeping soundly.

“Yeah, did he not tell you he read it last spring? He said he ordered it as soon as you left here last winter but had to wait for the postal deliveries to resume.”

“You don’t have to read it.” Henry’s cheeks blush a beautiful rose that makes me smile wider, and it sends a tingle through my fangs at seeing his blood rush to the surface.

“I want to, and I’m actually enjoying it. I can’t remember the last time I read a book but you’ve got me hooked.”

He blushes harder. “Come back to bed,” he says, reaching for me again.

Unable to ignore his request, I put the book down on the chair as I stand, before padding the two steps to the bed.

Henry scoops me into his chest, rolling onto his back until I’m laid out on top of him.

“That’s better,” he says, settling back down and covering us with a sheet.

I have to giggle as I wriggle to get comfy.

“Whatsa goon on?” Ash’s barely coherent garble silences Henry and me.

“Sorry, Ash. We didn’t mean to wake you.” I reach across and brush his curls out of his eyes.