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Perry
This is the first meeting with the new Rogue King and the mother fucker isn’t here. We‘ ve been waiting for about forty minutes. I’ve called, texted, and sent someone over to see what the fuck is going on.
Something is definitely off. I’ve never known Knight to be late to anything. There’s no way in hell Phoebe would allow it, being the massive control freak that she is, at least not after being around Arnold for so long.
“Well,” Savage breaks the silence. “I guess that’s what happens when you let a fucking asshole like Knightly into the inner circle. Lesson learned.”
“We should wait for them,” Jonas says. “It’s not like him to be late.”
“It’s been an hour.” Lilly blows raspberries and sways her chair back and forth. “I’m bored.”
Just as Savage opens his mouth again, the sound of a monstrous engine roars outside. Jonas stands up and pulls me behind him. The little vampire girl does the same with their mates. Her eyes turn black as she takes a protective stance in front of them. There’s this strange aura filling the massive room. The two front doors are whip open, almost blasting off their hinges.
Phoebe and Knight walk in, dragging four body bags with living bodies still in them. I press my lips together when my sister throws the ones she’s holding into the center of the council room. Knight does the same behind her.
There’s something off about them. Phoebe’s eyes are glowing bright red. Her claws are out. Her teeth are showing. There are blood stains on her pretty dark blue business dress. If the eyes weren’t enough, the stains are. Phoebe could never.
“What the fuck is this?” Savage’s demand is met with Phoebe’s authoritative warning. He flinches. Flinches. She finally did it. She marked him. Good for her.
“Sit the fuck down.” She growls at him.
“Holy shit, it’s Midnight.” I blurt out. “That’s an alpha Silverback.”
Everyone present begins to panic until Buddy lets out a massive roar that silences the entire room. If Savage unleashes his wolf Midnight and Buddy will stop at nothing to kill him. Even go through whoever tries to get between them. Two silverbacks could decimate the entire court and probably part of Nova.
“She said sit,” Buddy says calmly.
“Oh, shit.” I take Jonas’s hand and pull him into the chair.
“What the fuck is that?” Jonas asks, unable to take his eyes off Buddy.
Knight’s body is caught between shifts. His skin is dark gray, and he’s unrecognizable.
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He’s more animal than man, but he still stands on two feet. I have to admit that his tattoo–covered torso looks amazing over that tone. He’s almost the size of Jonas in his person form. I knew he had an insane workout routine but what the fuck is Phoebe feeding him?
“That’s Buddy. The reason we don’t let Knight shift.” I say it loud enough for everyone to hear. “And why he’s fucking crazy.”
Buddy walks around Midnight until he’s standing in front of her. He playfully bumps his nose to hers, and the two of them look out the open doors to see Arnold Knightly coming in with a team of guards. So, this is what happens when wolves suppress their monsters. Cris and I have nothing on Knight. This is insane.
“We’re sorry we’re late.” Midnight steps forward, and Buddy allows it as his father and a couple of other wolves come in to take one of the moving body bags. I quickly grab my phone and start a live. “I need you all to listen because I will not be repeating myself.” She steps away from the others to address everyone directly. “My name is Phoebe Rizen. I am, as of this week, the Rogue Queen.
“On the night of the finalization of the decree, my pups were taken from us. My mate and I were led away with a false pretense, and I’m not taking it well,” she smiles and turns her attention to Savage. “This isn’t your fault, and in no way is this an act of war against you. But there are consequences to stupid actions, and I want to make them very clear to everyone watching here tonight.”
Buddy and his father open up the body bags to reveal the former Alpha King and Queen Luna, along with the head of the royal guard and his mate.
“Don’t you fucking dare.” Savage stands.
“I want what’s mine,” she screams at the top of her lungs.
The glass behind Savage shatters. She grabs the woman, sticking her fingers in her mouth from the top of her head. Nestor Nunez cries out as he watches her rip the top of his mate’s head clean off. Arnold Knightly grins as he holds him in place to force him to watch his mate’s body twitch uncontrollably without its head, covering the floor
in her blood.
“For every half an hour we have to wait, another dies,” Buddy tells him. “You have twenty–eight minutes now.”
“You’re out of your fucking mind.” Savage growls.
Buddy rips the tape from the former king’s mouth and puts him on all fours.
“Tell him where they are.” Midnight orders. A tingle goes down my back. I look at Jonas to see that his skin is raised in goosebumps. Now that’s a fucking alpha
command.
“You two are definitely related,” he says quietly.
“Dad, where are they?”
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“We don’t have them,” he shakes his head. He genuinely doesn’t know.
One of the guards with Arnold tosses a phone up to the Alpha King.
“Here.” The little vampire girl appears behind the Alpha King and takes it from him.
She holds it up towards me, and I catch it when she tosses it. I turn on the monitor we use for presentations and sync the phone to it. I hit play on the video and find a spot for my phone to keep running the live stream.
The video is hard to watch. Wolves charged into the building moments after Knight ran out. Guards and innocent people were killed on their way up to the penthouse. The footage changes, and it shows how Ashley Knightly tried to fight them off, but the former Queen Luna knocked her unconscious despite Ayrie trying to pull her off.
They struggle with the pups and then something fucking terrible happens. Ayrie shifts and launches herself at one of the guards, tearing at his face while Aizen watches horrified. The woman bleeding out on the floor shoots Ayrie with a traquilzier gun and a second little wolf goes for her, only to be shot by Nestor fucking Nunez. They’re both a dark, almost nickle colored shade. Fuck.
“They’re fucking dead,” I shout. “All of them!”
“You’re not killing my parents,” Savage shouts.
“They triggered the shift of two silverbacks before the legal age. There are laws we all follow.” Jonas places his hand in front of me to keep me from going anywhere. “The video footage is more than enough evidence for a death sentence.”
“I will stop at nothing to find them, Savage. You already know that. Make this a fucking challenge for us.” I dare him.
“Ten minutes,” Buddy announces.
“Dad, where are the pups?” he looks down at the former King. He jumps over the podium and grabs his father by the jacket. “Where are they? I can’t help you if you don’t tell me.”
“He wasn’t there.” Midnight informs him. “It was her.” The Queen Luna cries when Midnight twirls her ponytail. She rips the tape from her face. “Tell them.”
“I would rather die,” she sobs. “We cannot have those things running around-”
Midnight wraps her hand around her throat, pulling her up so she’s flush against the front of her body. The door is open. A woman and Melody Savage are escorted in.
“No!” she cries out.
“Mommy!”
“Don’t you fucking dare!” Savage roars.
“Now I have something you love. I will squish her cute little head with your hands so you can watch her die the most painful way possible. Give me my son and my daughter, and nothing will happen to her.”
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“Mommy!” Melody cries out.
“Tell her where they are.” Savage shouts at his mother. “Tell her where the fuck they are, right now!”
“Time,” Buddy says.
Without hesitation, Arnold kills Nestor. He rips his throat right out. The body hits the floor on its knees as Arnold holds it up by its hair and then puts his shiny shoe to its back and pulls the head clean off. Melody screams.
“They’re in cells under home base,” the former Queen Luna says defeatedly.
“Bring them. You have thirty minutes.” Midnight says. “Starting now.
“It’s a forty–five–minute drive,” Savage says, panicked.
“Then I suggest you pick which parent your little sister is going to be able to live without.” Midnight says coldly. She waves him off, giving him her back. “Our work here is done, Mate.”
“I’d like to wait until they’re here.” Buddy shakes his head.
“As would I, but the time has come. Nathan is a lot more level–headed at this. Let’s give him time to calm down. You know Ayrie is going to be afraid when she wakes up. He’ll keep them safe. He always does.” She places her hand on his shoulder. He sighs and nods. Midnight looks up at me and bows her head. “My sister says hi. She says they’re very proud of you, Perry.”
“Wait,” I hop over the podium. I rush to her side just in time to catch her before she falls. Her body limps in my arms. “Wait,” I choke out, giving her a little shake. Her eyes flutter open, but Midnight is gone. Phoebe sits up, cupping my face. “Phoebe?”
“Hey,” she says worriedly. “Why are you crying?”
