© ItalRT4u, 2012

     The massive and abused hand snaked its way through the hole in the door and reached for the locking mechanism and retracted itself.  Gage had attempted to grab onto my hips, after releasing himself of his boxers, and pulled up so he could sink himself into me with no success thanks to my continuous squirming. 

     In all honesty, I don’t know how I managed that but I refused to back down and submit to him.  It was easier seeing as my arms were free and unbound this time around.  I had managed to twist my upper body which hurt like a bitch, making my hips feel like my legs were about to be dislocated from their sockets seeing as he had them sort of locked in a straddling position at the sides of his hips.

     In what felt like an eternity but realistically must have been a few seconds, Gage was ripped away from me, thrown roughly into the wall opposite of the bed and Cane was by my side, his arms wrapped in a protective cocoon around me.  MacDougall was holding a violently squirming Gage against the wall.

     “Son, you’ve made a grave mistake.”  He bellowed down to Gage.

     Son?

     “Back off old man!”  Gage tried to pry Angus’ hands off of his arms.  “She’s mine.”  He threw in with a growl behind his words.  Angus’ grip never wavered.  This man was frightening to say the least when angered.

     “She might have been at one point but she isn’t yours anymore.”  Angus held Gage’s gaze.  “You’ve gone and become what I feared the most.  I should have known that you were your mother’s son the minute you showed up here beaten up, weathered, and sickly looking.”

     “Leave my mother out of this!”  Gage hollered at him.  “My happiest day is when she left you and took me with her.” 

     Son? 

     In shock, I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.  I pulled my shirt down to hide my waist all the while watching this exchange of words, the blankets long ago had been pulled up to cover the rest of me, by Cane.

     “But you’re a Wright!”  I exclaimed, snapped out of my shock, confused at all this new information.

     “He took his mother’s name when she took him away and moved to America.”  MacDougall announced over his shoulder, refusing to take his eyes off of his son.

     “So what you’re telling me is that this disgusting creep, this cheater, this lying scumbag is your son?”  I asked with a squeak to my voice that reflected the lack of emotional control in the heat of the moment; I was now shaking violently with rage, fear, a slew of emotions as Cane held me.

     “I’m sorry.”  Angus said softly.  “I regret that I have to call him my son.  Had I known that you were the woman he would always speak of, I would have kept a closer eye on him.  He’s deceived us all.  Rest assured he will be punished.”

     “Punished?”  I asked.  William came in, jaw dropping as he took in the scene.

     “As a result for turning against this household and refusing to respect the throne, he will have to suffer our punishment.”  MacDougall stated and I couldn’t help the note of grief that laced his words.  It didn’t sound good at all.

     “They’re here.”  William looked at Angus.

     “Help me with this piece of trash.”  Angus requested of William, now sounding emotionally detached.  As Will grabbed Gage and pulled him away and out of the room, I noticed Gage’s eyes grow with notes of fear and panic at the realization that his father had condemned him.

     “Dad?”  He asked softly.  “Daddy?  Please!  You can’t do this to me!”  His voice trail behind him as Will pulled him further into the hall.

     “You’re no son of mine.”  Angus paused and looked down to his feet, defeat, grief, and humiliation flooding his emotions once his son was at his back.  “Take him away.  Do what you must.”  He finished, shaking his hung head.

     “Surely you don’t mean that?”  Gage pleaded, William holding him as another man, a much burlier one came to help with the struggling captive.

     “I do.  Goodbye Gage.”  Angus walked further inside the bedroom and away from his son, the forlorn look strewn across his face; he had indeed lost his son forever.  This is when I realized that things ran differently in the Fae realm; more than I ever thought possible or was informed.  I wasn’t quite sure if I wanted to know what their plan for Gage’s punishment was but I knew that I needed to find out.  After all, I wanted to create something peaceful, something with balance and equality for all of us.  I knew however, that there would be a down side to all of this and to all of those that remained treacherous to the Royal bloodline.  From the reading I had done at the Nottingham’s, things can get pretty violently grim in different parts of the world where the Fae were present – death would certainly ensue and of a larger magnitude than anyone with a heart could ever wish for and that my friends is a harsh reality to portray.  I prayed that we would manage to restore order without too much violence but I knew that it was nothing but a dream that would never see realization in its entirety – dare to dream, huh?

     Shortly after Gage had been dragged away and I had managed to put myself back together, I had asked Angus if I could speak with him alone; assuring William and Cane that I would be fine.  Cane had been ever so reluctant to let me out of his sights but I told him that if he felt better standing outside the room, that he could do just that and that I’d let him know if I felt threatened in any way, shape, or form.  I knew it wasn’t going to be the case; MacDougall had proven his worth and trustworthiness.  I had a few questions that burned within me and I knew that I would reach a boiling point if I didn’t ask him for answers.

     “What will happen to Gage?”  I asked without a moment’s hesitation after he had shut the door to his vast den, secluding us from prying eyes and ears.

     “He will be handled.”  He cleared his throat, all the time avoiding my gaze; he knew that his answer would far from suffice my curiosity but didn’t volunteer any more information.

     “What will happen, Angus?”  I pried more using some of my commanding abilities.  His head snapped up to my face and he eyed me curiously.

     “Did you just…”  His voice trailed off.  I nodded.

     “Yes, I commanded you.  Or at least I tried.”  I told him.  He looked concerned for a moment and then nodded his head in acceptance and gave me a smirk that made me wonder what he was thinking.

     “No Royal has been able to do that without being fully bonded.”  He muttered in his soft voice without my having to ask him about his thoughts.

     “They haven’t?”  Angus shook his head.  “Oh.”

     “My Queen, it’s true what they’ve said that you’d be the one to restore the balance.  Your abilities supersede those of your ancestors.  I expect great things to happen in your reign.”  He stated in a jovial fashion.

     “Thanks.  I think.”  I said ponderously.  “Now…”

     “Death.”  MacDougall answered swiftly.  “His punishment for treachery, assaulting the throne, compounded with his overall meddlesome behaviour, is death.”  I couldn’t shake the detached air that surrounded him.

     “But…”  I for one felt relieved to be rid of him, much like I had of Matt and his two minions but another part of me, the one that once had loved Gage, felt horrified at his undoubtedly harsh fate.

     “It’s our custom.  I don’t expect you to understand seeing as you’ve lived a fairly unknowledgeable and sheltered life, closer to that of humans; this from William himself.  The Fae clearly do it differently and you’ll encounter various methods of punishment as well as various levels of tolerance wherever you find yourself travelling to.  Ours, I’m afraid has remained intact for centuries and because it works for us, we’ve stayed with that part of our history.”  Angus explained.  I nodded in understanding.  “Ultimately, it is your choice to abide by our customs or invoke your own decision.”

     “I see.”

     “Seeing as these crimes were committed against you and your status as Queen, you do have the final say.”  He stressed.

     “What would you and your people do if it weren’t a crime against a Royal?”  I asked, curious to know if this punishment was strictly because some of these crimes were committed against one of Royal descent or if he would have faced the same fate for an average Fae person.

     “The same punishment would be carried out.”  Angus confirmed, lifting his eyes to mine with confidence in his response.  I walked by him, towards the den’s large windows, keeping my back to him and crossing my arms at my chest, I didn’t know what to say.  It troubled me to make decisions such as these albeit being my first major decision where beliefs and customs were drastically different from my own.

     “What if I were to overturn the decision of death?  What would everyone think?  What would they say?”  I thought to myself out loud.

     “If I may advise?”  I turned to MacDougall and awaited his answer after nodding; a sign to urge him to go on.  “I think it would be in your best interest, in gaining supporters if we kept with custom and treated this situation the same as we’ve always treated all others of a similar nature.”

     “Angus.”  I approached him slowly with an incredulous look in my eye.  “He’s your son.  No matter how much you reject or renounce him, he’ll always be your flesh and blood.  Can you honestly say that you can handle this burden?  Can you live with his death on your conscience?”

     “I have seen families go through worse.”  He said and I couldn’t help thinking of those families that have been decimated thanks to hunger for power and feuding; remembering my very own personal account of the battle that took place weeks ago between me and the Davis clan.  “My son would have been honourable, respectful, and most of all, hewould have wanted to support having a Royal.  Instead, he chose the path of self-righteousness, power, and greed.  Gage hasn’t been a son of mine for a very long time now.  I chose to ignore the past and welcomed him back with open arms but clearly, that was a grave mistake.”

     “Thank you for your honesty.”  I posed a hand on his upper arm in a kind gesture.  “I believe I will leave this in your capable hands.  Now, I shall let you tend to your affairs and I shall speak with you again come morning.”

     My stomach felt unsettled despite my hunger.  I left MacDougall’s den and found Cane waiting for me a few feet away from the room’s door.  He grabbed my hand and pulled me to our room which at this point had been turned down for us; trays of food waiting for us on the large antique desk that graced the windowed corner of the bedroom.

     “I took the liberty to request a quiet dinner.”  Cane announced.

     “Thank you.”  I cupped his cheek with my hand.  “You couldn’t have read my mind any better.”

     “I didn’t have to.  I know you.”  He took me in his arms and hugged me to his chest.  “The vultures would have you to themselves tomorrow so I figured that I might as well have you to myself tonight.”  He wriggled his brows which made me laugh slightly.

     “Sounds wonderful.”  I sighed.  “But all I need is your arms; nothing more handsome.”

     After dinner, Cane had poured us a bath.  I had never seen a claw-footed tub this large before.  Having his flesh pressed against mine and his arms wrapped around me filled me with security and peace which eased me into a state of contentment that I hadn’t felt since a few nights ago when Cane had come home.  I wanted these feelings of contentment to last forever, uninterrupted; but I knew that was never going to be the case.  The sense of larger things on the horizon was overwhelming and I knew that Cane knew this as well.  Until we completed our bonding and settled this potent feuding, there wouldn’t be a moment’s peace.

     “We need a witch.”  I whispered as I nuzzled his jaw bone after we had found ourselves settled in bed for the night.

     “Hmm.”  He mumbled sleepily.  What did Hmm mean exactly?  Was he in agreement by necessity or has he wanted this prior to us finding out that our bonding wasn’t finalized?  It sounded like a yes, right?

                                          *************************************

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