The Shadow Howlers
Chapter 14 - Marking the Queen

Selena looked at Andrew in shock. How could she be the daughter of a god and goddess? She also didn’t understand why that had anything to do with her being unable to hear or speak.

Why can’t I speak? She wrote in her notebook.

“The sister that sent you here had a curse placed on you, so you can only hear and speak if you are mated to a shifter. When Eros found out what she had done, he asked Selene, the Moon Goddess, for help. She made it possible that you were reborn to a werewolf family. You weren’t their biological daughter, so you didn’t have a wolf. Selene said she would have you mate with one of her wolves. Once Zaiden marks you, you will get a wolf and be able to hear and speak. I must warn you. Once the curse is broken, the sisters will know what happened and will not rest until they get revenge.” Andrew saw both Selena and Zaiden becoming more and more confused.

“Why would they want revenge on Selena? She hasn’t done anything to anyone,” Zaiden asked, making sure she could read his lips while putting his arm over her shoulders.

“They blame her for Psyche’s depression. After leaving Eros and Selena, she hasn’t been the same. Once they find out she has mated with a shifter, Psyche’s sisters will try to come after Selena. In their twisted minds, they think killing Selena will help Psyche return to normal. However, they’re evil and will flaunt Selena’s death in her face, so it will only cause her to become more depressed.” Selena looked at Zaiden and showed him her notebook.

Mark me. I don’t care if they come after me. I want you to mark me. I want to be your queen in every way possible. How soon can we do it? He wanted to mark her, too, but he was scared. What if they took his mate and killed her? He’d waited so long to find her; he wouldn’t survive if he lost her.

“Are you sure?” He asked, kissing her forehead. Selena nodded.

“We already have most of the kingdom here. I’ll make an announcement that I’m marking you tonight.” Zaiden looked at Andrew and sighed.

“I guess we can release you. What are your plans?” He asked.

“I was appointed as Selena’s guard. I would like to remain here to fulfill my duty.” He looked at the couple and felt better now that they knew the truth.

“Good. I want you to work with my guards and warriors to let them know what they need to watch out for. We’re going to prepare for an attack. I will get the Shadow Howlers to help. Of all the packs, they have the best warriors. We will not let anyone get to you.” Zaiden looked into Selena’s eyes. There was no way he was going to lose her now that he had her.

Zaiden mindlinked the guards and told them to have everyone there for dinner go to the throne room but not to tell them why. He would do that when they arrived. After removing Andrew’s collar, the three of them got to the throne room just as the others arrived. Many were looking at Selena in concern. Once everyone was inside, Zaiden and Selena, with Andrew next to them, stood in front of the thrones.

“Thank you all for letting me disrupt your dinner. I have an announcement to make. It has come to my attention that my mate Selena is not a werewolf.” He paused as people gasped and started whispering. “She’s a goddess. I will not go into detail right now, but she was sent to us by the gods. We have decided it is best for me to mark her now.”

Selena couldn’t hear what he was saying, but she knew by the looks on everyone’s faces that Zaiden had told them what was happening. She hoped that Andrew was right about her being able to speak and hear once she was marked. Zaiden turned her to face him, and he smiled.

“I love you.” He said, looking into her eyes.

I love you, too. Selena mouthed the words rather than writing them down. Zaiden leaned forward, and Selena tilted her head. She gasped when she felt his canines entering her body. Her eyes fluttered closed from the intensity. When he pulled back, he kissed her.

The first thing that hit Selena was the noise. Everyone was cheering after Zaiden marked her. She smiled and cleared her throat.

“I love you,” she said hesitantly. Selena put her hand over her mouth as her tears fell. She could speak and hear. It worked; it really worked. Zaiden moved her hand and kissed her.

“I love you too.” He had tears in his eyes, seeing how happy she was.

“Everyone, let’s welcome Queen Selena,” Zaiden said loudly, wrapping his arms around her. Selena beamed up at him. She felt as though she had been able to talk and hear her entire life.

“Are you ready to eat?” He asked her quietly. Selena stood on her tiptoes and whispered in his ear.

“No. I’m ready to go to the bedroom. We’ve had enough excitement for one day, and I told you I was ready. Take me to bed and make love to me, my King.” Zaiden pulled away and looked into her eyes.

“Sorry, folks, we have a personal matter we need to attend to. Enjoy your meal.” Zaiden lifted Selena in his arms and practically ran out of the room. Andrew stayed back. He figured they would be safe in their bedroom, and that was something he didn’t particularly need to hear. He wanted to observe the guests in the palace. One thing he had learned about working as a guardian was you could never be too careful. Even your closest friend could turn out to be a snake. You just had to catch them before they had a chance to bite you.

Selena giggled as Zaiden ran up the stairs to their bedroom. He put her on her feet and kissed her after the door was shut.

“Are you sure you’re ready?” He asks against her lips. She stepped back and turned so he could unzip her dress. Once he did, she let it fall into a puddle of gold at her feet. She was only wearing white lace panties. Zaiden’s erection grew painfully hard looking at her. She was a goddess in every way.

“The question is, are you ready?” Selena felt powerful. Something in her seemed to have woken up when he marked her. She wasn’t as scared or timid as she had been. Keeping her eyes on Zaiden’s, she reached out and groped him through his pants.

Zaiden quickly removed his clothes; everything except his boxers was on the floor in seconds. He reached out and ran his hands over her shoulders and down her arms. Selena felt the sparks racing through her body with excitement. She shoved his boxers down and took him in her hand. His penis was enormous, but that didn’t scare her. Zaiden’s legs almost gave out when she leaned over and ran her tongue from the head to the base. Selena stood back up and smiled.

“I would love to do more, but right now, I have an ache between my legs that only this big guy can take care of.” She removed her panties and lay on the bed. Zaiden practically jumped on the bed next to her.

“Well, don’t let me keep him from you.” He began kissing down her body, wanting to make slow, sweet love to her, but she stopped him.

“I said I want you inside of me. Come on, King, let me feel you.” Selena smiled at the excitement in his eyes. She was excited, too. She needed this. This seemed like the final step to his acceptance of her. Selena wanted to be one with her mate. Zaiden kneeled between her legs and leaned over to kiss her.

“You have made me the happiest man in the world just by existing. I’m sorry about the reason you were sent here and all you went through after coming to Earth, but having you as my mate makes my heart whole. I want to love and cherish you for the rest of my life. Selena, you don’t understand how much I love you.” She smiled as a single tear ran down her cheek.

“I’m so lucky to have you as a mate, my sweet, handsome King. You have made not only my heart whole but also my life whole. I will spend my entire life loving you and showing you how much your love means to me.” Selena pulled his face to hers as he slowly began to slide inside of her. She felt a tiny pain, but it was barely noticeable.

Zaiden made love to her more times than she could count. By the time the sun began to rise, they were both fast asleep. However, someone else wasn’t asleep; they were on their way to another realm. Two women were waiting for them when the person arrived.

“What happened?” One of the women asked.

“She’s mated to the lycan King. He has already marked her.” The person kept their eyes down because to look upon the two sisters meant instant death.

“You may leave. Report back anything else. Now that she has been marked, it’s time for her to die. We’ll make it a painful death for both her and her King.”

Sᴇarch the FindNovel.net website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.