The Alpha King's Princess
The Alpha King’s Princess – Chapter 17

“For what purpose?” Candido asked, his voice completely flat.

The woman ducked her head and trembled a little. “S-She stated that her car broke down near the Estate and is hoping to stay the night.”

That sly, sneaky woman really thought everyone spent their lives trying to look pretty without thinking. Did she really think that would persuade anyone? She could have at least come up with a more convincing excuse than that. I held back my need to roll my eyes as Candido let out a deep breath and murmured something I didn’t quite catch, but it sounded irritated.

I hoped he found her as annoying as she was. He might not know her true colors, but there was no way he was blinded to all of her flaws.

Sibyl and Candido were betrothed. At least, that’s what I understood of the situation, but she’d never stayed the night at the estate, not even before I arrived. Because of that, I always figured that their marriage arrangement had more to do with some deal between their parents rather than anything impactful. I thought Candido was just going through the motions, and it would be a marriage of convenience in every sense if it ever happened. I hoped and prayed that Candido saw nothing but a childhood friend in that evil woman.

Still, it was obvious that something had clearly changed on Sibyl’s end, and she was more than interested in Candido. I couldn’t blame her because he was so handsome, but he didn’t deserve him. If I stepped back and thought about what a marriage of convenience could mean for the two packs, I understood the purpose of it. Red Moon was the second largest pack. With a strong alliance, Candido’s desire to unify the werewolves could be possible with less struggle.

Red Moon wasn’t the most influential because Sibyl’s father, Norton, was a cold, manipulative jerk, but with Candido at the helm, he could probably direct that manipulation into something more useful, like swaying the alpha of the New Moon Pack to join the alliance without a fuss.

It wasn’t a bad plan, but it wasn’t necessary. Candido had enough power, presence, and reach that even without the support of the Red Moon or the New Moon Pack, he could manage and maintain the order of our society. With Moon Shadow working in the background, he could unify the werewolf world with enough time.

He was the Alpha King for a reason. No matter what the rumors said, there was no way that Candido could have held the seat of power all on his own without having some sway on his own.

“I will see her, but alert Team Epsilon to be ready to leave within the hour.”

I suppressed a smile. Team Epsilon was the backup security team. While they were highly trained, Candido rarely used them for anything by patrolling the estate and supporting police efforts. If I was right, he’d be sending them to escort her home. It seemed that her ploy, whatever it was, wouldn’t work, but my stomach turned, considering what could happen when he went downstairs. Would Candido be swayed by her words? Her body?

Anger flourished. I wasn’t going to let that happen. She was terrible! It didn’t matter how nice she pretended to be in front of Candido, she was the absolute worse person. If she got any sort of power in the Full Moon Pack after marrying Candido, she’d run the pack into the ground, let alone if he actually named her queen.

Anger flourished. I wasn’t going to let that happen. She was terrible! It didn’t matter how nice she pretended to be in front of Candido, she was the absolute worse person. If she got any sort of power in the Full Moon Pack after marrying Candido, she’d run the pack into the ground, let alone if he actually named her queen.

I shuddered at the thought.

“Hedy, go get your homework and wait for me here,” Candido said, rounding the table. “I’ll only be a few minutes.”

I caught him by his sleeve and looked up at him. “You’ll… really still help me? You won’t forget?’

“I promise,” he said and smirked at me. “Even if it’s another play.”

I rolled my eyes, thinking back to the last time I had him help me with my literature homework in high school. I hadn’t needed it, and I almost regretted it since he made me read the lines out loud and would tease me about being a terrible actor. When he read lines to me, there was an entirely different side of him on show, as if he had lost his usually cold demeanor and felt the story to his soul.

He had been the only reason I passed that section of the class. Not because I didn’t understand, but because I developed a great interest in just hearing Candido read to me.

“I’ve learned my lesson. No plays this year.”

Candido nodded and proceeded me out of the room. I hung back and darted over to his desk to flip through the rest of the report, just enough to get an impression of what they had found and an idea of how to search the police records for it. The attacks were worse than I imagined. The bodies were left strung up in the trees like an odd statues. The female victim had been stood straight up in a terrible copy of the Moon Goddess statue in the capital and naked.

I hoped whoever was behind this hadn’t violated her or gotten away unscathed.

I flipped through the profiles of the victims. There didn’t seem to be a common thread between them. They were all from different packs, and it didn’t make sense for them to be in the same town unless they had all been abducted and brought from elsewhere.

Then, I reached the coroner’s report. They hadn’t done an autopsy yet, but the coroner said that they were still oddly easy to move despite how long they’d been dead and the lack of b***d in their bodies.

That was odd. It pricked at the back of my mind as I rearranged the pages back the way he had them. As I turned, I caught sight of my name. Curiosity gripped me, but I didn’t peak. It could have been a surprise for my birthday or just a report from Team Gamma-2. Either way, I didn’t want to see, and I was already out of time.

A few moments later, I used a bit of my speed to get down the hall, so it seemed that I had followed him out of the room. He headed to the main staircase. I glanced down to the ground floor where Sibyl was standing. She glanced at me with a cold glare in her eyes before jerking her gaze back to Candido. Her expression turned sad and pleading, but it looked fake.

A few moments later, I used a bit of my speed to get down the hall, so it seemed that I had followed him out of the room. He headed to the main staircase. I glanced down to the ground floor where Sibyl was standing. She glanced at me with a cold glare in her eyes before jerking her gaze back to Candido. Her expression turned sad and pleading, but it looked fake.

I walked until I reached the column that marked the end of the open section of the hallway and the start of the upper floor. I slid to the ground, so I was hidden behind a potted plant, and took in the picture Sibyl made. Like Bella, she looked innocent on the outside, but I knew better. It was her eyes that had really set me off the first time I met her when I first came to the estate.

Her eyes were always cold. Now was no exception, even though it was clear she was doing her best to look as in need and vulnerable as possible. She was wearing a long, thin pink dress that was almost translucent as it clung to her skin. Her long curly hair was plastered to her cheeks and down her chest, highlighting the deep plunge of her dress.

It wasn’t appropriate for the weather, and since there hadn’t been any nearby events that would require evening wear, she looked even more fake standing there than ever. A staff member stood off to the side with an armful of towels, glancing between them in anticipation and a bit of fear. I’d have to speak to her to figure out what Sibyl had said to her to make her look like that.

Had she been mean to the staff in private too? Maybe I should have been telling Candido about Sibyl’s behavior from the start, but I figured he would write me off because of how close they were. If the staff was experiencing the same thing, he wouldn’t be able to write it off as petty, childish jealousy or make excuses for her behavior.

Depending on how this exchange went, that would be the first thing I’d talk to him about with regard to Sibyl.

Candido walked slowly down the staircase. I could see the tension in his shoulders as he reached the ground floor. He didn’t approach her quickly as she wrapped her arms around herself and shivered. Watching them, it made some of my fear ease. She looked at him like he was everything she wanted, but Candido seemed absolutely indifferent to her appearance. If anything, he seemed angry that she was here, intruding on his time and looking so ridiculous.

He stopped several feet away from her and regarded her. His expression was tense, but his shoulders relaxed a little as he took a deep breath.

“Candido, I—”

“What are you doing here, Sibyl?”