When Corinne and Jade reappeared from the tunnel, dishevelled and, in Corinne's case, dripping wet, two guards were standing in the hallway, waiting for their return.
"Your Majesty, the king and crown prince wish to speak to the both of you immediately," one of them said, bowing his head.
Corinne grinned. "Showtime. Take us to them." She hooked her arm through Jade's and followed the guards down the hall. "Watch and learn."
The guards led them to the royal family's private parlour and before long the women came face to face with their mates.
"Darlings," Corinne said, waltzing into the room like she wasn't dripping onto the floor. Her long, pale hair clung to her face. Alder's eyes doubled in size when he saw his mate like that and he groaned, shaking his head. Surely to a man as composed and strict as Alder, Corinne's current state was a tragedy. His bright eyes bore into her with an angry urgency that would have made Jade tremble, but Corinne merely smiled.
Jade was afraid to direct her gaze towards Aaron. If he was looking at her the same way Alder was looking at Corinne, she wasn't sure she would have the courage to open her mouth. She glanced his way and yes, his eyes were unceasingly fixed on her, his features stern. She lifted her chin and forced herself not to look away.
"We were told you want to speak to us? Did we do something wrong?" Corinne batted her lashes. She moved to the table and dropped her hairpins on it. A few of them rolled away and fell to the ground. Jade decided to keep hers firmly tucked in her fist. Corinne might enjoy confrontation, but Jade was nervous.
"When I asked you to talk to Jade, I did not mean you should teach her how to sneak out of the castle," Aaron said.
Corinne's brow's shot up. "Excuse me – are you giving me an attitude?"
"No, I am just saying –"
"No, no, you were giving me an attitude. My own child. Don't forget who dragged you around for nine months – and you weren't exactly a lightweight either, let me tell you that much."
"You could have gotten her killed," Aaron said.
Jade wasn't sure how she felt about them discussing her like she wasn't even there, and incapable to take care of herself on top of that.
Corinne shot Alder a glance. "Are you going to let your son talk to me like that?"
"He is right. You know you are not to leave the premises without your guards and without permission."
"O, that's right. Because I'm your possession. Tell me – should I walk myself down to the prison or will you have someone escort me there?"
Alder sighed, raising his eyes to the ceiling as though he was begging the Goddess for mercy. "Not this again."
"Next time I wish to breathe, should I consult you first and risk choking?"
"Corinne, stop. You cannot go out by yourself, and I fail to understand why I keep having to remind you of that. You need your guards to accompany you."
"Yeah? Very well. Next time I go swim naked in the river, I'll take my guards with me. Especially Jeffrey. He's particularly attractive. You don't have time for me anyway. Maybe he will."
Alder shot forward and gripped Corinne's wrist, his eyes flashing purple. "Shut your mouth."
Jade, who was standing right beside Corinne, felt the urge to shrink away, but she refrained. Instead, her eyes found Aaron again. He was watching his parents, but moved his gaze towards her as though he sensed her looking at him. For a moment, he looked like he might want to say something, but then his attention was directed back towards Corinne.
"O, how nice of your wolf to show up," she said, jutting out her chin and staring him down like she didn't know the meaning of fear. "I was wondering if he'd died yet."
A growl rumbled in Alder's chest. Corinne pulled loose, putting her hand on his chest and forcing him a step back. "You know I'm not your prisoner, so if you insist I bring guards, I will, but then you need to accept that lots of men are going to see me naked."
"Mother," Aaron said.
"What – did you just roll your eyes at me? Are you looking for a fight, boy? Don't think I can't still beat your ass."
"Corinne, mind your language," Alder said, his gaze flitting to Jade.
"O, please. The kid's a Shadow Walker. There's nothing I can say that she hasn't heard before, I'm sure. Give her a break."
"You should not be teaching her this kind of behaviour," Alder said.
Corinne sighed and bowed her head towards Jade as though speaking confidentially. "He says 'teaching' because he thinks we're dogs that can be taught to do tricks. So if Aaron ever says something like 'roll over' and throws a cookie at your head, don't fall for it."
"For the Goddess' sake, Mother."
Corinne shot forward and swatted Aaron's nose.
"Ow! Mother!" He rubbed his nose, frowning at her, his grey eyes gaining a slightly lavender hue.
"Mind who you disrespect, young man."
"Mind who you disrespect," Alder said. "These outings of yours need to stop. Especially in times like these. You know it is not safe out there. And you definitely cannot take Jade with you. It is irresponsible and dangerous."
"Jade can hold her own. You do realise she is a mind-controller, don't you? I am all the safer for it if I do take her with me. Not that I need to. You know as well as I do that I'm a great fighter."
"You used to be. You haven't exactly had a lot of practice lately, and you're not as young as you were thirty years ago."
She gasped and her jaw dropped. "You did not just go there."
"Just be reasonable, Corinne."
"You called me old. That's below the belt. Even for you. Jerk." She punched his chest, but there was no force behind the action.
"Language." He caught her fist and forced it down.
"Jeffrey wouldn't call me old," Corinne said, grimacing when Alder's grip tightened.
"You mention that man's name one more time and I will personally have him thrown out of my army." He released her and she took a step back, rubbing her wrist.
"I can't believe you called me old. I'll have you know I'm still in my prime. You are the one who's old. You're going grey." She crossed her arms. "You can't tell me to stop going outside. I'd rather get murdered out there than suffocate in here. And Jade feels much the same. We are not trophies for you to put on display."
"O, trust me, I would not dare put you on display. Especially not looking like this."
"Like what? Wild and free? You're lucky I'm not walking around naked."
His jaw tightened. "That is enough, Corinne."
"Try me. The next time you tell me where I can and cannot go, I will strip naked in front of the entire court and show them exactly how youthful I'm looking underneath all the flashy clothes."
Alder inhaled sharply and this time Jade did take a step to the side. She knew alpha energy, and his was booming. She'd learned from experience that when alphas got like that, it was best to get out of their line of sight.
"We will discuss this further when we are alone," he said.
"You'd like that, wouldn't you? Or maybe I'm too old for your liking now, huh? Though I didn't exactly get that impression last night when you –"
"Corinne!" His voice rumbled through the room and even Corinne looked pale right then. "By the Goddess, I do not know what I have done to get stuck with you."
"What you did right, you mean? I don't know. If you don't want me to go out alone, but also not with Jade or with my guards, then I guess you'll just have to come with me. But you won't, because you never have time to have fun."
"That is unfair."
"I know. I require attention and you not giving it to me is very unfair indeed. I really don't get what the fuss is all about. Aaron wanted me to talk to Jade, and I did. That I chose to do it away from the confines of this place is nobody's business. We're not like you. We need to get out every once in a while, or we'll go insane."
"You are already insane."
Corinne rolled her eyes. "But at least I manage to hide my crazy when I have to. If you don't want that to change, you need to let go of my leash every once in a while." She inched closer. "Come on, darling. Can't we just forget all about it?" She moved her hands up his chest, her fingers expertly unbuttoning the top button of his jacket. She tilted her head, shrugging her hair off her shoulder, revealing his mark. Lilac seeped back into Alder's gaze and he glared at her.
"Stop it. You do not get to use the mate bond to manipulate me."
"Manipulate you? I would not dare." Her voice had dropped and she looked at him from under her lashes.
Beside them, Aaron was pinching the bridge of his nose. Despite her rising fear levels, Jade thought his embarrassment was rather endearing.
"Jade," he said, fixing his eyes on her. He nodded towards the door. "We need to talk, and we had better do it somewhere else."
"See?" Corinne said, jerking her head towards Aaron. "Now you've even chased your own son away with your aggressive behaviour. That's what you get for picking a fight with me." She drew away from him, and Alder's eyes returned to blue.
"If anything is chasing him away, it is his mother and her wild tactics," he said.
"It is the both of you," Aaron said. "Sometimes I wonder what is to become of this country with the two of you at the helm. Come, Jade." He reached for her and placed a hand on her shoulder, forcing her away from Corinne's side. He led her out of the room, shaking his head. "Never take counselling from my mother. She loves my father dearly and she is a good queen, but her behaviour is erratic and inappropriate."
"I like her," Jade said, and Aaron sighed.
"That is what I was afraid of."
"You're the one who sent her to me, Your Highness. You could've known we would hit it off."
He frowned at her using his title. "Yes, I suppose, but I had hoped she would merely talk to you."
"I'm glad she took me outside."
Aaron released a breath and led her into another hallway, then another. It didn't even occur to ask him where they were going. At last he opened a door.
"These are my quarters. I figured we could talk here, since Father and Mother are occupying the general rooms. We should talk about this morning."
"Right." Jade stepped inside. His quarters consisted of several rooms. Currently they were standing in a room installed for comfort, with broad chairs, a fireplace, a table with chairs around it. It was like a sort of parlour. "I shouldn't have run out on you. The past few weeks have been crazy. Everything's moving so fast and I can't keep up."
Aaron closed the door on his guards, his hand resting on the handle, his brows twisted in thought. "I recognise we are moving fast. And I understand that the circumstances of your past make it difficult for you to be with me. I wish I had a solution, but I have none."
"I don't think there is one. I do hope you understand what I'm giving up to be here – to be with you. This is not the life I envisioned for myself. And there is my father, and yours. You can't expect me to forgive and forget. I get that you want me to, but it's not that simple."
He released the door, stepping further into the room. "I know that. I apologise if I have made you feel like I want to pretend that what happened did not happen. I understand that you are grieving, and I understand that my father is responsible for that grief. I do not stand behind the decisions he has made, but it is difficult for me to admit that."
Jade's heart felt a little lighter. He wasn't taking her side, not quite, but it was a start.
"I appreciate that," she said. "Still, I don't know if I can come to see this place as a home. I guess I didn't think... When you asked me to move in here, I guess I didn't realise exactly what that meant."
His brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"
"I'm a Shadow Walker. I'm always going to be a Shadow Walker. I'm proud to be a Shadow Walker. I don't want to be a Royal Wolf."
He blinked a few times, processing her words. "You do realise that in the long run, if we are to mate, if you are to be the future queen, you will have to join our pack."
"I know. But I don't want to." It was honest – too honest.
"Jade –"
"I know what you're going to say, but nothing changes the fact that I just don't want to. And I don't know if I'm ever going to change my mind about that."
"You cannot be my luna if you do not join my pack."
Her heart squeezed together painfully. "I know."
"What are you saying, Jade? Are you considering rejecting me?" Through the bond, she could feel his panic rising. "Are you?"
"No. I don't want to do that. I really don't, Aaron. We met so recently. It's all so new and I already have to make such huge decisions, and I'm terrible at making decisions. I'm ready to commit to you, but I'm not ready to commit to this place or this pack."
"This place and this pack are part of me," he said. "You cannot have me and not the others."
"I know."
"So what – you are not certain whether I am worth it? And should you decide I am not, you will discard our bond like it is nothing? You will reject me?"
"No! That's not what I'm saying at all."
"It is."
He was right, she realised. Painful as it was, such was her choice: to have it all or to have none of it. There was no middle-ground. And she understood it had to be that way. He could hardly become a Shadow Walker. At the same time, it wasn't fair of him to expect her to drop her entire life and devote herself to his. She mattered too.
_______
A/N: It's chapters like these that make me want to write a prequel about Alder and Corinne.
Meanwhile, Aaron and Jade are still not having their fairy tale. I wonder if they'll ever manage to work out their differences. I guess we'll find out ;)
Thanks for reading!