Riley POV
Arrogant. That was the first thought that crossed my mind, while I observed the leader of the elders, the man they called Dominic Mathias. He seemed self-assured, cocky as he taunted my mate, certain that my mate would bow down to his ridiculous demands and simply submit, allowing them to take his title without fuss or consequence. They seemed reassured that their vast numbers were going to be enough to save them, that we would be intimidated into doing what they wanted. We might not have as many as them behind us ready to fight, but that was because we didn't see the need to risk so many lives. I saw Marigold give me a swift glance and I nodded at her, attempting to reassure her. We would not bow down to them simply because they thought their superiority gave them the right. As it was, I could hear my siren voice inside my mind, urging me to sing, to show them all what I was capable of, my wolf also clamoring to do something. It was like being torn in two directions, fighting to keep my composure as I stood proudly next to Bailey, refusing to show any weakness or vulnerability. I would fight to the death if it came to that.
"You seem to be under the mistaken impression that I'm not going to fight back" my mate said to Dominic Mathias, who looked taken aback by his refusal, "or that I would agree to have my title stripped willingly away from me. I don't know whether to compliment you on your arrogance or laugh at you" he sneered, curling his lip and raking his gaze over the elder with revulsion.
"Do not think that having sirens on your side will save you" Dominic sneered back, before raising his hand.
One by one, several women stepped out of the shadows, cloaked, their faces bowed down to the ground. I sniffed, puzzled by their scent, for a few moments. They didn't smell like shifters. Instead, their scent was of a different race altogether, and it struck me why Dominic and the other shifters had been so arrogant and condescending, why they had looked so confident as they addressed us. They had kept these women back for a reason. I swallowed hard as Dominic's eyes shone with triumph.
"Yes, Queen Riley" he said mockingly as I looked at him directly, "you may be a siren, but your voice can still be silenced by witches" he said, gesturing to the silent women in cloaks "did you think we would come unprepared for such treachery from you?"
He chuckled gleefully.
Witches. We should have known they would have used such a dirty trick. Instead, we'd relied on our voices as the main way of winning this battle. I shot a glance at my mate, but he continued to look unconcerned. Either he was coming up with another plan or he was merely refusing to let the elders see that we were rattled. I began to try to think of a way out of this, but nothing came to mind. I could feel myself beginning to panic.
"So you would rely on the witches to do the dirty work for you" Bailey said quietly, "rather than face us like the cowards you are."
"We are merely using what we have at our disposal", Dominic corrected in an angry voice, "much like you were preparing to do. Or do you deny that the sirens were going to sing their way into tricking all of us into a trance" he demanded icily.
Bailey smiled lazily "I don't deny it" he said, shocking the elder, "but how did you get so many witches to agree to do your bidding? What did you have to threaten them with to get them to do what you wanted?"
"We simply provided them with the necessary incentive" Dominic said dismissively.
"You see nothing wrong with that?" I growled, as he turned his attention to me "threatening other races to do your bidding? Have you no shame?" I demanded, while the witches continued to stare at the ground "your arrogance is astounding."
"Protest all you want, we have you outmaneuvered," Dominic said, "The logical thing for you both to do, is to submit now, before you are killed at our hands and your pack pays the price for your betrayal of us."
So now the pack was being threatened with punishment as well. It wasn't suprising. In fact, I had wondered when he would get around to making that threat. There was no way they wouldn't disband it for what they deemed as Bailey's betrayal of them.
"I'm afraid that's where I have to disagree with your assessment" a voice pleasantly said as we turned in confusion, to see a large group of beautiful men racing up to us, so fast they were practically blurs.
I frowned. The way they moved, the way they looked, their eyes. It was impossible to mistake what they were or rather who they were, still it was fascinating to watch them. The man in front looked almost regal, carrying himself with a confident air, and seemed to be in charge. The others looked towards him for guidance as they immediately situated themselves behind our group, causing us to look at them in surprise. It appeared they were willing to become allies of us immediately in this fight.
"Who are you?" Dominic snarled. "This doesn't concern you or your kind" his lip curled as he eyed the man in revulsion.
"That's where you are wrong" the vampire hissed, his eyes narrowing at the elder, glowing a bright red "Your kind killed my son", he roared, as Dominic took a step back in fright.
Realization dawned. "You must be King Julian" I said quietly as the man turned to me, a small smile appearing on his face.
"You must be Queen Riley" he bowed his head "I owe you gratitude for freeing my men. I have heard nothing but kind words from them, and you salvaged my son's ring which I now wear as a precious memento. It grieves me that I was never able to say goodbye to him, and the knowledge of what he experienced at the hands of those". He paused and looked at the shifters "elders, fills me with nothing but revulsion and anger. Never have I hated a species before as I hate you" he told them as they snarled at him, "and it would do me great pleasure to do away with you all," he added as the other vampire males behind us nodded in agreement, slow smiles spreading across their faces.
"You can do nothing against witches" blustered Dominic, glancing towards the cloaked women, as though trying to reassure himself.
A lazy smile spread across King Julian's face. He turned and nodded towards one of his men. His man moved so fast it was difficult to see him, grabbing one of the witches by the throat and breaking her neck in front of us all. The other witches, moving backwards away from him, were startled.
"Your witches are no match for our speed" King Julian said casually as the man dropped the body roughly to the ground and sped back to join our group, "something you should know considering you conducted so many experiments" he spat.
"We'll take just as many of you out with us" Dominic bluffed, already beginning to sweat.
King Julian wasn't listening. He turned to Bailey and lifted a brow, holding his hand out. I watched my mate shake his hand, both men eyeing each other warily. He then turned to me and took my hand, kissing it to his lips, while Bailey glared at him and I tried not to giggle at the ridiculousness of it, while Dominic stared incredulously.
"You're just as beautiful as they described". King Julian continued to ignore a seething Dominic "and twice as lovely as I imagined. Tell me Queen" he said, while Bailey looked ready to throttle the man who was flirting with his mate, "what would you have us do? How can we assist you?" he said, looking back at the shifters. "Would you have us kill them all?" he asked solemnly.
It was tempting. So tempting as I looked over at the elders who were continuing to snarl and growl, pawing the ground. But without a trial, without public support, it could backfire on us. We needed them alive, or at least a vast majority of them, in order to sway the public and reveal the truth about what they had done. I sighed.
"As much as I would like to have them all die slow and painful deaths" I said pleasantly, watching King Julian give a small smile, "I fear that we need some of them alive at least. We want to give a public trial and want all the leaders of the different races to be present. It's only fair to those who were affected by what they did," I added, as King Julian's eyes went dark for a moment.
"You speak wisely" he said with a slow nod, "Ours was not the only race trapped in those cages in the compound" he sighed, "and every victim deserves to speak about the atrocities that were done to them. There is no justification for what they did, claiming it was for science and the betterment of their own race is nothing but a cop out" he added with a growl, fixing his eyes back on the shifters.
"Even with the vampires, you don't stand a chance of winning" Dominic said, backing away slightly into the shifters who formed a protective group around him. "You'll have casualties, injured men. Are you willing to risk all that, King Bailey? Are you willing to risk the life of your mate or that of your children?" he smirked, "the children your mate carries in her very womb right now?"
Bailey's eyes widened, and he let out a menacing growl while King Julian looked at me in surprise. "Who told you that?" he snarled.
"Never mind how I know" Dominic shot back, "only that I know your precious mate is pregnant. If you fight, I will command the shifters to go directly for her. She won't be safe. Neither will the children she carries. Do you still want to proceed?"
"Coward" King Julian muttered, "To threaten a pregnant woman is about as low and despicable as one can get."
I touched Bailey's hand. "Don't worry about me, this is something we have to do," I told him as he looked at me torn "We knew the dangers going into this."
I saw him swallow hard, saw him glance at my stomach. I saw King Julian nod to some of his men and within moments several of them had surrounded me.
"Do not leave her side" he ordered in a low tone. "Not for anything."
The men nodded seriously and Bailey looked towards Dominic, who shifted into his wolf form, clearly sensing the renewed anger and seeing the violence on Bailey's face. The witches began to raise their hands in unison, their cloaks falling off their faces as they turned to look at my group. The fight began in earnest, as Vampires sprinted towards the witches and Bailey shifted in front of us, heading directly into the group of shifters, King Julian joining him.