Chapter 168
Chapter 168
Aizen lights up when we arrive at the packhouse. I smile when his friends greet him excitedly. Melody is here along with some of the girls from their ballet group. Some of my worries about the two of them fade as warmth comes over me at the scene. I love how small and cute they are
Those little princesses are glam queens. And the way the boys are roughhousing is hilarious. Maybe Knight knows what he’s doing, and I should trust the situation a little more. It’s just my paranoia getting the best of me.
The pack wolves are he as well. They stand behind Allison. They look genuinely relieved that we’re back. They probably thought I was just going to bail. I get a little soft on the situation. It’s not their fault that their leaders had a messy personal life. All we can do is accept what is happening. I straighten up as she comes down with some of the house staff to get my things.
“Welcome home,” she greets me, and I can’t help but smile when she holds her hand out. I take it, and whatever is happening to me makes itself known.
“Ellie, stop!” thear Allison shout.
“You don’t know what you’re asking me to do, Allison. I don’t have any other choice. I swore an oath, and now I can’t take it back. Nelson is trying to help me. I trust him to get me out of this.”
“Osiris is your mate,” Allison shakes her head. “Do you know how rare it is for us to find our mates?”
“This is why I have to go, Ally.” My mother hugs her. “Osiris is a good man. This pack, my mother, we’d destroy him. I want nothing to do with anyone here. There is more to us than the ranks. I feel trapped here. I’m sorry.”
“I’m not the one you need to be apologizing to.” Allison pushes her back. “I’m just one of the many people you’re disappointing. We trusted you and you’re turning your back on us when we need you the most.”
I blink away the tears and look up at the version of Allison I know. She stares back at me worriedly.
“Alpha Rizen? Are you okay?”
“Yeah, it’s just my affinity acting up.” I take my hand out of hers. “The aftereffect of going through heat as a silverback.”
“I can have some tea brought up for you. You need to rest. We have a big week ahead of us,” she reminds me.
As we walk inside, I catch the eyes of those present. I remember who they are and greet them politely as I pass by. They seem to really like that I remember their names and where they stand in the pack.
Knight isn’t welcomed the way I am, and it bothers me that he’s treated as a spectator when he has such an active role here. Everything I’ve been doing has been because of his guidance, and the glares he’s getting are agitating Midnight and me.
“Thank you, everyone, for the warm welcome.” I stop just stepping up a couple of steps to give me a bit of height so I can see everyone and they can see me. They all give me their attention, and from what I can tell, the people present are those who run the entire thing. They make sure everything is in order. Allison has given me a clear description of their occupations.
“Alpha Rizen, I’d like to be the first to congratulate you on our first alliance bill in the past two hundred years.” Beta Markus Gunner steps forward and bows. “My name is-”
“Markus Gunner. You’re in charge of social services.” I nod. “Thank you. Since we’re all here, and you were the first to step forward. I want a full report of our social laws and benefits.”
“Are you looking for something specific?” he doesn’t seem surprised. I like that he didn’t get defensive.
“No, I’d like to get acquainted with everything Is Molly Nunez here?”
“Alpha Rizen.” A woman steps out from the center of the crowd.
“Maria Knightly will be here tomorrow. I’d like for you to work with her to get me the files on the current pack prisoners, as well as those under the
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Chapter 168
supervision of our seekers.”
“May I ask why?”
“Your alpha is giving you orders,” Allison growls.
1 smile, holding my hand out because the question doesn’t seem malicious. It’s an odd request. I know that, but there are a lot of rogues in the prison here, and a few kids who probably need a break. I need to ensure that they’re not using resources unnecessarily.
“want to catch up on everything. I noticed that a lot of the pack budget goes into policing the packlands, and I want to make sure everything is up to date and fair.”
“You mean fair for his rogues.” Beta Harry Lockwood looks back at Knight.
“Mr. Lockwood, I’ve heard a lot about you. I’m glad you’re here. You’re fired, and I’d like for you to be packed and out of the packlands before the end of the week.”
“You can’t be serious,” he growls. The others growl at him, stepping away.
“It was a pack vote.” Allison backs me up. He looks around,
I everyone avoids eye contact with him.
“There are going to be a few changes around here. I know many of you won’t like it. I know a lot of you don’t like me being here or my mate. I’d like you all to know that Nathan Knightly, the Rogue King, is not going anywhere because you don’t want him here.
“In fact, you should be grateful that he is, because he is the one who talked me into coming here. He is the one who is training the next alpha of your pack. He is the reason why I’ve taken on this challenge because honestly, I have better shit to do with my time than deal with people who believe that just because we are rogue, we are somehow lesser.
“We all have a choice here. You learn to cope with it. We move forward together, or I leave, letting the surrounding alphas pick apart your lives. My past experience with this pack has not been great.
“Walking away would be difficult simply because I value life. I was raised human. However, it wouldn’t be difficult for me to move on. I have been compartmentalizing my entire life and I can tell you that leaving wouldn’t even scratch the top five most fucked things that have happened to me just this past year.
“The respect you treat Aizen and me will be the same respect you treat the King and Ayrie with. Our family is here to help yours, and it’s up to you to
very convenient for us as Rogues, and you as the pack without accept what we’re offering. I am a very transparent person. So, I admit that being here is an alpha.
“With that said, I look forward to getting to know all of you personally. I look forward to learning about the late Alpha Rizen’s home and traditions. I know things are done a certain way, and I apologize if I ever insult your beliefs. It is not my intention. I tend to question everything. It drives my King crazy. I’m trying to learn as fast as I can. For now, my priority will be our safety.
“The King and I have called in reinforcements after Beta Allison informed us that you are understaffed. I hope that your officers, I’m not sure if you call them that here, but I would love it if you guys relay this message, so that they can welcome the new additions. Now that we’re here, the other alphas are going to want to test our borders. Let’s show them what we’re made of and that we can work together.”
