The Orphaned Queen (By Brandi Ray) novel Chapter 97

Rain’s P.O.V.

After the guys and my mother left, Jess and I stood there in a daze, even though Jess seemed so much calmer than me. What could have happened that was so bad he had to lock down the whole Kingdom? I know he said he would tell me soon, but I was curious, so I kept asking James questions, but all he said was that he didn’t know either.

About an hour later, Evan and Odett were done with the cookies and sitting on the couch across from Jess and me. We gave up on dealing with the twin’s clothes and bottles until we knew what was going on, so we sat there talking and enjoying a cookie until I heard footsteps approaching the front door, making my body go ridged.

“What’s wrong?” He asks me.

“There’s someone at the front door,” I say, making James, Evan, and Jess stand up and take defensive stances as Odett climbs on the couch beside me.

Suddenly, the door opens, and Zion and my mother walk into the suite. I launch myself off the couch and into his arms, needing to feel him close to me. He wraps his arms around my shoulders and pulls me in close as he lets out a sigh.

“What’s going on?” I ask him, not letting him go.

“We need to talk. I asked Stephanie to take Odett down for supper, and Annie will bring ours up in a bit.” He says, and I can tell it’s bad. I nod in understanding. “Evan, will you go with them?”

“Yes, my King,” Evan says without hesitation.

“Keep an eye open for anything strange,” Zion tells him, which makes me nervous, but Evan nods in understanding, clearly switching to warrior mode.

Stephanie showed up a few minutes later and took Odett and Evan down to the kitchen for dinner. My mom, Jess, and James stayed with Zion and me in the suite and waited for our dinner. Zion makes sure to keep a good grip on me the entire time we wait until there’s a knock on the door. James opens it, and Annie pushes in a trolly carrying our food.

We take our plates and sit at the table in the kitchen. Zion stays quiet as we begin to eat, and it’s safe to say the suspense is starting to eat me alive as my hands begin to fidget and my feet start to bounce up and down. He places his hand on my thigh and looks into my eyes to calm me down before taking a deep breath.

“As you know, we had another delivery this afternoon after the delivery of baby items for the twins. Unfortunately, it wasn’t part of the other delivery. When I arrived at the gate, the guard told me he was suspicious about the delivery, so I decided to open the package. It was a severed wolf head.” He says, and I gasp.

“What made him suspicious?” Jess asks.

“The delivery driver stated that it was part of the first delivery, but he wasn’t the same one that delivered the first time or the same truck. The guard also said he wasn’t human but had no scent at all. The box had no shipping label or identification, only my name written in Sharpie.” He answers, making my head swirl with questions.

“They’re watching us?” I ask the first thing that comes to my mind.

“It would seem so.” My mother says. I nod, taking a deep breath before I ask my next question.

“What’s our next move?” I ask, looking at Zion. He seems taken aback by my question, maybe shocked that I’m so calm.

“The Kingdom is in lockdown for now. Orian and Sam are investigating the delivery driver and the box, and your mother will try to find out where the head comes from.” He says, shocking me.

“Wait, what do you mean where it comes from?” I ask.

“The head, like the package and the driver, doesn’t have a scent. It’s strange, even the blood is scentless.” He answers, clearly confused by it.

“Wouldn’t the head turn back to the human form? Are you sure it’s a shifter and not a wild wolf?” I ask, looking between him and my mom.

“We’re not sure why it didn’t turn back to its human form. But I’m almost positive it’s a shifter. It’s too big to be a normal wolf head.” He answers, making a shiver run down my back. “Are you okay, my love?”

“Will they have guards while in the shelter?” I ask, feeling lost.

“Yes, each shelter will have a few warriors from each species inside and outside to guard in case the enemy gets past our defensive line. Sam asked to be assigned to guard Odett, but I think we will need him out on the field. What do you think?” He asks.

“I agree. He’s the Royal Family Gamma, and as such, he is needed on the front line. I have a feeling we will need as many people on the front lines as possible to keep them from getting past us.” I say, and he nods in understanding before freezing.

“You say us like you will be on the front line with us.” He says, and I find myself getting slightly irritated.

“The twins will be here soon, and I will be on the battleground by your side, helping to protect our people,” I say with determination.

“You need to stay with the twins and Odett. They will need their mother.” He says, coming out a little more condescending than he intended, judging by his facial expression.

“And they don’t need their father?” I ask, letting my anger get the best of me.

“That’s not what I meant.” He says, huffing in frustration, and runs his hands through his hair.

“No, what you meant is that you don’t want me anywhere near the fight. You expect me to stay hidden even though we already talked about this, and you told me you wouldn’t keep me a prisoner in the castle.” I shout, letting my rage consume me as my hands lay flat against the table.

Suddenly, the table starts to shake, our glasses shatter, and the lights throughout the suite begin to flicker, and the shock of it all pulls me from my anger and rage. I stop and take a breath, trying to calm myself before I unintentionally blow our home to pieces with everyone I love in it. I feel Zion’s hand touch my forearm and instantly pull away, quickly getting to my feet, running to our bedroom, and locking the door behind me.

I lay myself on the bed and try to control my breathing as I slowly let the tears fall as the fear of hurting my family becomes more real. I need to get back control of my emotions before I lose control. I can’t risk hurting those around me, and I need Dosha to wake up and help me, but until then, I will isolate myself.