The Alpha Queen and Her Rogue Kingdom

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

ELINA

I have been on this futile quest since very early in the morning, but we haven't been able to find anything of use, even with some of my best scouts leading the way, plus it doesn't help that my body is here, but my mind keeps going back to the palace where my babies are, because the last time we were in this kingdom someone tried to kill them, and although I already ruled out King Arnold from among the suspects, and I know that inside the palace they will be safe, I can't help but worry about them.

I notice that a couple of hours have already passed since we started the search for some kind of clue about the attack, and I know that if I do not find anything that can help me clarify what happened, I will have no choice but to stick to the existing evidence , which point to the Varks as solely responsible for what happened, and therefore, the war will start as it has been planned for months.

I am so absorbed in these thoughts that I do not notice the presence of someone strange, until I see two of my men transform instantly and begin to growl, while the other two, and Camille position themselves around me in attack position, and then she stiffens next to me as her eyes widen in surprise, and a couple of seconds later I notice the scent of August getting closer and closer, so I tell my warriors through a mind link not to attack unless I order them to, because I have no idea with what intentions August is coming, although I can tell that he is accompanied by two other people whose scents I cannot recognize.

As soon as the three of them enter our field of vision and notice our attack position, the man and woman accompanying August immediately tense up, but he seems not to be able to notice the situation as his eyes are focused solely on Camille, however, a couple of seconds later, he seems to be aware of what is happening and raises his arms in an apologetic gesture, as he says:

"We are not here to attack you,"

"You shouldn't approach people like that, you could have been injured, especially considering we are at war," I tell him, and he nods solemnly.

"I know, I should have announced myself first or let you know that I was headed this way, I am sorry," he replies, but he seems a bit distracted.

"What are you doing here?" I ask suspiciously, and although my warriors seem to relax considerably upon seeing our friendly exchange, the two who are in their wolf form have no intention of transforming back as they do not trust them, especially Dawson, the smaller of the two, who lost his older brother in the attack and therefore offered to come here today, he seems especially upset with the presence of August and his companions here.

"I suppose for the same reason as you, we came here to investigate the attack," he replies with a shrug.

"Well, let's see if you guys are luckier than us, because we couldn't find anything," I reply, and he nods as he furtively looks at Camille.

“Do you mind if we join your search party? So we can cover more ground,” he asks me, and Dawson grunts in response.

"Calm down Dawson, he is right, we could use some help," I tell the boy through a mind link, and he shakes his head up and down almost imperceptibly.

“You are welcome to join, but I think you should have brought more people, the three of you won't be able to do much,” I tell August.

"Actually, there are six of us, but three stayed in the palace," the girl next to August responds, and he gives her an instant disapproving look, which makes me frown.

"Why did they stay there and not come with you?" I ask August, and he seems suddenly uncomfortable.

"Well, the king and two of his royal guards stayed to settle in, and then they will join us," he replies, but something about the way he avoids my gaze tells me that there is more behind his words.

And almost instantly a thought invades me, so I look at Camille and say with determination:

"I will return to the palace to feed the babies, you are in charge of the search, any news that occurs must be reported to me immediately,"

"Yes, your majesty," she nods.

"Do you want me to accompany you, Your Majesty?" one of my warriors, Will, asks me, and I shake my head.

"It's not necessary, they are going to need you more here," I tell him, and he nods.

I take one last look at August and can almost see the moment where he seems to send a mind link, but I have already slipped into the bushes, where I quickly peel off my clothes and transform, grabbing the clothes in my snout, and I sprint towards the palace, which takes me only a few minutes to reach, and when I get there I transform back and dress as fast as I can as I run towards the room where the babies are, and then I feel it, the scent of Bastian mixed with Aiden and Alissa's scents, and my heart stops.

What if this was all a setup? What if they created a distraction so they could get rid of my babies?

My hands shake when I take the handle of the door and turn it almost in fear of what I will find inside, but I could never have been prepared for the image that I was going to see as soon as I opened the door, and I almost want to laugh, or cry, but I restrain myself and all I can do is watch with my mouth open as Bastian, who is sitting on the floor, shows Aiden a toy, while rocking Alissa between his legs.

"What do you think you are doing?" I ask him through clenched teeth, and he looks at me in surprise, as he was clearly too distracted to hear his beta's mind link or to notice my presence here.

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