Her Broken Alpha Prince (Book 18 of The Regal Eclipse Pack Series)

Chapter 9

Knox eyed the pack house as they pulled up to it. It was a large mansion and a bit gaudy. Not at all his taste, but it wasn't his pack either. He wondered how old it was and if it was the same house his sister, Charity had ran the pack from all of those years ago.

The Alpha at the time had kidnapped Daniel's daughter, Noelle, and brought her here. Daniel had told Knox that when it first happened, he hadn't even known about Noelle's existence. He'd met Jenna, mated her, then she'd disappeared. It had taken him a year to find her, and in that time, Jenna had given birth to Daniel's pup, and the heir to the throne.

Daniel had challenged the Alpha and killed him. He'd given the Alpha position to Charity so he could return home with his new mate and his pup. Charity was the one who stepped in and got the pack in order and organized new leadership.

Knox pulled himself out of his thoughts and climbed out of the van. He stepped over to stand next to Zara, who was waiting for her bag from Russell. The Beta handed Knox his as well and Knox nodded to him. The Beta was way too quiet. It was kind of weird. The man barely acknowledged him.

Knox looked up to see a man step outside and onto the front porch. The man was huge, overly muscular, and he stopped, standing there like a King in front of his domain. He stood with his legs spread, and his overly large arms crossed over his muscular chest as he stared down at them. The Alpha, Knox knew, who had no problem putting his aura on display, though it wasn't really pressing against anyone.

Knox had a feeling that was just for him too. The Alpha had no idea who he was, though he was certain Beta Russell had probably given him a heads up on Knox's arrival. If nothing else, they would know that Knox was from Regal Eclipse, and that he was above them in rank. Why in the world the Alpha felt the need to show his dominance, Knox wasn't sure. He found it rather annoying.

But he did know he could bring the man to his knees if he really wanted to. Both Caleb and Daniel had taught him how to throw his aura, something most werewolves didn't know how to do and it could be rather terrifying. It could also be tiring, and he'd been told only to do it when circumstances dictated that he needed to do so.

"Don't do it just because you're pissed off," Daniel had told him.

Zara seemed unperturbed by Jensen's show of dominance and headed up the steps, making Knox wonder how often she dealt with this. "It's good to see you Alpha Jensen," she greeted him pleasantly.

The Alpha eyed her for a moment, then bowed his head to her. "Good to see you too, Princess. Welcome to the Virginia Pack. Miss Amanda is not with you this time?"

"Not this time, Alpha. Instead, I'm being accompanied by Knox." She turned to look at him and smiled. "Knox, this is Alpha Jensen. Alpha Jensen, this is Knox."

The Alpha nodded to him, then dismissed him, Knox noticed, watching quietly. The man turned and walked back into the house, with Zara behind him. Knox followed behind both of them with the Beta on his heels. At this point, he was surprised the Beta wasn't walking in front of him. Instead the creepy fucker was following silently behind, moving like a shadow. His job was probably to make sure Knox didn't wander off. Knox rolled his eyes. He wasn't a young pup.

The Alpha walked up the stairs that were right inside the entrance, and up to the second floor, then walked into the first room on the right. Zara followed him inside, with Knox and the silent Beta.

Knox's gaze darted around the large room, taking in the huge windows that ran across the far wall and looked out over the Virginia Pack's territory. Those windows ran from floor to ceiling and gave off spectacular views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The furniture and book shelves were all dark wood, the walls white, the floors dark well-polished hardwood. There were several bookshelves along one wall full of ancient looking texts, and the Alpha's large desk sat in the middle of the room, almost completely cleaned off. A table sat off to one side with several comfortable looking chairs surrounding it, while a leather couch was on the other side of the room. A large map of the Virginia Pack's territory hung on the far wall.

Alpha Jensen sat down at the table, to the right of the head, which was where Zara sat. Besides Knox, she was the highest rank in the room. She and Knox were equal, though no one else was aware of that except them. Beta Russell sat to her left. Knox knew he'd pretty much been dismissed. He was seen as unimportant, which irked him, but he settled down near the end to listen and watch. 

A moment later, the door opened and a young man walked in who was closer to Knox's age. He had dark hair and carried himself with an air of confidence. He walked over to the table and bowed his head to Zara. "Princess."

"Princess Zara, this is my son, Robert," Beta Russell said calmly. Knox wondered what it would take to rile the man up, if anything.

"Nice to meet you Robert, though I think we've met before." Zara flashed a smile at him.

Robert smiled back at her. "We have, Princess." He didn't bother to acknowledge Knox. He then walked around the table and sat on the Beta's left.

Knox watched him quietly. He'd never been ignored so much in his life. It irritated him to no end and his wolf, Romeo, was pissy about it. It was like they weren't even there, but it was also blatant disrespect. 'We're just here to support Zara,' Knox reminded Romeo. 

'Leadership needs put in their place,' Romeo growled, annoyed by the disrespect.

Knox could agree, but for now, he'd wait and watch. He was starting to wonder if something was off, though Zara seemed rather calm. If she thought something was wrong, she might be more tense, or at least told him.

Zara was twenty-one and Dominic's granddaughter. She was a hybrid, with both a wolf and a panther, which Knox could almost guarantee no one in the room was aware of. She was extremely powerful and had a Queenly air about her. She had taken the Alpha class at Cuyahoga University, in preparation to be a liaison. Whoever her mate was, he would definitely have his hands full with her.

Zara asked the Alpha several questions and Knox could tell that it irritated Jensen quite a bit. The man clenched his jaw a number of times, but still patiently answered her questions. He looked as though he was ready to pounce, his muscles bunching up like he might come across the table at her. Knox watched him, amused. Zara was the last person he wanted to go after. She'd kick his ass, and Knox would help her. Not that she would need it.

"How old is Caelan now?" Zara asked, folding her hands on the table in front of her. She'd managed to keep a serene expression the entire meeting, and Knox wondered if she was as over it as he was.

Alpha Jensen was arrogant and he didn't like being questioned by a twenty-one year old she-wolf. Princess or not. This was why Knox had no desire to be a liaison.

The Alpha's eyes flickered with annoyance. "Caelan just turned twenty-six."

Knox's gaze moved over to the Alpha in surprise. Why wasn't Caelan the Alpha then? Typically, the Alpha's heir took over at the age of twenty-five. 

Knox's gaze flicked to Robert. The Beta's son was staring straight ahead, not appearing to give two shits about the conversation. If Caelan had become the Alpha when he was supposed to, Robert would be the Beta now. Knox wondered where he was.

"And why isn't she the Alpha?" Zara asked curiously. 

She? So Caelan was a she-wolf? This was getting more and more interesting by the moment. Knox actually thought more women should be the Alpha of the packs. Things would probably run smoother.

Jensen shifted uncomfortably and Knox smirked. He could almost bet the Alpha didn't want to tell Zara that the reason Caelan wasn't the Alpha was because she was a woman. Knox had a feeling the Alpha had wanted a son, not a daughter.