The room stood silent for a moment after William spoke, abruptly shifting from his dismissive jovial attitude to one much more serious.
“My Rìgh, I…” Stephen began, but he was cut off.
“It was a statement, not a question, Baird. You’ll speak when I permit you to and not before then,” William retorted.
Stephen was still on all fours, waiting like an obedient dog. He was faced away from the throne because he crawled to them as they stood in front of the door, and William still hadn’t allowed him to move yet.
“You may face us now, ‘Alpha,’” William taunted, putting derisive emphasis on Baird’s title. A sharp intake of breath from one of the Beta’s kneeling sounded out, loud over the otherwise silent room.
“Do you have something you’d like to share with the rest of us, Beta?” William
