Chapter 101

Sebastian

“Fated mate?!” Eric roared as they returned to their minds. Sebastian shoved the scepter into his desk drawer, and he could feel his heart pounding against his ribcage.

He knew where Hannah was located, and he wanted to go here and get her. But he saw that she was already heading home. It didn’t sound like she believed much of what he said, which was good. But still. Fated mate.

Could Henry really be her mate?

“Impossible,” Eric growled from within him. “We marked her. She’s, our mate. Whatever mate pull there was between them is long gone. There’s no way in hell it’s possible.”

He knew his wolf was right.

“Beta Arnold,” he said in a mindlink. “Bring the men back to the palace. Hannah is on her way.”

“Okay, returning now.”

He ended the mindlink and made his way into the foyer where Raya was clutching at her phone and typing something energetically.

“I got her!” She said with a relieved smile. “She will be here soon.”

Hannah arrived at the palace shortly after; she was alone. Apparently, Henry didn’t want to stick around to face Sebastian himself. He scoffed at the thought; probably for the best because Sebastian was ready to tear him apart. But one look at Hannah’s beautiful face and his anger melted almost immediately. All the anger and resentment he once felt was turning into relief. She looked unharmed and tired.

She met his gaze and tears were drowning in her eyes, threatening to escape.

“I’m sorry for worrying you…” she whispered to him as she ran toward him.

He wrapped his arms around her and held her close to him. He never wanted to let her go; her scent was so comforting it was filling him with such warmth and love.

“I thought I felt you there… when I was in that room. I could sense you,” she whispered, burying her face in his chest. He held her tighter; he wanted to tell her that he was there with her. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it; he would have to tell her that he found her using the scepter and he knew how she felt about the scepter.

She found it to be scary and dangerous. She didn’t like seeing it or knowing that he was using it. He had to keep that to himself.

“You’re safe now,” he whispered to her. “I won’t let him get you again…”

She peered up at him and she could see the worry in her eyes.

“He said things to me that made no sense. I don’t know what to believe anymore…”

Before he could say anything in response, Raya came running through the foyer.

“Hannah!” She yelled. Hannah managed to pull apart from Sebastian long enough to be embraced by her friend. “We’ve been so worried. Are you hurt? Did he touch you?”

“No, Raya,” Hannah breathed, trying to calm her. “I’m okay. Just tired. I think I need to lay down.”

Sebastian nodded in agreement and wrapped an arm around her waist.

“Okay,” Raya breathed, watching as they went toward the stairs. “We can talk more tomorrow.”

“Goodnight,” Hannah said over her shoulder.

Her voice was low and soft; Sebastian could tell a lot was weighing on her mind, but he didn’t want to pry. He couldn’t tell her that he knew what Henry had said to her because he would be revealing his use of the moonstone scepter. He had to wait until Hannah was ready to talk to him; he had to wait for her to mention it first.

“We need to make clear to her that Henry is dangerous,” Eric growled impatiently. He didn’t like this waiting game and wanted to make sure Henry stayed away once and for all.

Sebastian didn’t respond to his wolf. He helped Hannah to bed. She looked small in his large bed, and he just wanted to hold her, knowing that she was safe in his arms. He wrapped his arms around her as he rested his head on his pillow. Her scent filled the room and gave his body a warm feeling of tranquility. It was enough to silence Eric for the night and enough to allow him to sleep.

…

Hannah was still asleep when Sebastian woke the next morning. It was early and he knew her to not be much of a morning person. There was a part of him that wanted to wake her and make sure that she was okay. She looked so upset and distraught when she returned home last night. They hardly even spoke about what happened when she went to Henry’s house and how he even got her to go there in the first place. All he knew was that Henry told her that he was their fated mate and said something about revealing information about himself and Sebastian.

He wondered what kind of shit Henry was saying to her to make her so upset. He wished he were able to see the entire conversation and figure out exactly what was said to her. But he had to wait until she woke up and felt comfortable enough to talk to him.

He kissed the top of her head gently before sliding out of bed. He made his way out of his room and down the stairs. As he reached his living room, he was surprised to see Arnold already awake. He was speaking with some of the servants and a couple of the gamma warriors. It was like they were having a meeting.

“There’s an explanation. You can’t always believe what you see on the news,” Arnold said in a hushed voice.

Sebastian rose his brows at his beta; none of them had noticed that he entered the room yet.

“But the Alpha…” the servant’s voice trailed off once he noticed Sebastian standing before him. The color in his face had drained completely and he started stammering as he staggered backward. This caused everyone to turn and look at Sebastian with worried gazes.

“The Alpha what?” Sebastian demanded to know.

“Alpha…” Arnold said, a little too innocently. “It isn’t anything you should worry yourself with.”

“Everything is something I should worry myself with,” Sebastian hissed in return. “This is my kingdom. I am the king. If there is an issue, I need to be aware of it.”

“Not necessarily an issue…” Arnold said, he looked almost nervous. Sebastian took a step closer to them, narrowing his eyes at Arnold.

“I won’t ask again, Beta Arnold,” Sebastian warned; his tone was low and threatening, making the small group visibly tremble. “What. Is. The. Issue.”

Arnold took in a deep breath and pulled out his phone. He opened the news station app and brought up the newest story that was released either last night or that morning.

“The kingdom is focused on the picture between Hannah and Henry at the hospital,” Arnold explained. “Rumors have speculated and are taking over the media.”

“Rumors?” Sebastian asked. “About Hannah?”

“Yes,” Arnold answered. “And about Henry and about you.”

“What are these rumors saying exactly?”

“That Hannah isn’t actually your fated mate. That she’s only after you for the title and your fortune. They are also saying that she’s having an obvious affair with Henry and that he’s her fated mate.”