The Shadow Howlers

Nyx watched Daphne and Hermes with envy as they sat outside. Was she going to be the only one without a mate? She wouldn’t have a problem with a shifter running to her and claiming she was his. In fact, it was something she had fantasized about a lot.

“Are you Nyx? Are you from the underworld?” Polly asked her. Nyx looked at the two little pups and smiled. She wondered if she would ever have children.

“Yes, I am. You’re standing protectively in front of the Queen. You must be her guards,” she said, studying them. Trisha and Polly’s mouths fell open.

“You can tell we’re guards?” Trisha asked in disbelief.

“Oh, definitely. Who else would be so protective of the Queen? It’s a pleasure to meet you. What are your names?” She held her hand out to them, and both pups stood a little taller. Bianca and Gunnar beamed at Nyx for making their girls so happy. Maybe those from the underworld weren’t so bad after all.

“I’m Polly, and this is my Sister Trisha.” Polly introduced everyone standing there. Nyx shook each person’s hand. She was so happy to be around people who wanted her there.

“Thank you for allowing me to come to your palace. I can’t wait to defeat those evil wenches.” She said with a smile.

“We were getting ready to eat breakfast? Would you like to join us?” Selena asked Nyx.

“I would love that. Queen Selena, have you and King Zaiden figured out all of your power yet? The more you know and understand what you can do, the better your chances are of beating the sisters.” They sat down at a large table, and breakfast was served immediately.

“We just marked each other last night, and then we had a couple of scares. Someone poisoned Alani and Bianca yesterday. I was able to use some of my power to help rid their bodies of the poison. I can put everyone to sleep, or at least those from Earth. Other than that, we’re not entirely sure what we can do.” She answered while taking a bite of her pancakes.

“Do you know how you were poisoned?” Nyx asked Bianca and Alani. They both shook their heads.

“No. We all ate dinner together, and then, a bit later, we both started to feel really weird. We knew something was going to happen, but we didn’t know what.” Bianca explained. Nyx thought about what she said and didn’t believe the poison came from the food.

“I don’t think you ingested the poison. It was most likely placed on your skin or in the environment. Do you know everyone here well?” Nyx asked. Everyone looked at Zaiden.

“Most of them have worked for me for years. However, I trusted Violet, and she tried to poison Selena, so at this point, I trust no one who isn’t sitting at this table.” Zaiden replied.

“How did you know that she was trying to poison the Queen?” Nyx asked. Selena smiled at Trisha and Polly.

“My two little guards saw Violet set a glass of water on the table near my plate. They thought it was strange that she brought it to me when I already had a drink and didn’t ask for water. They saved my life.” Selena kissed each of their heads.

“So they were able to get someone on your staff to poison the Queen and somehow get someone else to poison Bianca and Alani. I’m going to scan the entire palace tonight. Queen Selena, I’m going to need your help.” Nyx looked at Selena, who was nodding.

“Whatever you need. Please call me Selena.” She said with a smile.

“I want you to put everyone to sleep tonight. They shouldn’t notice because most of them will be asleep anyway. I’m the goddess of night, which means my power is strongest during the night. I will scan each person as they sleep, and I’ll be able to feel any deceit in them.” Nyx explained. Polly and Trisha looked at her in amazement.

“What about us? Can we help?” Trisha asked excitedly. Nyx thought about it and smiled.

“Yes, I think you can. When Selena makes everyone sleep, I’ll make sure it doesn’t affect the two of you. Then you can come with Selena and me while we go round to all the rooms. Are you okay with this?” She asked Gunnar and Bianca.

“We would never stop them from helping. We’ll trust you to keep them safe.” Bianca answered.

“What did we miss?” Hermes asked as he and Daphne joined them.

“Well, it looks like you two have marked and mated each other,” Alani said, winking at Daphne.

“Yes, we did. Are you okay with me being in here?” Daphne asked Alani and Omar. Technically, she was assigned to be with the other warriors outside. She didn’t want to assume she would be allowed to leave her post just because she was mated to Hermes.

“Yes, of course. I’m sure you’ll want to be near Hermes, so you can stay with our group from now on until after this fight. I’m sure afterward, you’ll be going off to wherever he resides.” Alani replied. Daphne looked at Hermes and shrugged.

“We’ll see.” She said. Hermes slid his hand onto her thigh under the table. Now that they had marked each other they could mindlink.

“We’ll see, huh? What exactly are you planning?” He mindlinked her.

“Well, I’ve lived in darkness most of my life and no longer want that. If you plan to take me to the underworld, I’d rather stay here and allow you to come visit.” She bit her lip so she wouldn’t make a sound when Hermes began rubbing between her legs. Even with her pants on, she could feel the sparks from his touch.

“I will live wherever you want. I can do my work and return to you when I’m done. I just want you, Daphne. I love you.” She looked into his eyes and melted a little. She would never tire of him saying that to her.

“I love you too. Now, if you don’t stop, I’m going to embarrass myself.” She smiled, and rather than stopping, he rubbed her more.

“Are you okay, Daphne? Why is your face so red?” Polly asked. Hermes quickly removed his hand, bumping the table in the process. Now, it wasn’t just Daphne’s face that was red.

“Uh, yeah, I’m fine. Just got a little hot in here.” The others chuckled, but Polly and Trisha looked at her with concern.

“Hermes, I think she’s sick. Maybe you should take her to your room until she feels better,” Trisha said. Daphne’s face reddened, and the others at the table no longer tried to hide their laughter. Hermes wasn’t embarrassed at all. He stood up and lifted Daphne in his arms.

“I think that’s a great idea. Let us know if you need anything. I’m going to take care of my mate’s sickness.” He practically ran out of the dining hall.

“Geesh, maybe we should be healers too, Trisha. No one else saw that Daphne was sick.” Polly said as she ate a bite of her pancake. Trisha nodded next to her. They were sure the palace would fall apart without them.