The Mark of a Queen

Chapter 3

Alpha King Leandros POV

Groaning at all the work in front of me, I have piles, and piles of paperwork to get through by the end of the day, and I am already running behind since my Beta cannot manage to get any work done without me there.

Don't get me wrong, the man is my best friend, but he cannot complete his job for shit without me holding his hand. 

And with a knock on the door I know exactly who it is. 

"What is it now Andres?"

He waltzed in, slamming the door open with the brightest grin on his face. Ever since he met his mate Minta, he has not stopped smiling. You would think that he was a school boy experiencing his first crush. "Hey Lee, I wanted to know if you wanted to go to the training grounds with me today. I know you have been drowning in here for a while and figure you could get a breather."

"No Andres. I don't have time for that shit. I am still trying to square away all my fathers hidden accounts, on top of dealing with all these defiant alphas. My father was a shit king. I can't say I'm surprised he left me with this shit."

"All mighty king my ass" Andres muttered under his breath.

Andres has been there with me through everything. He saw how I was treated by my father, and he knows exactly what I have had to deal with in my 'Alpha king' training. I will be damned before I am ever compared to my father. 

I stand up, my 6'5" frame towering over his 5'"11 frame. His brown hair coating his tan forehead in sweat, as if he had run a marathon before entering my quarters. "is there anything else you needed? I have to get back to my work?" I ask sitting on the edge of my desk, crossing my forearms against my chest. 

"Oh yeah! What I really came in here for." I look down and shake my head. This man and his ADHD. Its very rare for us to get mental disorders, but when we do, they are typically pretty severe. Andres and his ADHD makes him bounce of the walls, and you have to try hard to get them back on track.

"The Crescent moon pack invited us to their mating ball. I know you haven't wanted to go to any since what happened two years ago, but I think it would be good for you to..."

"No" I respond cutting him off.

"But you need to have some f...."

"No" I respond more firmly.

"But it wasn't your fau..."

"No" I respond, still shutting him down. I was in no mood to be apart of society again. I know my pack is itching to go back to normal and to be apart of society again, but I could not risk it after what happened last time. I do not want us to go out to another packs function again until I know I am safe. Until I know we are safe. I am the only surviving inheritor of the throne. Going to any other pack's events is putting a target on our entire society.

"How about this. We go for an hour. Let the pack have some fun! Let loose! We will have our own men on guard, and we will secure the premises. Come on, live a little!" I could tell he was desperate. Everyone was. But I couldn't help but feel hesitant on the whole idea.

"fine. We will go but on one cond..." I begin to scold him.

"YES! I am so excited! Wait until I tell Minta! Maybe her family will be there!"

"ANDRES!" I shout, getting his attention. "I know you are excited but keep it together. There is one condition. If I sense any sort of danger whether it is on our travels or while we are on their lands, we come back immediately. Only unmated males and females can come with us. Think of this as a trial. If all goes well we can evaluate hosting a ball of our own. Understood?"

Unsure of if that information penetrated through his thick skull I look back at the man grinning from ear to ear.

"SIR YES SIR" he responds back to me swiftly leaving the room, likely going to tell everyone the good news.

I chuckle and sit back at my desk. Looking over this months ledgers to balance them out. 

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Walking outside I make my way past the training grounds, and over to the podium. Seeing all the young children training eases my mind about the conversation I am about to have with the pack. 

Mindlinking the pack, All pack members make your way to the podium, an emergency meeting will begin in 5 minutes.

I hear a coursing sound of yes Alpha running through the link before cutting it off.  Slowly the field begins to flood with all my members.

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"Good afternoon" I bellow out into the mic. 

"As you all may know already, I am allowing for all unmated females and males to attend the Crescent Moon ball. As you all know I am very cautious on allowing us to appear at normal pack events once again. This will act as a trial run. If everything goes smoothly I will be more open for us to return to more events, and be more apart of society."

I pause hearing all the cheering happening around me. Every single pair of eyes sparkling as if this was the missing piece they were waiting for. Smiles stretched from ear to ear.

I was taken back in disbelief. I knew they would be excited to re-enter society, but I did not realize I was depriving them of happiness, depriving them of what their heart truly desires.

I continue to speak, and they grow silent once again, "Now we will be leaving this afternoon, and we will be taking a few of our mated males to secure the perimeter while we are there. If anyone finds their mates, you are to notify me immediately so we can plan arrangements for new arrivals, and departures from our pack. Everyone who is attending must meet me in the front of the pack house by 2pm, we will depart from there." 

Screaming and cheering erupting once again, I make my descent from the podium, and make my way inside to begin packing.

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