“And this is your cousin?” Taube said, glancing at Devlin. His tone was dismissive, and he didn’t offer his hand.
Haydn felt a spike of irritation. He’d always hated the prejudice against alphas like Devlin, but such blatant scorn was uncommonly rude, especially considering that Devlin was part of the Pelugian royal family. It seemed the rumor that Taube despised Xeus alphas was true.
His lips twisted into a sardonic smile, Devlin saluted Taube with Haydn’s drink and gulped it down.
Taube’s lips pursed, his scent spiking. He looked away from Devlin and focused his attention on Haydn. He smiled again, a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead. “So tell me, how are you settling in your new home?”
Haydn hesitated, the question making him uncomfortable. The prime minister was making it sound as if he had moved from Pelugia to Kadar on a permanent basis. “I’m still a Pelugian,” he said carefully. “I have no intention of abandoning my country, but I like it here. Royce and his family have been wonderful.”
Taube gave him a long, penetrating look. “Have they,” he said, stepping closer to Haydn. He placed his hand on his arm and guided him away from Devlin. Was this Haydn’s imagination or had Taube’s scent become stronger? He sniffed, confused why the other alpha was suddenly all over his personal space. Taube should have known better than that. Any alpha would feel on edge with an unfamiliar alpha in his personal space, and Haydn was no exception.
“Haydn,” Devlin said from behind him.
His voice sounded strange, hoarse and tight, and Haydn turned to him and frowned. Devlin was breathing oddly, his green eyes unfocused.
“Something is wrong,” Devlin croaked out before a visible shudder went through him. A growl left his throat, his eyes glowing green. His facial hair thickened, becoming dark fur, and the next moment, his claws snapped out of his fingers, long and razor-sharp, another animal growl leaving his chest as his handsome features turned monstrous.
The crowd around them started screaming.
His heart pounding, Haydn swallowed. “Dev?” he murmured, utterly confused. This should have been impossible. Devlin wasn’t supposed to be able to turn into his beastly form out of his rut. Xeus wasn’t anywhere close to its full-moon phase.
There was no recognition in Devlin’s glowing eyes. He stared at Haydn and Taube hostilely. Like a predator at its prey.
“Dammit,” Taube muttered under his breath, looking pale and wide-eyed. He switched his earpiece on. “Security, we have a feral Xeus—”
Devlin lunged at him, his claws aimed at Taube’s throat, and only Haydn’s war-honed reflexes saved him. He grabbed Taube and rolled them both out of harm’s way, knowing that nothing would save them if Devlin chose to attack again. Haydn might have been a war veteran and an alpha, but a fully-shifted Xeus in his prime was at least five times stronger than a non-shifter alpha.
Thankfully, the appearance of security guards distracted Devlin. “Distracted” was the key word though. One guard after another fell victim to Devlin’s brute strength and claws. People were screaming, security guards were yelling, trying to coordinate their actions, and the paparazzi were snapping pictures of the ordeal. It was chaos.
“Just kill it!” Taube yelled to the last security officer on his feet. He was red in the face, stinking of fear and hatred as he clutched the wound on his shoulder—Devlin must have grazed him, after all. “Use your gun!”
“He’s not it,” Haydn snapped. “No one is to kill him!”
The security officer looked from Taube to Haydn, his expression lost. That moment of distraction was enough for Devlin to throw him against the wall. The guy hit it with a sickening thud, and Haydn winced, hoping desperately that the injury wasn’t life-threatening.
Devlin turned to him, growling, and Haydn took a cautious step forward. Whatever was wrong with Devlin, he had to try to reach him. He was the closest thing to family Devlin had. Maybe Devlin wasn’t gone. Maybe part of him would recognize him.
“Devlin, it’s me,” he said in his calmest, softest voice.
Devlin stared at him, his nostrils flaring.
For a moment, Haydn dared to hope that it worked. That was why he was half a second late to react when Devlin lunged at him.
But he was shoved out of harm’s way, Royce’s familiar scent hitting his nostrils as Royce rolled them to the side. “Stay out of it,” Royce hissed, running his hands over Haydn’s body, checking for injuries. “Are you hurt?”
Haydn looked over his shoulder, fearing that Devlin would attack Royce in the back, but Devlin was too busy fending off the elite special forces that had just arrived. When he saw Aksel among them, Haydn breathed out. If anyone could handle a feral Xeus, it was other Xeus alphas. Granted, Aksel and his fellow Xeus officers had the disadvantage of not being fully shifted, but they were tough and had claws. Devlin might be stronger than them individually, but six partially-shifted Xeus alphas eventually managed to wrestle him into submission and put reinforced manacles on him.