RebornI Married the Eagle Crown Prince’s Uncle

The Eagle Clan had sought to improve the bloodline's looks and ordered my father to send the most beautiful fox women from our clan to wed into Eagle Palace. I wed the eldest son, Caius, and my cousin wed the second son, Dreven. A year later, my cousin bore a magnificent little white eagle. My litter of three, however, came out hideous, misshapen, unable to take eagle form. The old Eagle King was obsessed with looks. He named the second son, Dreven, heir on the spot. My husband, Caius, flew into a rage and handed all three of my children over to the neighboring Dragon Clan as a blood offering. He threw me in as a gift for the old Dragon King to toy with. I couldn't endure the humiliation. I burned myself to death in the flames. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day of the Eagle Clan's bride selection. "Caius, Draven! Here are the two women sent by the Fox Clan. Each of you choose one as your mate. " I had been reborn. Caius walked straight past me and took my cousin's hand. He must have been reborn too; he still believed the Mishapen Cubs were my fault. What he didn't know was that my cousin is only a sixtailed fox. I am a ninetailed fox. My children were ugly because of his own inferior bloodline. This life, I would not let Caius choose me.

But just as I was thinking how to avoid him, he walked past me with open contempt and reached for my cousin instead. On instinct, I grabbed my cousin's hand and shook my head at her—a small, urgent warning. The old Eagle King wasn't a tyrant about these things. If she refused, she could be sent back to the Fox Clan. My cousin wrenched her hand free. Jealous, are we? Because the great Caius chose me? Eagle Clan succession worked the same as any kingdomby birth order, eldest first. Caius and Drevan were both sons of the Eagle Queen, so Caius ranked above. She was blinded by gold and glory. I cursed her silently for a fool and chose to respect her fate. With Caius taking her, the natural pairing left me with Drevan. What I didn't expect was Drevan refusing on the spot. Father King, I'm still young. I'm not ready for a mate. I stood there blinking, touching my face. I wasn't that bad looking, but fine. I'd go home and keep being a princess. Wasn't there some handsome fox lord worth considering? I was already pleasantly imagining my return when a figure stepped out from the rear hall—a man in a mask, a pair of horns rising above it. "Brother King, did you forget your royal uncle has no wife yet? " Could this be Zane, the old eagle king's youngest brother?

Zane seemed to read my thoughts, his expression went cold. I mated you because I felt sorry for you. Do you know where you'd be right now if I hadn't? Caius, it turned out, had wanted me dead a second time. He'd had no intention of marrying me and no intention of letting me go. The moment I stepped out of Eagle Palace's gates, I would have been bound and delivered to the Dragon Clan. Caius carried memories from his past life. He knew the old Dragon King desired me, and he planned to use me as a favor. The thought of what the old Dragon King did to the beast wives and concubines he collected made cold sweat prickle down my spine. That cold terror curdled quickly into pure hatred for Caius. In my past life, he had burned my three children. He had driven me into fire, and in this life, he still wanted me dead. That kind of savage brutality... how did it make him fit to lead all the clans? The thoughts pulled me under, and I fell asleep first thing the next morning. Zane hauled me up to pay respects to the old Eagle King. I was still yawning when we arrived. Caius and my cousin were already there early. My cousin looked radiant; her legs, however, were trembling slightly.

Word was the old Eagle King had always doted on this brother, had even entertained the thought of naming him heir. But Zane had no discipline, no interest in taking a mate or producing heirs, and so the idea had been quietly dropped. In my past life, this man had never appeared. Zane sauntered up to me, unhurried and careless, and fixed me with dark, unreadable eyes. "Brother King, she's lovely. You called this a selection for your sons, but what about me? "The. old Eagle King cursed him roundly for a scoundrel, and then, with a broad wave of his hand, granted me to Zane. Caius, leading my cousin away, couldn't resist a parting. shot"Royal uncle, don't let a pretty face cloud your judgment. " Zane closed his fingers around my wrist, his dark eyes going sharp. "Who I choose is none of a weed's business. " Zane carried me to his quarters in Eagle Palace, but he showed no intention whatsoever of removing his mask—not once, even alone with me that evening. The mask stayed on. What surprised me even more was that Zane had no intention of sharing a bed with me; he placed a folded blanket down the center of the great stone bed, splitting it in two. You sleep inside. I sleep out. I hugged my covers, puzzled. Eagles were known for their lust in my past life. Caius had exhausted me regularly. His needs were immense. He'd come to me even when I was sick and miserable. Was it possible this one couldn't get it up? After all, he was getting old.

The marks on her neck were still visible, red and wide. I clicked my tongue; that had to have hurt. Caius was rough and relentless with no regard for what a woman could bear, and it was my cousin's first time. She probably needed help walking. I let sympathy show on my face. My cousin read it as envy. "I heard Royal Uncle didn't even touch you last night. " I gave her thighs a pointed glance. "Worry about yourself, cousin. " She pulled back with a cold little scoff. And sure enough, the next moment the old Eagle King's voice went icy. Zane stood there utterly unbothered, like a man with nothing to. lose. That answer nearly snapped the old Eagle King in two with rage. He hurled the glass goblet off his armrest and onto the floor.

After the morning thing, the old eagle king called me aside privately and asked what had actually happened. I said I was shy. He studied me for a long moment, told me to give Zane airs soon, and let me go. I barely made it back before Zane fixed me with a gaze that could cut glass. What exactly did my brother ask you? I told him everything. Zane was quiet for a moment after, then he told me that going forward, I was to avoid private meetings with the old eagle king, and if anything came up, put it all on him. His attitude only deepened my confusion. This pair of brothers and Zane's mask were one and the same mystery. Before I could make sense of anything, words spread through all of Eagle Palace. My cousin was with child. Not only that, her belly was said to glow with golden light. Caius was beside himself with pride. He summoned the entire clan to his chambers first thing in the morning to witness the coming of a golden heir. Of course, I was summoned too. The moment I arrived, my cousin moved to put me in my place. She dropped a gemstone deliberately at her feet and looked at me with a smirk. She was barely a month along, she could have bent down perfectly fine. The whole point was to humiliate me; the others watched with amusement. Caius made it worse, sneering in front of the whole gathering that I was barren. I was about to bite back when a gust of wind scooped the gem off the floor, cracked it against my cousin's face, and dropped it neatly back into her hand. What are you? No hands.