The Hunter's Pack

The King

I had come back to the palace, wearing Elliot's black suit with the bullet placed into an inner pocket. I would have worn the black dress I had, but Anastasia started ranting about how it was "unacceptable to wear the same clothes in front of the King twice" and such, so I simply asked for her red dress. She wouldn't give it to me, saying something about going to a club tonight. I sighed tiredly, remembering the whole ordeal. I didn't ask for Amber's dress, deciding it may cause too many problems. She may think that I wanted the dress permanently and it would be troublesome to convince her it was truly hers. 

The King was wearing a simply V-neck and jeans, while the Queen was adjourned in a fancy summer dress. However, the only thing that truly screamed "royalty" about them were the intimidating matching gilded thrones they sat on at the front of the large room. It reminded me of the place where all the alphas were gathered, but this was a bit more expansive...and empty. Even though the chamber itself was gaudy, with golden designs adjourning the walls and a tall ceiling plated with mosaics, there really was no furniture other than the thrones. 

The two monarchs sat upon their seats peacefully and calmly, but I still could not shake off my gut feeling that something was wrong. I briefly touched the small eagle pin on the edge of the suit's lapel, reassuring myself that the tiny enchanted camera disguised as the eagle's eye was still there. The King's strong voice brought me out of my thoughts.

"So, Alpha Cross. Welcome back to the palace." He spread his arms a bit, as if gesturing to his surroundings. "I would like to begin by thanking you for your cooperation in the elders' case. Not all alphas would be so welcoming when it came to allowing other packs on their territories." 

I'm sure once said alpha had to prove their innocence in front of the King, allowing another pack onto their land was a small price to pay. Of course, I kept my mouth shut and simply gave him a polite nod. 

"Now, on to business. You mentioned you wanted a meeting with the other alphas, but I made the decision to hear you out beforehand. It would be a loss to call all of the alphas in the United States simply because of your possibly...incorrect information." The man leaned back into his seat, folding his hands on his lap and awaiting my reply. Although I knew that he was simply being cautious, I narrowed my eyes at the King, just slightly; his implication was a tad degrading. 

"I assure you, King, my information is not wrong." I slowly reached into my suit for the bullet, giving a small pointed glance at the guard that immediately stepped towards me once I moved. The King noticed this motion and raised a patient hand, halting the woman. 

I took out the silver bullet, now carefully (and a little ironically) placed into a velvet ring box. I lightly threw the box to the monarch, who in turn caught it easily. He apprehensively opened it, looking at the contents carefully. He shot me a somewhat questioning glance and casually picked up the sliver bullet. I eyebrows raised a bit, but I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Although I could hear the silver object slightly burning his fingers as he examined it, the man didn't even twitch. The title of "King" wasn't passed down through blood just for show; this is the lineage of werewolves that are known as the strongest after all. 

"May I see?" The Queen stretched out her gloved hand and the King wordlessly handed the bullet back in the box to her. My gut feeling became more noticeable at this action and I shuffled a bit. What was this feeling?

"So, do you know the owner of this bullet? I heard from an alpha that he was shot by a rogue on your land. I'm assuming this is the bullet." The King questioned. 

"Yes. I am sure that the man who ordered the hit is named Andrei Serebrov. I have studied his methods for many years in the past and I recognize them now." I would rather not reveal my relationship with the infamous hunter; it would only be disadvantageous for me. 

Immediately, dread seemed to turn my body to stone, weighing it down with uneasiness and apprehension. My gaze zeroed in to the Queen's gloves: brown leather. Why was she wearing leather gloves? They do not exactly match her dress, but more specifically, why the material that was used most when handling silver: leather? 

It happened so fast, so unexpectedly, I was too surprised to react rapidly enough. The Queen took out a sliver gun - a gun that matched the one the rogue used - and pulled the trigger, almost instantaneously shooting her mate. He gasped, partly due to the pain and partly from the betrayal. 

"Beatrice, why?" He chocked out with a broken expression, tears forming in his wide eyes. I reached for my gun but instantly stopped from the searing pain in my left shoulder. I looked up, seeing the guard holding a smoking gun. 

"What-" I started, completely shocked at this turn of events. The guard knew? She shot again, this time at my right leg. I stumbled back from the impact and as I looked down, I saw a small glimmer. The pin had cracked. 

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, but they threatened our sons." The Queen shouted with tears streaming from her eyes. She seemed to be a step away from insanity at this point. She closed her eyes and shot again, the bullet lodging itself into the King's head. The woman let out a strangled cry and turned towards me. 

"Shoot her. Then shoot yourself." She ordered the guard using her command, a voice that cannot be denied by a royal subject. The Queen promptly brought up the muzzle of her firearm to her head and pulled the trigger, no hesitation evident in her actions. 

I was left alone with the suicidal woman; we stared each other down without moving for a moment. I glanced at the ruined pin; if I could get at least a piece, I'm sure a witch could restore it. I felt it before she acted, but this time I was ready. I pushed off of the floor, vaulting towards the left to avoid the incoming bullet. Scrambling up through the pain of my injuries, I ran back to the farthest edge of the room, trying to build distance between us. The guard was hesitant in killing me; that was obvious through her delayed shots. She knew that once I was dead, she had to kill herself as well - she was forced into a situation she could not win. I whirled around, ducking down and to the right to avoid the next shot. 

The guard shot again, but I didn't bother to dodge this time. Her ammo was gone. She pulled the trigger again a few times before lowering her gun, surrendering to her unavoidable fate. 

"I wish you better luck in the next world." I took out my pistol and shot, killing her swiftly with a bullet to the head. I limped over to the broken pin, chanting a spell while picking up a shattered piece of the camera. Finishing the spell, I closed my eyes, disappearing into a cloud of purple dust.