Tate was already pinching the bridge of his nose in dismay. His wolf wanted to do everything to protect the teenager but how was he going to protect her from the law when he had already vouched to stand with the law when he took an oath as the newly-elected Deputy Defense Minister (Wolf Division) just several weeks ago?
Lucianne was careful not to look too ominous when she delivered the truth, “Then she has to be fined or…kept in custody in accordance with the law.”
‘Kept in custody’ was a nice way of saying ‘jailed’. Stella knew this, too. “NO! NO! PLEASE! YOU CAN’T! YOU CAN’T! PUT ME THERE INSTEAD! PLEASE!’
Lucianne sat closer to her and wrapped her arms around the girl to comfort her with a hug. Stella’s tears drenched a part of Lucianne’s cerulean-colored blouse but the queen didn’t mind it as she let the poor girl cry her eyes out until her crying eventually reduced to sobs and sniffles. When Stella came to terms that there wasn’t a way to change Lucianne’s mind, she asked in a small voice, “You’ll take care of us? You promise?”
Lucianne gently lifted up the girl’s chin, and looked deep into her eyes as she uttered clearly and firmly, “I promise.”
Tate then got Xiera to lead the lycan warriors to the dungeons where the other two rogues had been held all night, and Xiera drove them all back to the open space where the jet was. Lucianne sat with Stella in the backseat as Tate drove them. A large part of him felt that Stella shouldn’t be going with Lucianne, that she should remain in White Blood under his care and supervision. He glanced at the girl through the rear-view mirror every once in a while, and the decision of not turning the car around felt more wrong by the second.
He stole glances of Lucianne, not from affection but from wanting to seek confirmation that his instincts weren’t wrong. He saw that she wasn’t enjoying any of this either. But what choice did they have? She was the queen. He was a deputy minister. They both had a duty to uphold. But why did upholding a duty have to feel so…wrong?
They reached the field and got out of the car. Xiera just came down from the jet after making sure the lycan warriors didn't need anything else with securing the two prisoners. Tate got Xiera to guard Stella as he ushered Lucianne to the side.
With nothing but hesitance, he began, “Lucy, I don’t feel good about this.”
“Well, I guess it’s comforting to know that I’m not alone,” she muttered.
“Can’t you do something?” Tate pressed in a dismayed whisper.
“I can, Tate. But I need to take her for now. You and I both know that. I’ll talk to Xandar and Chief Dalloway. We probably have to call for a government meeting soon to discuss rogues beyond the Wu Bi Corp sphere, specifically when it comes to minors. I’ll make sure she’s okay.”
Tate’s anxiety eased a little at Lucianne’s assurance. She shook her head in dismay as she muttered, “Why her? Apart from her scent, she’s nothing like a typical rogue we’ve been slaughtering for years on end.”
“I wonder what’s with her mother.”
“Whatever it is, I hope it’s not too grave. Parents have this instinct to do anything to make sure their child is okay. We just don’t know how many laws her mother had to violate to raise her.”
“You know, I wished I wasn’t elected all of a sudden. At least then I wouldn’t be torn between duty and instinct,” Tate remarked with a light chuckle.
Lucianne’s frown turned into a smile when she whispered, “I’d say I wish I wasn’t the queen so that I could ask Juan and Hale to take Stella into Blue Crescent, but it somehow feels irresponsible and wrong for me to deny the position I’m given now. The coronation ceremony cost taxpayers a lot of money.”
“Not to mention the fact that your mate wouldn’t like to hear you refusing the crown.”
A broader smile graced her features when she admitted, “That’s true...but I’m still more concerned about the taxpayers’ expenditure in this case.”
Tate chuckled at her response. They embraced like old friends. Lucianne then approached Stella and Xiera. After thanking Xiera and giving her a hug for old time’s sake, they all heard ferocious growls as five wolves charged towards them at lightning speed. One of them was about to pounce in Xiera’s way before Lucianne’s eyes turned as blue as sapphires when she radiated the Queen’s Authority, compelling the five rogue wolves to stay rooted to their spot.
The lycan warriors heard the commotion, and Phelton dashed out of the plane and sprinted to his queen, preparing to shift into his animal to defend her. Lucianne’s Authority held the rogues to their spot, and her eyes returned to their black-and-lilac color as they fixed on them. She wondered why they were attacking in an open space, in broad daylight. Rogues normally attacked after dusk or before dawn to avoid capture and to ease escape.
Her confusion was clarified when Stella exclaimed, “MOM!”
‘Oh no.’ Lucianne thought to herself. A mere attempt to attack Lucianne was a crime on its own since she was the queen. How was she going to persuade her overprotective husband to go easy on Stella’s mother now?
And just when Lucianne thought that things couldn’t get any more complicated, she saw Tate look at the rogues like he was in a trance. But there was no desire to kill. He just stared at them for a good three seconds before approaching them in slow, careful steps. That was when Lucianne realized that the red she-wolf leading the other four had her rosewood eyes fixed on Tate.
Tate followed the delightful scent of hyacinths and morning dew to the red rogue wolf. When he got down on one knee to level himself with the she-wolf, he uttered, “Mate.”
Lucianne, the lycan warriors and Stella were all shocked to hear that. Tate, the Alpha of one of the strongest packs in existence, who was also one of the kingdom’s two deputy defense ministers, was bonded to a rogue?
Lucianne mind-linked Xandar after everyone was on the plane, telling him what she just witnessed, except for the part when the rogues almost pounced on her and Xiera. Xandar heaved a frustrated sigh at the mention of Tate’s bonded mate. When the king secretly prayed to the Moon Goddess to give Alpha Tate a mate, he didn’t mean a rogue. Wasn’t that an understood part of his prayer?‘Please be careful, Lucy,’ he reminded her, undeniably worried since the rogues onboard outnumbered the warriors who went with her.‘We’ll be fine, Xandar. If it comes down to it, I can always use the Authority on them.’‘Thank Goddess for that. So, how’s Tate taking this?’ Xandar was genuinely concerned. As much as he didn’t l
The vampires back then had no intention to rule over the lycans and werewolves, and this was explicitly stated in black and white in their treaty. All they wanted was to be recognized as the better and more superior species, so that lycans and werewolves of the future would think twice before pissing off a vampire by criticizing their abilities, culture, habits, etc. More importantly, it was to ensure that they weren’t bullied in terms of business and economics anymore. Since the vampires had a better chance of winning, a significant part of both werewolf and lycan populations went on demonstrations in most towns and streets, pushing for the Lycan King and Queen to swallow their pride and give in, threatening to turn against the rulers like many of their kind already had by going rogue if their demand was refused. The lycan
Every government minister, lycan warrior and the highest members of the police force was informed about the meeting, and it was decided that only half of the ministers went, along with ten lycan warriors and the chief of the police force. Lucianne managed to persuade Xandar to let Stella’s mother and the rest of the rogues to be kept in holding units in the police station instead of a prison cell, for the sake of the teenager and her Alpha friend. Stella appeared a little less worried, and Tate was utterly grateful. As the policewoman brought Stella’s mother into the holding unit, Tate followed them in. Stella was brought to another room to be questioned, and Lucianne had to ensure her that everything was going to be okay before the girl reluctantly followed another smiling policewoman in.
Xandar caught up to his wife, and wrapped his arms around her small body, hiding her in his warm chest and pecking kisses in her hair, trying his best to comfort her. After a moment, he muttered, “You didn’t have a choice, Lucy.”In a small, chopped voice, she murmured, “We could’ve waited. But then Stella…”“Exactly. Stella wouldn't have been able to see her mother if you didn’t make Margaret cooperate. You put Stella before her mother. It’s not wrong, Lucy.”When she got a better hold of herself, she whispered, “I know I’m just shifting blame to think this but I wish Tate had stopped me somehow.”Xandar assured her, “Margare
Stella answered her mother in obedience, “They asked for my name, age, your name, your age, where our pack was, and they asked about my birth father.”“And what did you tell them about your birth father?”Stella took a moment, and swallowed a lump in her throat before she muttered, “What you told me to say, that he died before I was born and you’ve never told me anything about him.”“Good girl. And did they believe you?”“I don’t think so,” Stella murmured, her eyes choosing to look anywhere else but her mother.Despite Margaret’s poker face, her eyes channeled only angered disapp
After Stella closed the door behind her, she sniffled once and hung her head low to wipe away her stray tears as Lucianne approached her. Without a word, the queen wrapped Stella in a hug. The teenager was shocked at first but when she registered Lucianne’s scent, her human and wolf parts let themselves tear-up in her embrace for a moment before feeling bad about it and gently pushing the queen away.“We’ll take care of you and your mother, Stella. Don’t worry, okay?” Lucianne assured her with a hand on her shoulder.Stella nodded in obedience and managed a meek smile. Lucianne then continued in a soft voice, “Why don’t you follow Officer Laila and go get some water and something to eat, Stella. We’ll discuss where you’ll stay for the time being to make it easier for you to visit
When the emerald-eyed vampire came closer into view, the lycans and werewolves noticed that there were copper-colored streaks in her blonde hair. Five streaks, to be exact.Lucianne took a deep breath. This was her first encounter with the species that the lycans and werewolves declared truce with more than two centuries ago. In fact, this was everyone’s first encounter with them. The oldest among them was Chief Dalloway, and even he had never met a vampire. Territorial lines are strictly drawn between their species not only for the purpose of preserving peace. It was also an open secret that it was a way to practice avoidance from a species that could very well drain them of their blood and their lives with it.Lucianne felt the tension in the atmosphere. The people by her side were as anxious as she was herself, despite every
Without warning, Pellethia came forward and wrapped Lucianne in a tight embrace. Xandar instinctively removed his hand just in time for the hug to happen, and the king began wondering why he was sure that the empress wasn’t going to hurt his queen. Lucianne didn’t know what was going on either but her arms developed a mind of their own when they squeezed the empress tightly in return. Toby was beginning to feel jealous because Pellethia held Lucianne like she was her best friend. Eh, wrong! Lucianne was HIS best friend! No one else’s! Toby won’t share that status with anyone! Christian blinked again at the sight, and shook himself out of his daze before he surrendered and said out loud, “Okay, I give up. I’m quite sure this is a dream. I must have accidentally fallen asleep instead of heading to the actual inter-species rendezvou