Queen Alpha (NYC Mecca #2)(18)

The entrance hallway was long and dark as we strode along the hardwood floors toward a black velvet curtain at the end. Blaine parted the curtain and looked around. “Holy shifter gods,” he said, letting out a short burst of laughter.

I couldn’t see, so I shoved my big mountain of a guard to the side and peeked out.

What the…?

“Are we still in New York?” I asked, my voice wavering as awe spilled out.

There was no way this was inside a brownstone building in the city. I had expected a home that had been renovated into a nightclub. Nope … it was a garden. One of the most beautiful gardens I had ever seen. The space looked half the size of Central Park, unnaturally spanning out into the distance. Green grass squished under my boots as we moved out from behind the curtains and into the first part of the outdoors area. The night sky twinkled overhead, and there had to be thousands of tiny string lights draped from trellises. Vines dripped down from trees with full blooms of blue and pink flowers. This wonderland was crawling with magic. How was it possible?

“Ari!” Violet’s high-pitched shriek came from my left, and I turned to see her barreling toward me holding two pink, glowing drinks. Shifters moved around us laughing and dancing wildly to the beat. The flowers, I now saw, were pulsing to the music.

My guards made a half attempt to stay around me, but I could see they were at a loss. Their defensive poses were out of place; it was weird, but there was no actual threat, so they weren’t sure what to do.

Violet reached me and I wasted no time asking her: “What is this place?”

She seemed at ease here, which was not usual for the magic born, so I was guessing she knew more than me. Monica and Jen appeared then also, both looking less at ease but still relaxed. They joined the formation of my confused guards.

Violet grinned. “Isn’t it wonderful! I’ve never seen such intricate and concentrated magic in one place.”

“Magic? Whose magic?”

Only the magic born and queen could access mecca like this. But there was no way any of the magic born were throwing secret raves. They were far too busy for one thing. So who was this old wolf Calista had trusted enough to lead us into their magical lair?

“Mine,” a voice said, and everyone but Violet jumped. Ben was in front of me in an instant, both fists raised, blade held at the ready.

For a second I wondered if somehow I’d managed to drink a few of the pink drinks in Violet’s hand and was already drunk. Is he for real? Standing before me was a handsome older wolf who looked like he could be Violet’s uncle or father. He was pale white, definitely a magic born. He stood about my height, short for a male shifter, but that didn’t diminish his visible power one bit. He wore an old-school tux, with skinny purple bowtie, and a half bowler top hat. His eyes were the usual white-blue, but there were shimmery streaks across them, almost like silver lightning bolts. This was one eccentric, powerful, weird shifter, and he had been under the Red Queen’s nose this entire time. How was this possible? We had only four magic born and he wasn’t one of them. I inhaled deeply. He was definitely a wolf. A wolf magic born who lived in hiding?

“You think I invite people into my home to harm them?” he casually asked Ben.

Violet stepped forward, shoving Ben to the side. “Queen Arianna, this is Sir Baladar.”

A bemused smirk crossed my lips. My best friend wasn’t usually so formal. And what was with the “sir” thing? We didn’t have knights in the shifter world.

He moved closer and I offered my hand. He took it, kissing the top before gracing me with a warm smile. “It’s my pleasure, Your Highness. Would you walk with me?”

Blaine and the others were quick to sound their disapproval to this idea, but before things could get out of control, Baladar put his hand up. “If I wanted to harm the queen, I would have already, and the likes of you would not be able to stop me.”

“That sounds an awful lot like a threat,” Ben said through gritted teeth.

The man smiled, warmth oozing from him again. “I’m much too old for threats. I simply speak the truth. It’s easier.”

For some reason I was inclined to believe him, and I appreciated his honesty. If I was being honest myself, I was dying to have a chat with this man and know more about him.

“I’ll be fine,” I said to my dominants as I began to walk with Baladar. There were no more objections, but my guards did remain close behind us, Violet following as well.

As we walked further into this weird indoors-outdoors garden, I surveyed everything closely. It was hard to remember, when standing within an area so natural, that we were still in the city. My wolf loved it though; she was howling with joy, trying to get me to shift and run.

Shifters were everywhere. Some were dancing, others lying in the grass looking at the sky; some were kissing. This place was definitely magical. Baladar walked silently beside me, content to wait until I was ready to speak.

“So, you’re a magic born.”

It was a question-statement of sorts. This close I could feel his power, and instinct told me that his would match my own. I trusted that Calista wouldn’t put me in danger, but I also wondered if maybe she had trusted too easily. Here was a very powerful magic born that I had not known of. What if the fae didn’t kill my queen? What if this man did?

“I’m magic born, yes,” he said. I noticed the music was muffled now so that we could speak without shouting. When he said no more, I figured I was going to have to do all the talking, so I opened my mouth, but then he surprised me.