Queen Alpha (NYC Mecca #2)(15)

She smiled and nodded. When I was just an alpha and heir I’d had time to relax. Now I had inherited an entire race and their drama was my drama. Rising from my desk, I crossed the room. I’d had enough for today. No more work.

The moment I opened my door, my five dominants were there, standing at attention. The sight of them always reminded me that Derek was absent. The pang in my heart was strong, but I never allowed it to linger long. I couldn’t dwell on his death, I had a war to prepare for, which was in part justice for Derek’s murder. He was a victim of the fae as much as the Red Queen. That was how I would honor them.

My guards followed me down the curving halls into the elevator, which took us up a few floors, and then out to a series of storage rooms. We walked in silence. They could tell I wasn’t in the mood for conversation. My focus was on the Red Queen, my aunt by blood, and the woman who I was starting to think I knew nothing about. The fae at the park had said to look to my queen for answers.

So that’s what I would do.

“Wait for me out here,” I said to the five dominants, before entering the large storage room. Normally, they’d check out a room like this, make sure no one was waiting to ambush me. But for some reason I felt the urge to explore in here alone and thankfully my people were learning to accept my commands. Not to mention things were always a little more relaxed within the royal estate; I was powerful enough to take on most attackers, the mecca at my call and all.

Flicking the light on and closing the door behind me, I surveyed the boxes. There must have been over a hundred in here, all neatly stacked and labeled. It would take me days to go through them all, time I did not have. I quickly read the labels, trying to see if anything jumped out at me. Clothes, shoes, files, jewelry, royal trinkets. As I walked closer to a stack of boxes I felt a small pull of mecca energy. It started like a tingling of awareness along my spine, strengthening the closer I got. Kade’s lesson came to me then: The mecca is conscious, a living breathing entity. If you can learn to listen, it can be used for your benefit.

I scanned my hand along the boxes until the tingling became unbearable. Trinkets. What mecca trinket were you hiding, Red Queen? Pulling the medium-size box down, I wasted no time tearing it open. The second the lid lifted I was assaulted by the floral fae scent, which I both recognized and hated now. It was faint, but definitely of fae origin.

Digging through the items, I tossed aside a few small ornaments, a pair of bronze ballet slippers, and some other pieces that didn’t interest me. Right near the bottom was a wooden box. My hand hovered over it and my heartbeat picked up speed. This was important; the box was practically vibrating with mecca energy.

Slowly I lifted it out and contemplated calling Violet to help open it. Now that I knew how powerful the mecca was, I feared it. The fear had started during my coronation when the energy had almost killed me, pressing in on me until I thought I would be crushed beneath it. It was reasonable to fear power like that. But I wouldn’t let the fear control me.

The second I had that thought, the mecca energy within the box lessened, almost as if it sensed my fear and wanted me to know it was safe to open. Okay, then … here goes nothing. Lifting the lid slowly, I blinked a few times as the object came into view. It was a beautiful, falsely vibrant, blue flower on top of a photograph. The flower glowed, the hue of the petals so deep and rich that I knew it was not of this world. Not to mention it was inside of a box with no water and no sun and still it lived.

Touch it or don’t touch it? As if against my will, my hand snaked out and closed around the stem of the flower. The second it was in my palm, my hand glowed the slightest bit purple, like when I touched the mecca crystal. Acting on instinct, I pulled it up to my nose and inhaled the scent of grass, sea water, and a sweetness that lay under the floral tones.

I was about to lower the flower from my face when I heard a crash. What the hell? Realizing it had come from the blossom, I pulled it closer to my ear and almost dropped it at the distinct sounds of waves, and birds chirping. In a rush, I set the flower down and backed up a few steps. Could this actually be possible? Was this some weird freaky fae mecca flower that was a connection to their world?

Why did the Red Queen have this? How did she get it? Could someone in the other world hear me now if I spoke?

I couldn’t think about that. I stepped forward again, planning on slamming the box shut and having Calista lock it in my jewelry safe, when I noticed the photo it was perched on. I stared at it for a moment, a surge of emotions tightening my chest and throat. As I reached out for the old weathered photo, a smile spread across my face; a war of both joy and sadness were fighting within me. It was my mom and the Red Queen.

As I traced my fingers along my mother’s face, I was surprised to see both her and the queen were pregnant in this photo. I recognized the surroundings and clothing style enough to know this was taken when my mother was pregnant with me. I couldn’t recall her ever telling me that her sister had been pregnant at the same time. This must have been one of the times the Red Queen miscarried. If my memory served me correctly, she had more than a few losses in her quest for a child. It was one of those sad stories in our royal history.

I brought the photo closer, really seeing my former leader. The Red Queen looked radiant, healthy and happy. She had her arm around my mother, holding her tightly. I never saw this side of my aunt. She was always so cold and distant to me and others. Maybe the multiple miscarriages did that to her. I didn’t know much about babies or pregnancy, but her belly was quite distinct here, which meant she lost the baby late in pregnancy. I couldn’t imagine such a loss.