Queen (Cats of Felidae Academy #4) - River Ramsey Page 0,1

she pressed down on the right pedal. The SUV lurched forward.

“I said lightly!” Axel cried. “Brake.”

She cringed, pressing down hard on the brake. The SUV came to a sharp halt and Ella remained frozen, afraid to lift her foot even an inch. “I did!” she protested.

“Obviously not. It’s the driveway, not a race track,” he scoffed.

“Well, you should have been more specific.”

Before he could respond, he looked up sharply, and Ella followed his gaze. Another car was coming down the driveway, and Ella’s heart skipped a beat as she realized it was Sterling.

Axel reached past her and put the car in park, which was probably a good thing, since Ella wasn’t sure she would have remembered. Sterling always had that effect on her.

“Great,” Axel muttered as Ella rolled the window down and Sterling got out of his car. “Wondering when he’d show up.”

Ella gave him a look before climbing out of the car to meet the other tom. “Sterling,” she said, resisting the urge to embrace him. The house was in a more rural part of town, but the road had enough traffic that they had to be careful.

“Hey,” he said with his usual gentle smile. “What’s going on?”

“Axel bought me a car,” Ella said awkwardly. “He was teaching me how to drive.”

“I see,” Sterling said, looking at the other tom thoughtfully. “I had no idea you were interested in becoming an educator.”

Axel flipped him off in response to the deadpan remark. “I’m starting to regret it. I think it would be cheaper and less life-threatening to just get her a full-time chauffeur.”

“Well, you’re hardly patient,” Sterling scoffed. “I’d be happy to take over.”

“Bullshit,” Axel snapped. Just because he had learned to tolerate the other toms didn’t mean he had overcome his jealousy issues.

Ella sighed. She knew she had to intervene before it turned into another fight. “Did you want to come in?” she asked softly. Things had been awkward between her and Sterling, even more so than usual, since he’d found out about the pregnancy. Ella knew he was probably hurt about her not telling him, and he had found out in the worst possible way, but everything had been so chaotic since the Empress’s disappearance that she hadn’t really gotten a chance to put things right.

“Unfortunately, I can’t,” Sterling said, brushing her hair behind her ear. The simple little display of affection made her heart thrum, but it was dangerous. Even in such a rural area. “I’ve been called to the temple, and I just wanted to come to give you a heads up.”

“Heads up about what?” Axel asked suspiciously, his arms folded.

Sterling grew somber. “Natalia has been missing for a month now. The other prides are growing restless for leadership, and Tessa is planning on asking you to participate in your coronation early.”

Ella’s heart went from pattering with infatuation to pounding with terror. “Coronation?” she asked in disbelief. “I’m not ready for that! Especially not now. I… Natalia isn’t dead. She’ll come back, we’ll find her.”

The toms exchanged an uneasy glance. Even Axel had taken on a serious demeanor that wasn’t typical of him. Whenever he got like that, Ella knew there really was reason to be concerned.

“We’ll find her,” Ella repeated more forcefully.

“Of course we will,” Sterling said in a gentle tone. “But for the time being, in order to prevent any insurrection from those who would seek to take advantage of her absence, Tessa believes it’s important to have some form of public acknowledgment of your reign.”

“She’s pregnant,” Axel muttered. “She doesn’t need the stress, and you know how she is.”

“I know,” Sterling said tersely. “Trust me, if I could talk Tessa out of it, I would have.”

Great. Even he thought she was hopeless. Not that he was wrong. Ella knew she was in no way ready to lead the entire colony. Between the pregnancy and her schoolwork, she barely even had time to focus on training for her future duties. It wasn’t supposed to matter, not for years to come.

“I expect she’ll be calling you soon,” said Sterling. “I’ll delay it for as long as I can, but…”

“No,” Ella murmured. “I know Tessa wouldn’t do this lightly. If she thinks it’s important for the colony, I’ll figure it out.”

Sterling nodded, his gaze softening. “We’ll talk soon,” he promised before getting back in his car.

Ella gave him a faint wave. She watched as he drove off, unable to help but feel like her heart was pulled in three directions those days.

It all felt so surreal.