The Direwolf King

Chapter 1:

Catherine straightened her shoulders and refused to bow before the pompous Alpha.  Only her brother and cousin could force her submission and this asshole had nothing on them.  At six foot tall, she was no little pipsqueak either.  She carried herself with grace and a stride that spoke of the power rippling under her skin.  If you traced her pedigree back six generations you would find nothing but royals and alphas on either side.  She never relied on the blood coursing through her veins however.  She had trained as hard as the rest of her brothers and cousins and then trained some more.  She was the only female in the bunch and determined to prove she wasn't the weakest link. 

Her hard work paid off in times like these.  She had been sent on another of King Daniel's missions.  This pack in southern Mexico was suspected of trafficking human girls and she was there as a diplomat to scope things out and establish trustworthy contacts.  The Alpha had greeted her frostily a week ago but was unable to find a valid reason to turn her away. Under the premise of a new trade agreement concerning exotic produce she had not gathered substantial evidence to accuse the Alpha of any wrongdoing but had at least jump started the investigation process.  She would be heading back to the palace in the mountains of northern Montana while a team was deployed and infiltrated the trafficking network. 

Catherine has trained under her Aunt Cecelia for decades before going on her first mission.  Now at the age of 42, she was still considered young for a werewolf but she never allowed it to be a handicap.  A human never would have guessed her age either.  Slower werewolf aging meant she looked to be only 24. 

The current pack under investigation had dismissed her as not a threat but that would ultimately be their demise.  She took her leave of the pack's council and headed out with her companion by her side.  Felicity held the title of assistant diplomat yet she was another well trained spy.  The she wolves worked well together.  Felicity was a thirty years the senior and had valuable experience in their field.  Catherine had the last name that would open doors and the skill to take out the enemies behind those doors.
She was glad to be going home.  In a few hours, she'd be back among the mountains she loved and away from the annoying pack she didn't trust.  The females were silent until the private plane lifted into the air.  Even then, they didn't speak about confidential matters out of precaution.  Loose lips was one of the ways they caught most of their suspects and they didn't want that tactic turned on them.  They sat in quiet companionship instead, typing up the reports before Cecelia had the chance to hound them.  At 143, Cecelia still commanded the intelligence unit for the royals.  Her sons were also diplomats trained in their mother's field. 

Daniel has taken over as king when his father stepped down a few years ago.  At 178, William wanted to enjoy his last few decades in an advisor position to the crown.  He had no desire to be as enthralled with court politics anymore.  Catherine's father, Frederick, was still Alpha but prepared to step down in a year or so.  Her eldest brother had taken over more and more responsibilities over the years and was ready to lead gracefully. 
Immersed in reading the new brief Cecelia had emailed to her, Catherine barely noticed when the small jet touched down in Montana.  She powered her laptop down, grabbed her briefcase and small suitcase and hurried after Felicity down the steps to the short runway.  Reports had been emailed to her Aunt for review.  Their debriefing would be tomorrow after their morning training session.  A guard hurried over to them and took their luggage for them. 

Catherine parted ways with Felicity and went in search of her family.  She hoped one of them would be able to catch her up on all that she'd missed in a week. 
She caught a maid in passing and was informed the majority of her brothers and cousins were in the king's office on a conference call.  Catherine took the steps two at a time up the staircase in her rush to see the guys.  She slipped through the large oak door and stood near them when she realized it was a video conference call.  Her brothers and three of her cousins were standing around the large monitor on the left wall.  The face of a Russian Alpha stared back at them from the screen.

"I'm telling you, I haven't seen anything like it in my 84 years.  The tracks are twice the size of mine.  If I hadn't seen the evidence with my own eyes, I wouldn't believe it."  The Russian's English was nearly perfect. 

"How long has it been since the first sighting?" asked my middle brother Braum.

"About three weeks."

Daniel rubbed his chin thoughtfully.  "The only thing that comes to mind is a dire wolf but they've been extinct for centuries.  I'll be sending a team to your pack to investigate.  Expect them tomorrow.  Keep me updated Romanov."
"Yes, your highness."  The monitor was shut off and the men turned to talk amongst themselves.  Having been raised and trained together, they were all as thick as thieves.  They froze when they saw Catherine standing by the door.

"You're back!" shouted Felix.  Daniel's younger brother was the immature one of the bunch.  He crushed Catherine in gripping hug.  Despite being four years younger than her, he stood a head over her just like the rest of the guys. 

Catherine laughed and squirmed out of his grip.  "Yes I'm back, now let me breathe!"  Felix released her so she could give everyone a quick hug.  "I only caught the last bit of your conversation.  What's going on now?"

"There's been some odd sightings in Siberia.  A few scouts brought back reports of a gigantic wolf, maybe multiple.  They're encroaching on pack territory so I want it checked out," answered Daniel.  He was good about keeping his family in the loop and often relied on their council.  "I'll be sending Austin with a small team.  I want this dealt with discreetly."  Austin nodded in agreement, he was the elder of Cecelia's sons.  Andrew, his younger brother, was currently on another diplomatic mission to one of the packs.

"Don't stress too much Dan, it might turn out to be nothing."