The Alpha King's Assassin Queen

Suspicions

Malcolm

“Good morning, Prince Malcolm,” Alpha Pascal greets me as I walk towards the dining room for breakfast. He is walking with his mate, Ariella, who is cradling Bastien.

I nod to him with a smile, “Bonjour,” I respond.

“Today, the alphas arrive to discuss the Chameleon Killer,” He explains, “Then tomorrow we bury my dear son and his precious mate,” He frowns. “My nephew, Gerard, is also coming in a few days. He shall become the alpha of this pack until my grandson is of age to take over.”

“I assume Gerard is a worthy pick?” I ask as we move towards the dining room.

Pascal sighs, “My brother assures me that Gerard has trained well under his guidance. I haven’t seen the boy in many years as my brother lives in the United States.”

“I see,” I nod. “I pray Gerard can fill the position well. This pack deserves a fair and just leader like yourself and Armand.”

“Armand was barely able to spread his wings and show us all where he would have taken this pack,” Pascal frowns.

We reach the dining hall, and I spot my friends, “Excuse me, one moment. I must speak with my friends.” Pascal nods as I head over to where Rico and Addison are sitting. They are talking with a few warriors. They all fall silent when I approach. “I need to speak with you two,” I say to Rico and Addison. “Carry on eating and talking,” I tell the others.

“What’s up?” Addison asks as we walk a few feet away from the tables.

“I need you two to be alert. There will be a lot of other alphas around. Please report anything suspicious to me. I know the pack will be doing the same, but we need to conduct our own investigation,” I explain to them.

“Investigation?” Rico raises an eyebrow.

“I want to know who hired the Chameleon Killer to assassinate Alpha Armand. I need you two to listen for anything that might help,” I explain.

“Do you think one of the visiting alphas is responsible?” Addison chimes in.

“I don’t know for sure. But I have found that our worst enemies are often the closest friends,” I sigh.

“Have you seen her lately?” Addison folds her arms.

“Seen who?” I shoot back even though I know who Addison is talking about.

“Hmm,” Addison snorts.

“Eat your breakfast,” I pat her shoulder. “I’m going to go eat mine,” I walk away from them and sit beside Alpha Pascal. I eat a delicious breakfast with the older alpha and his luna. At one point, I take a turn to hold baby Bastien. I look into the baby’s eyes and wonder if I will ever have my pups with my fated mate. I can’t imagine what kind of mother Sofia would be. But somewhere deep down, I want to think I can turn her around, and we’ll live happily as my parents do.

After breakfast, I stand outside the packhouse with Alpha Pascal to greet the arriving alphas. He didn’t tell me how many were arriving. I looked at where the warriors were lined up. Addison and Rico are dressed in their royal uniforms and standing with the warriors. I am dressed in an Armani suit with my blonde hair in a tight ponytail. The first entourage of cars arrives, and a large brown-haired man steps out with a lovely blonde on his arm. He steps towards Pascal.

“Bonjour, Alpha Lavigne,” He greets Pascal. The man bows to me, “Prince Malcolm Fury,” He says in a thick accent.

“This is Alpha Beauregard Dubois of the Pack Vallee de la Nuit,” Pascal introduce the other alpha.

“It is a pleasure,” I smile.

“No, it is I who is honored to meet the son of Cassius Fury,” Alpha Beauregard chuckles lightly.

“You have met my father?” I inquire.

“Oui,” He nods with a wink. He turns to the woman on his arm, “This is my beloved mate and Luna, Delphine.”

I hold out a hand to Delphine, “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Merci, Prince,” Delphine smiles, showing off stark white teeth. I can sense that she does not have a wolf.

Pascal says something in French to Beauregard. “I shall see you both later,” He nods and escorts his mate into the house.

A white Rolls Royce limo pulls up, and a man in a light grey suit exits. I can sense that he is a vampire as he approaches with two finely dressed men trailing him. His red eyes land on me before looking at Pascal.

“Old friend,” He says in a Spanish accent to Pascal.

“Claudio,” Pascal hugs him. “Thank you for coming.”

“I am sorry that it is under these circumstances,” The vampire responds. His eyes land on me again, “Prince Fury, it is a great honor to meet the twin brother of Queen Daisy. I am Lord Claudio Torres.”

I hold out a hand to him, “Pleasure to meet you.”

“I hold King Dominic and Queen Daisy DiAngelo in high regard,” Claudio mentions. “Though we run a different show over here, Europe. We still honor the DiAngelos. King Romulus and I go way back,” He chuckles. “I digress. I, too, have suffered at the hands of this wicked assassin. I lost my dear beloved husband, Miguel, to her wretched hand, and I intend to find her,” He grins, showing off his sharp fangs.

I try to maintain a neutral expression, “We will bring her to justice, Lord Torres.”

“We have drinks set out in the lounge,” Pascal mentions.

The vampire grins again, “You read my mind, old friend.” He nods to his men and walks into the house.

“Vampires walking around in the daylight,” Beta Roman shudders. He and Gamma Louis are standing a few feet behind us.

I turn to him with a smirk but say nothing.

A white limo pulls up, and a man with long black hair steps out. He has ice blue eyes and is wearing a sharp suit. I sense danger coming from him, making Xerxes a little uneasy. “Alpha Lavigne,” His deep voice booms before he reaches us.

“You haven’t changed a bit, Maurice,” Pascal laughs.

Maurice looks at me, “You must be the prince,” he sneers. “Sorry for not acknowledging you, but you have no business here.”

I bristle at his hostility. “I am here for my friend.”

“I have requested that the prince remain,” Pascal adds. “He and Armand were good friends, and he has helped us greatly in this difficult time.”

The other alpha rolls his eyes and mutters some curses in French before walking into the house. Pascal sighs deeply.

“You will have to excuse Alpha Picard. He and his pack aren’t the most social creatures,” Pascal explains.

“I get it,” I nod. “He is of the Lune Noire Pack, correct?”

“Correct,” Pascal nods.

“I have heard of them,” I chuckle. “Or my father told me about them.”

A few more alphas arrive, and they greet me with far less hostility. The last one is a large man with huge muscles. He has short buzzed black hair and black eyes. He smiles broadly at Pascal. A petite woman with red hair walks at his side. She has a bright-eyed pup on her hip.

“Pascal,” He greets the alpha in a thick German accent, then eyes me. “You must be the prince.”

“I must,” I smirk. “Malcolm,” I hold out my hand.

“Ah,” He laughs, “Alpha Karsten Wagner of the Schwarzwald-Paket,” He introduces himself. “Alpha Lavigne and I go way back.”

“Not that far back, Karsten,” Pascal snorts.

Karsten gestures to the woman at his side, “This is my most beautiful Luna, Katrina, and mein heir, Rudolf.”

“Nice to meet you all,” I greet them.

After greeting the alphas, I go into the house with Pascal to the parlor, where everyone is gathered. I am completely aware of Alpha Picard’s eyes glaring daggers at me while he speaks to another man. I stare back at him but go to the bar and order a whiskey. I slowly sip the drink and wander around the room. I quietly listen to conversations hoping not to arouse suspicion. I spot the vampire Claudio sitting in the corner, nursing a drink in his hand. I wander towards him.

“That Alpha Picard is a prickly bastard,” Claudio remarks with a laugh.

“That he is,” I snort and sip my whiskey.

“I don’t appreciate you both talking about me behind my back,” Alpha Picard appears. “I trust neither of you.”

“Feeling is mutual,” Claudio retorts. “I just said you are a prickly bastard, right Prince?” The vampire flicks his eyes to me.

I nod, “He did.”

Alpha Picard narrows his eyes, “Are you looking for a fight, vampire?”

“No,” Claudio responds. “I am here to find justice for my beloved, Miguel.”

A growl comes from Alpha Picard, “You do not belong here.”

“I was invited,” Claudio huffs. “I am not an enemy of wolves. That bruja that killed my Miguel is the enemy.”

I hold up my hands, “Why don’t we calm down.” I flick my eyes at Alpha Picard.

“The Furys have no authority over us,” Alpha Picard spats on the ground.

“I am not asserting any authority. Armand Lavigne was my friend. It pains me that he is gone, and I want his killer brought to justice as well,” I say while Xerxes whimpers. ‘Don’t give us away, Xerxes.’ I yell at my wolf.

Alpha Picard storms away with another growl. Claudio laughs, “Some wolves, huh?”

“Seriously,” I nod in agreement.

“I have a question for you, Prince Malcolm,” Claudio says in a more serious tone.

I glance at the vampire with a raised eyebrow.

“I hear you are reluctant to become king of the wolves, right?” He asks.

A sigh escapes my lips, “I would call it reluctance. I want to figure out who I am before I commit to being king,” I pause. “If I become king.”

“You don't want to be king?” Claudio inquires.

“I don’t feel it in my soul. Even though I started my royal training at seven years old, I don’t feel it like my father wants me to,” I explain.

“I see,” Claudio nods. “I can understand that. I have a son, a biological one. He is like you. A dreamer, a rebel,” He laughs, “Luis never followed the straight path until he found the correct one. I pray that you find your path, young prince.”

I can’t help but smile, “Thank you.”

We have a late lunch and then settle into the meeting room. I sit beside Alpha Pascal, who begins the meeting. Claudio is allowed to speak first.

“My dearest Miguel, my beloved was murdered in cold blood. He was a quiet soul,” Claudio explains.

“He was a vampire,” Alpha Picard snorts.

Claudio glares at the alpha. “Maurice,” Pascal admonishes him.

“Anyways, Miguel was not the only one of my kind to be hit. Several lords have also been assassinated or suffered losses,” Claudio continues.

I gulp, thinking about my sister and brother-in-law. I can only pray that they never find themselves as targets.

A few other alphas begin to speak, and I do my best to keep up. An alpha from Poland speaks up and explains that his brother was assassinated in cold blood by a woman he thought was his mate.

‘How will we ever tame our mate?’ Xerxes asks.

‘I don’t think it will be possible, Xerxes,’ I sigh.

‘We can’t give up on her,’ Xerxes whines. ‘She is the one we are meant to be with. She will be our queen,’ He tries to convince me.

‘I don’t know if she’ll ever be accepted, Xerxes,’ I retort. ‘She has done so much damage.’

“Prince Malcolm,” My thoughts are interrupted by Pascal.

“Huh?” I look at him.

He clears his throat, “We were discussing ways to find this killer. Do you have any suggestions?”

I shake my head. “I wouldn’t know where to begin. I will call my father and see if he has any insights from the American packs."

“That’s a start,” Pascal agrees.

“I’ll call him after the meeting,” I reply, and he continues speaking with the other alphas. I do my best to keep up with the conversation, but Xerxes is adamant about talking about Sofia.

“We should just find the chienne and slit her throat,” Alpha Picard snarls, and I jump.

‘NO!” Xerxes screams in my head. ‘I will kill him,’ My wolf snarls.

‘Calm down,’ I snarl back as he directs his anger at Alpha Picard. I must do my best to hold him back and not let him come out. I stand up, “Excuse me,” I squeak out and quickly exit the room. I lean against a wall and close my eyes. ‘Breathe,’ I try to soothe myself.

‘He cannot kill her,’ Xerxes growls.

‘We may not have a choice,’ I shoot back at my wolf.

‘We will always have a choice,’ He snarls.

I try to ignore him and focus. I continue to breathe in through my mouth and out my nose. The door opens, and I hear them talking among themselves. I open my eyes as everyone is filing out of the room.

“We are going to continue the day after tomorrow,” Pascal tells me. “Are you alright?”

I nod, “I’ll be fine. I have to get some fresh air,” I pat his shoulder and walk away. I go outside and find a bench to sit on. I watch a butterfly flitting about inspecting flowers. I try to focus on that and not on my mate’s indiscretion. I sense I am not alone and turn to see Alpha Picard standing near me. “What?” I ask him in a not-so-polite tone.

“I know your mate is the Chameleon Killer,” He states, and my blood runs cold.