“Myqueenis as formidable as she needs to be.”
He studied me for a moment, then dipped his head and left.
I watched until he’d crossed the clearing and shifted, disappearing into the tree line, before turning back to the hall.
My pack members lingered, none of them rushing to leave. Kirk caught my eye, approval in his expression.
Maria approached Victoria, who’d remained by the chairs. “That was well done, my lady.”
My wife blinked, clearly startled. “Call me Victoria, please. And I just answered his questions.”
“You put him on guard without raising your voice.” Maria’s grin widened. “I respect that. We all do.”
“Thank you.”
Acorn sat up straighter on Victoria’s shoulder, his whiskers twitching with what I could only interpret as smugness.
The pack was beginning to accept her as someone who belonged here.
My wolf preened.
I said nothing, just moved to Victoria’s side and offered her my arm again.
She took it, and we left the hall together.
We ended up on the balcony of our suite. The forest spread out below us. Distant sounds of the pack going about their day drifted up. Sparring. Conversation. And the rhythmic thunk of an axe splitting wood.
Victoria leaned against the railing, her notebook open in front of her. “I believe he came here to assess your strength. To see if our marriage was legitimate or just a political façade.”
“And?”
“He’s recalculating.” She tapped the page. “The treaty proposal caught him off guard. He expected confrontation, not collaboration.”
I nodded, watching her work through it.
“But he revealed more than he intended,” she said. “The way he reacted to the shifting sickness information. That wasn’t casual surprise.”
“No.”
“And he knew about the northern creek.” She looked up at me. “The specific location. We never mentioned it.”
“His pack would’ve scented us the moment we reached the area. We can’t pin this on him for that fact alone. Though he didn’t smell guilty when you mentioned the sickness. Surprised, yes. But not guilty. Someone in his pack might be acting without his knowledge.”
“We can’t dismiss that he might be involved.”
“Not one bit.”
She shot me a smile. “I enjoyed watching you handle him. You didn’t relent, and you didn’t give one bit of ground. It was admirable. Very king-like.”
Pride puffed my chest. “Thank you.”
“You’re a good king. I can tell, as can the rest of your pack.” She closed her notebook, setting it aside. “How are you feeling about the conversation? Not tactically, but personally.”
The question caught me off guard. “What do you mean?”
“Bastian clearly has history with you. He tested your boundaries and pushed at your authority. That’s personal, not just political.”
I looked out at the forest, weighing how much to say.
