Defying the Lycan King (Kira and Derek) novel Chapter 208

Chapter 208: Betrayer

"She’s finally here," Derek said, his voice dropping like a block of ice right into the middle of Kai and Declan’s argument.

The two men snapped their mouths shut and turned to face Derek.

Kai’s eyes went wide. "Who? Kira’s here?"

Derek didn’t answer. He simply lowered himself back into his seat behind the desk, his face a careful, unreadable mask.

Kai stared at him for a heartbeat, then took two quick steps back, turned, and strode for the door. "I need to stop her," he said, and was gone.

As the door swung shut behind Kai, Declan crossed to the desk and braced his hands on the edge of it.

"Don’t you think you’re making a mistake?" he asked quietly.

Derek looked up at him, his eyes flat and cold. "The only mistake I ever made," he said, "was believing something good could come out of Moonfang. And then being foolish enough to stray from my original plan because of it. I’m simply correcting both errors at once."

Before Declan could say another word, the door burst open.

Nana came sweeping in like a storm, Crane following close at her heels.

"What is this nonsense I am hearing, Derek?!" Nana demanded.

***

Meanwhile, downstairs, Kira stood frozen in the entrance hall.

Her heart slammed against her ribs so hard she thought it might crack them open. A pain lanced through her chest, so raw and so sudden that it felt physical, like a blade slid clean between her ribs. And through it all, Brian’s voice came rushing back to her, every cruel word she had refused to believe.

And for what it’s worth, Derek doesn’t love you. Whatever you’ve let yourself believe. His plan, from the very beginning, was to marry the Moonfang heir and to kill her after a year if she failed to give him a son.

She had called him delusional. She had called him a liar. And now she stood in the middle of a hall being decorated for the very wedding he had warned her about.

Mara looked at her, pity swimming in her eyes. "Your Highness? Is there anything I can do? Anything at all?"

Kira blinked and shook her head slowly. "No," she managed. "No, I’m fine, Mara. Thank you. I’m fine."

Mara hesitated, then dipped her head. "I have to go and help the others. I’m so sorry, Your Highness." And she hurried away into the bustle.

The moment she was gone, Kai came rushing down the stairs and spotted Kira standing rooted by the entrance.

"Kira!" He hurried over to her. "Kira, thank the goddess. You’re alright." His eyes raked over her, taking in the exhaustion, the state of her. "What happened to you? Where did you go? We’ve been searching everywhere—"

But Kira had seen the unease written all over him, the tightness in his shoulders, the dread in his eyes.

"Is it true?" she asked.

Kai’s brow furrowed. "Is what true?"

"You know exactly what." Her voice was low and tight. "Don’t you dare play ignorant with me, Kai. Not you."

Kai exhaled heavily and dragged a hand down his face. "Kira... nothing is the way it seems right now. I swear it."

"So he plans to kill me after a year," she said. "Is that it? Marry me, use me, and dispose of me when I’ve served my purpose?"

Kai shoved his fingers back through his hair, his silence its own kind of answer.

"You know what?" Kira said, her jaw setting. "I’ll get my answers from him directly."

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify