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I wanted to explain more, but when Dwight called through the link to inform me that a fight had broken out down the corridor between Travis and Desmond, I had no choice but to sort it out. I quickly left the room and saw Desmond punch Travis, knocking him down the stairs. Without hesitation, I chased after them. Dwight was already trying to separate them, but Travis tackled Desmond as he rushed down the steps. Acting swiftly, Dwight grabbed the back of Travis's shirt and ripped him off Desmond just as Desmond prepared to attack again. My hand instinctively wrapped around Desmond's arm, jerking him back.
"What the f**k is going on here?" I snarled, while Travis shrugged off Dwight's hand.
"Answer me," I commanded.
"I don't want him near the Queen. He can't be trusted," Desmond snarled.
"And you can, you prick? You ran off with her and put the Queen in danger," Travis spat back at him.
"Yes, and that's also your fault. Ania wouldn't have even known where to go if you hadn't shown her on her phone!" Desmond growled, taking a step toward Travis, but I placed my hand on his shoulder.
"Is this true?" I asked Travis, who turned his attention to me. He sighed, scratching the back of his neck.
"Yes, my King. But I did not know she would go after Rina," Travis admitted.
"And you would let Desmond take full responsibility for what happened?" Dwight demanded.
"I didn't run off with her. If I had known, I would have dragged her back to the room," Travis defended himself. Dwight shook his head, looking at me.
"You have two seconds to explain yourselves, now," I ordered sternly.
"Desmond hates me because he blames me for the trials and keeps sabotaging me every chance. Dwight removed me from her guard because of him," Travis explained, his gaze filled with animosity towards Desmond.
"Dwight didn't remove you from the guard; I did. There are too many rumors circulating about both of you at the moment," I sneered, casting a disdainful look at Desmond.
"Yet you still stationed him?" Travis scoffed.
"Yes, because he is one of my head guards, and despite my current lack of trust, Ania relies on him," I growled, fixing my gaze on Desmond. I yearned to vent my anger on him, but I knew that if they hadn't gone, Rina would likely be dead or, even worse, trapped there.
"She insisted on going. It was better for me to accompany her than for her to venture alone, my King. You know I would never willingly endanger her. You know I wouldn't put her at risk unless there was no other choice!" Desmond defended himself, his voice filled with conviction.
"You did have a choice. You could have brought the Queen back to her room!" Travis yelled.
"And how well did that work out? Ania managed to sneak out under your watch, and you didn't even realize she was gone," Desmond retorted, causing Travis to avert his gaze. Dwight rubbed his temples and shook his head in frustration.
"You're giving me a headache," Dwight growled.
"May I be of some assistance?" Junior said, startling all of us. He had been sitting on the windowsill above the stairs, and none of us had even noticed him there. I furrowed my brows, wondering how he managed to get up there. Junior jumped down and landed next to Dwight, on his feet.
"How did you get up there?" Dwight asked.
"Ninja skills. I'm as quiet as a mouse, quick and agile as a snake," he replied. I tried to suppress my laughter, and I saw Desmond struggling to hold back a smile. Travis, on the other hand, wore a sour expression.
"And why were you up there?" Dwight inquired.
"My ears were burning, my senses told me there was information to eavesdrop on," Junior explained.
"Are you drunk?" Dwight asked. Junior shook his head, straightening up.
"The question you mean, Beta, should be, 'Are you sober?'... and that would be a never," Junior giggled. I rolled my eyes.
I motioned for him to come closer, and he straightened himself up as if he were a prim and proper gentleman. Though, in truth, he was a gentleman whether he was sober or drunk. It occurred to me that I had never seen him sober. It briefly made me wonder if he could function without liquor, although I knew I had a drinking problem myself, so I couldn't really judge.
"What are you suggesting?" I asked.
"Well, you still have to go away, my King, to a meet and greet session with the alphas, so you can see Alpha Brian and Alpha Dylan to gauge them, and I would rather stay behind. I am sick of looking at them playing good men when deep inside they are monsters. Uncle Junior would beat the sh*t out of them, so I volunteer to watch over the Queen, with Desmond, of course," Junior said, motioning towards Desmond and sending him a wink. Desmond shook his head with a laugh.
"You want Travis to take your place on my guard?" I asked.
"But I was the Queen's guard," Travis protested. I held my hand up, silencing Travis's protests when Junior looked at me, his eyes glazing over before his voice entered my head.
"You already know how I feel about the ferret. Desmond is clear about his feelings. What better way to catch a rat than having him by your side, my King? Ania is safe with me. You know that, but if I remember correctly, Travis is not bound by the guard pact!" Junior said, making my brows furrow. I glanced at Dwight, trying to remember when I set the pact, but maybe Junior was right.
"What is it?" Dwight mind-linked.
"Ask Zara if Travis has been behaving strangely around Ania. Is he a danger?" I asked him, and he nodded, walking off down the stairs.
Turning my attention to Travis and Desmond, I noticed they were glaring at each other.
"Travis, you're swapping with Junior. Junior will be on guard with you, Desmond," I told him, and Desmond nodded, heading up the stairs to my room.
"He is a f*****g drunk!" Travis accused, glaring at Junior. I blinked, only to find Travis shoved against the wall, Junior's hand around his throat and a knife under his chin.
"Watch it, boy, or I will be wearing your skin as a suit. Watch your tongue, talk about me like that again, and I will remove it for you, one of the King's guards or not. I will show you what a drunk can do, and what a pretty suit you would make. Why is it so important for you to be near Ania, the queen?" Junior snarled, tapping the side of Travis's face with his knife. Travis swallowed and nodded quickly.
Junior growled before shoving off him and walking up the steps to his post, while Travis pressed his lips into a line, looking away.
"5 am. We leave in the morning. Be ready," I told Travis before turning on my heel.
"Yes, my King," I heard him answer before walking off. When I reached the top level, Desmond nodded at me. I pressed my lips into a line, turning to face him.
"You are not off the hook. Unfortunately, my punishment for you," I warned.
"I think putting up with me would be punishment enough, don't you think, my King?" Junior chuckled. I clicked my tongue, turning back to Desmond.
"It is yet to be decided. Don't mess up again," I warned.
"I won't, my King," Desmond said, and I nodded at them, pushing the door open and going to find my mate. Ania was sitting on the floor by the fireplace, playing with her tablet and an open book.
"Did you eat?" I asked her, and she nodded, pointing to the empty tray on the dresser without looking up from the tablet she was typing away on. I sighed, walked over, and grabbed it. As I opened the door to hand it to Junior, I noticed a pill still sitting on the tray. My heart raced a little faster at the sight of it next to her empty plate.
"Ania?" I asked, looking over my shoulder at her. She looked up from where she was sitting on the floor and stared at me.
"Did you mean to leave that on the tray?" I asked her. She scratched her neck, and I could feel her worry through the bond, making her nervous. She was scared of answering, but she did.
"You said it was my choice. I don't want to take it," she said, biting her lip, her eyes on the tray in my hand.
"Junior!" I called out to him, and he took the tray before shutting the door. A giddy feeling rushed through me, knowing she wanted kids.
"You know what that means, right?" I asked, walking over to her.
"That I could get pregnant," Ania answered, shrugging.
"But I also might not be pregnant, so we'll see," she said. I stopped beside her, and she looked up at me.
"Are you angry?" she asked, but I shook my head, sitting beside her and pulling her onto my lap. I was the complete opposite, but I worried about how she would take it. However, now I felt relieved.
"No, I didn't want you to take it, but it wasn't my choice," I told her, kissing her cheek and wrapping my arms around her waist. I buried my face in her neck, inhaling her scent, and she squirmed away from my ticklish stubble.
"What are you reading tonight?" I asked her, kissing the mark on her neck. Ania shivered, and she held up the book.
"Treasure Island. You seem to like this one," I told her, and she leaned back against me while I took the book and opened it.
"I have to leave tomorrow, but Desmond will be here with Junior," I told her, finding the spot where she left off.
"Can't I come?" she asked.
"I thought you wanted to see Rina. Maybe next time," I told her. Ania sighed, but as soon as I mentioned Rina, I knew I was right in that assumption. I opened the book and started reading, stopping now and then to let her try. Her reading has improved, and she could identify a few different words by the time I had stopped.
The next few days passed by quickly. Another woman was found dead, and we were about to investigate. Like Benta, we discovered that she was a rogue, but this one was different. She was found wearing scrubs and appeared to be a nurse, unlike the usual sex workers, so it was difficult for us to discern any pattern. As I got ready to leave again, I realized that I hadn't spent much time here lately. I missed Ania terribly when I was away, often slipping into bed late at night while she was sleeping, only to leave early in the mornings.
"Ania!" I whispered, shaking her shoulder gently. She groaned and rolled onto her back.
"No, let me sleep. I'll do it later," she whined, and I growled in frustration, picking her naked body up from the bed. It was the same argument every morning as I carried her to the bathroom and placed her on the toilet. She huffed and glared at me with tired eyes.
"I don't understand why you have me take a pregnancy test every morning. It's too early to tell," Ania growled, but she still held her hand out for the test. I unwrapped it and handed it to her, and she glared at me until I turned around.
"Because Lycan pregnancies only last 12 weeks compared to normal or werewolf pregnancies, we should be able to tell soon," I told her, and she mumbled incoherently.
"You know I can't just pee on demand, right?" she said, and I rolled my eyes, turning on the tap, hoping the sound of water would make her need to pee. It worked yesterday. I tapped my foot impatiently, waiting with my hand out for the test. Finally, she passed it to me, giggling as she dropped it in my hand. It took me a few seconds to figure out why she was laughing as she dashed off into the bedroom.
She hadn't put the cap back on, and the part she peed on was now in the palm of my hand. I blinked at my hand holding her urine and dropped it on the counter, quickly washing my hand.
"Ania!" I called out.
"That's what you get for waking me," she laughed, and I growled.
I could still hear her giggling as I waited for the test to show the result. I growled again when it turned out to be inconclusive. Nothing appeared this time; the test was faulty. "Sh*t," I muttered, rifling under the sink for another test. I stuck my head out of the bathroom door to look at her, only to find her inside her nest, still laughing to herself.
"You little queen of Arman! This test was faulty. You need to take another one," I told her.
"I can't do it. I no longer need to pee," she said as I stormed out of the bathroom. I attempted to undo her nest, eliciting a feral growl from her. She swiped at me as I disrupted her nest, desperately trying to reach her. She frantically tried to put it back together, which made me worry. This was precisely why I wanted her to take the test; her nesting behavior was getting out of control, and it had only been three days.
She assured me she felt the same, but her instincts told me otherwise. I decided to call the doctor for a blood test, while helping her rearrange her nest. I felt guilty for upsetting her before leaving. Leaning over to kiss her, she growled at me, her eyes fixed on my shirt. I rolled my eyes and took it off, knowing she wanted it for her nest.
Our poor bed was now reduced to torn sheets, clothes, and duck feathers, as she ripped the pillows every night. She reached for my shirt, but I pulled it back, wanting a kiss instead. She growled but leaned forward, understanding what I wanted. Just before her lips touched mine, she snatched my shirt from my hand and turned back to rearranging her nest.
"Jerk!" I scolded, leaning across the bed. I grabbed her hips and pulled her towards me, nuzzling her neck and purring, allowing the calling to slip out. Ania relaxed and turned her face towards mine, parting her lips as I kissed her. My tongue slipped between her plump lips, exploring every inch of her mouth and savoring her taste. With a sigh, I let her go, knowing the others would be waiting for me.
"I'll be home as soon as possible," I reassured her, watching her crawl beneath her nest. On my way to the car, I stopped by my office to grab a fresh shirt, as it was the last one I had left in the room. Fortunately, I had a wardrobe full of them in the office. Slipping one on, I buttoned it up while stepping out of my office.
As I approached the car, I saw Dwight standing beside it. "I thought you had the week off?" I asked him as he opened the door. I lowered my head and got inside.
"I do, but I wanted to speak to you before you left," Dwight told me, peering into the car. Travis cleared his throat behind him, and Dwight stepped aside to allow him to climb into the back with me. I was wary of him, especially since finding out he had never taken the guard oath. After spending the last few days with him, I was getting the same strange vibes, or maybe the rumors about him and Desmond going around the castle set me on edge. Regardless, I only trusted very few people, and Travis wasn't one of them right now.
Turning my attention to Dwight, he looked at me. "What do you need?" I asked him.
"I want to take Rina away for a few days but wanted to clear it with you first," he stated.
"Of course. Where are you taking her?" I queried.
"Don't know yet, somewhere, but I will be back before my week off is over," Dwight told me.
"Take your time, Dwight. I can manage without you. Besides, when was the last time you had time off anyway?" I asked, knowing it had been years. Like Gary and Desmond, the man never took days off.
"Thank you," he appreciated.
"Just make sure Ania sees Rina before she goes," I told him. Dwight nodded just as Gary climbed into the car as well. I opened the mind link. Dwight stopped as he wanted to shut the door, but I didn't want to ask aloud with Travis in the car. Few people knew, and I wanted to keep it that way, not that he was paying attentionβtoo busy playing on his phone.
"Have Doc come to take blood from Ania for me before you leave," I told him, and he nodded.
"Still no luck with the tests?" he asked, and I shook my head.
"Will do. Anything else?" he asked.
"Yes, enjoy your time off," I told him, and he smirked, shutting the door.