122: Ada's POV

The former lady, now just plain Elizabeth Jane, looked unwell.

Her hair— which was once a long, flowing, shiny golden flow of locks— was a matted mess at the nape of her neck. Her eyes were sunken in, with dark circles beneath them. She somehow looked like she had lost eighty percent of her body mass and had gained 20 or so pounds at the same time. Though that probably had more to do with the growing stomach her hand was gently petting.

True to form, her lips were pulled back in a sneer of malice and contempt as I entered the room. Her eyes flicked to Nik as he stepped into the room behind me, shutting the door firmly. She didn’t bother to smother any ounce of animosity she felt towards me.

I guess the games were officially over for her.

“What the hell do you want?” she snapped, her eyes piercing into me.

I rolled my shoulders back and strode across the room. She sucked in a sharp breath as I casually sat on one of the couches and motioned for her to sit. When she hesitated, Nik took one slow step forward. His head cocked to the side, a smirk forming. It was a look that screamed: I fucking dare you. The unspoken threat was enough.

She took a seat across from me, “Too afraid to visit me without a rabid dog as a bodyguard?”

My expression was flat as I stared at her. I remained silent, observing the way she quickly unraveled. The woman who had made me feel so inferior when I first got here, who had threatened everything that I had grown to want for myself, was not the woman sitting before me. No, this woman shied away from my gaze. Her eyes roamed around the room, as if she were looking for hidden enemies in the shadows.

Considering Nik’s presence in this castle again, she most likely was right to be paranoid. I crossed my legs, the leather material of my pants stretching, “How are you, Elizabeth?”

“Ah, so you’ve come to rub my face in it, then,” she snapped, narrowing her eyes. “Well, I simply won’t give in to it. You can fuck off.”

Nik’s responding growl cut off abruptly when I shot him a look. When I redirected my attention to Elizabeth, I sighed, “I’m genuinely wondering how you’re doing. I’m here to make sure they’re treating you well.”

Elizabeth cocked her head to the side, “What are you playing at, Ada?”

I shrugged, “You’re carrying a pup that could be a potential heir to my mates’ thrones.” Nik stiffened, his onyx eyes widening in surprise. I rested my hands in my lap, maintaining a relaxed stance, “I’d like to make sure that both of you are well taken care of.”

“You don’t care about me at all, so don’t pretend you do.” Her body was stiff, shoulders rolled back, and chin held up in indignation.

“Well, you’re right about that,” I agreed with a short laugh, “But I do care about that pup, whether or not it’s Darius’s.”

“Liar.”

My voice was laced with venom, “I am not the same meek wolf you met when I first arrived, Elizabeth Jane.” I felt a release in the pit of my stomach as shadows unfurled around my hands and ankles. They swirled up and around my body, a variety of shades of grey and black. “Watch your tone, because I promise you King Nikolai is the smaller threat to you in this room.”

She gaped, whipping around to look at Nik. he stayed motionless, doing nothing to confirm or deny my words. For her, it was enough to get my point across. Elizabeth shoved herself back on the couch as my shadows danced across the room toward her, as if she could distance herself enough so that they couldn’t find her.

All at once, I pulled them back to me— like a rubber band snapping against my skin, they crashed into me. I lowered my voice, “Now, tell me what I can do to ensure this pregnancy and birth go well.”

“It’s twins,” she whispered, her hand instinctively curling over her growing abdomen, “The doctors told me on Friday.”

I felt my heart skip a beat and swallowed forcefully. The best reaction to this was no reaction. She had to assume I was being looped in on everything about her. With one slow, deliberate breath, I spoke firmly, “That doesn’t answer my question, Elizabeth. My patience is growing thin.”

“Walks in the gardens,” Elizabeth rushed out with eyes wide, “They said my vitamin D is depleted, despite my vitamins. Walks outside would help.”

Nik gave me a curt nod over her shoulder. I nodded at her, “I can arrange for that. From now on,” I stood up, keeping my gaze locked on hers, “Anything you need goes through me. Understood?” She averted her eyes and nodded. I sighed, “Good. My coronation will be happening soon. I will expect you to be in attendance.”

Her eyes shot back to me, “But, I’m no longer a lady of the court.”

“Let me worry about that,” I gingerly patted her on her shoulder, “Expect your first walk in the gardens to happen this evening.”

She remained sitting, silent, as Nik and I exited her quarters. Once we were an appropriate distance away from the room, my mate whirled on me. Hands shoved me shoulders, slamming my back into the wall. He pinned me in place with his body, lowering his head so that we were nose-to-nose.

His onyx eyes were narrowed. “What the hell was that, Ada?”

“A power play,” I smirked at him, relaxing into his grip.

He growled, running a finger along my jawline, “The power play part was hot.” his eyes flashed before darkening, “The making nice wasn’t. What the hell was that?”

“Friends close,” the tip of my tongue darted out and ran along his bottom lip. Nik pulled back, his face stricken with surprise. I smirked and lowered my voice to a whisper, “Enemies closer. Do I have that right?”

Nik pulled himself off of me, clarity ringing in his eyes. He shook his head with a small smile, “You are constantly surprising me, dove.”

“She’s a threat,” I started down the hall again, “Locking her in a room and pretending she doesn’t exist makes that threat worse. If any of you had been the one to start to release her from her sentence,” a servant curtsied as we passed them, “She would have taken that as a full sign of reconciliation.”

“You could have looped me in,” Nik insisted lowly, “Or at least one of us. You had us all worried you were wanting to simply kill her.”

“And you would have let me,” I stated flatly, “Your surprise was genuine, and it worked in my favor.”

“If it had backfired?” Nik grabbed my hand, yanking me back toward him again.

I shrugged, “We would have handled it.”

Neither of us acknowledged what that would have meant as we continued making our way down the corridor and to our shared office.