The four ministers felt the tension the moment they stepped foot into the hall. With their heads held low, they knelt on one knee before the royals as they uttered, “Your Highnesses. Your Graces.”
Lucianne smiled graciously as she spoke in a much gentler voice, “Yarrington, Weaver, Pamela and Vanessa, it’s so nice that you four could join us tonight, despite your current workload.”
Her warmth was contagious, and the atmosphere of the room took a 360-degree turn, their mood easing with the Queen’s mellowed voice. Xandar matched his mate’s smile as he said, “Stand, ministers.”
They stood, all looking less fearful than before. Yarrington then handed a grey folder to Christian as he started explaining, “We’ve negated the last two complaints made against you, your Grace. I’
Lucianne took a moment to digest whatever Xandar had just told her before she blinked to bring herself out of her daze and asked, “Is there even such a thing?”Xandar’s thumb tried to smoothen the lines on her tense forehead as he explained, “Not in a long time, sweetheart.”After another moment of thinking, Lucianne said, “That makes no sense. I am not even a Queen, at least not in technical terms.”Xandar smiled wider as he whispered excitedly, “That’s the thing! You’ve been our Queen long before anyone knew! Lucy, this is amazing!”“Are you sure, Xandar? Don’t you have to mark me before I even stand a chance to get that power?”
Livia was undaunted despite Greg’s hostility. She flicked her high ponytail to the back to expose her bare shoulders, and leaned towards the table between her and the Duke. Her red-colored, sweetheart neckline dress did everything to advertise her cleavage as she said, “I came with a proposition, your Grace.” “Not interested. Get out, Livia. Don’t make me tell you again.” Greg snapped, and took another sip from his glass as he averted his eyes from her and started staring into space while he waited for her to leave. Livia simpered, and leaned back into her seat as she signaled the bartender for a drink before returning her sights to Greg. His eyes had turned onyx, and it was nothing close to lust. Livia was well-aware of that this time. “That’s it.” Greg signaled his m
“You’re still plugged in to the rumours in the Kingdom, Lance?” Greg asked with furrowed brows. Lance’s fingers stroked the sun tattoo on his arm, something he did when he was nervous as he responded, “I am, your Grace. In a family of drug mules, it’s rather impossible not to be. We have to stay on top of things to avoid getting caught.” “What’s the latest news on the Queen?” Greg’s finger circled the rim of his empty glass as he waited for Lance’s answer. “Uh…the last we heard, she was questioned by journalists and reporters about her presence at the royal family’s doctor.” Greg gritted his teeth. Doctor. That meant the arrow injury that Livia mentioned was more harmful than he thought. He swallowed a lump
Greg rolled his eyes as he responded to Kelissa Kylton’s inauthentic hospitality, “Like I had a choice.”“Good that you know who’s in-charge here.” Kelissa smirked bumptiously.“No, I don’t. I just know that it’s not me.” Greg lied with ease. This was going to be easier than he thought. Whoever was harming Lucianne already assumed that Greg had voluntarily surrendered superiority the moment he made the call and cited the code. But nothing could be further from the truth.Greg Claw was inferior to no one. No one! …Alright, fine. No one, except Lucianne.Kelissa scoffed darkly at Greg’s response and asked, “So, are you saying that I d
On Saturday morning, Lucianne woke up to Xandar pulling her back into bed the moment she tried to get out. After two minutes of persistent whining of needing to use the bathroom, Xandar finally released her. They went for their usual run and spent some time in the shower together before having breakfast.Xandar then drove them to the government headquarters. Upon entering through the high metal gates, Lucianne saw that the headquarters was a large estate on its own, and the endless rows of empty parking lots showed the numerous employees working in the white and grey building. If it weren’t for it being the weekend, those lots would’ve been filled with vehicles.After Xandar parked in his reserved lot, they got out of the car and hand-in-hand, Xandar led Lucianne to the entrance. The large automatic glass doors slid open
Vanessa entwined her fingers together on the table as she explained, “Ministerial positions had only ever been held by Lycans, which I dare say is the main reason behind the neglect of the welfare of our cousin species. Some Lycan children don’t even know what wolves are. Most Lycans shun at the thought of having to share the room with one. I’d love to say that the government is by far the most liberal and welcoming body when it comes to our cousin species, but the events from the last two weeks have shown otherwise.” “Although there have been notable improvements in how we treat them over the decades and recent years, I must say that it is far from enough. And as much as I acknowledge the Queen’s presence, I’m of the humble opinion that one wolf alone will not enable us to meet the needs of our cousin species as quickly as it could be with more wolves guiding us. What I’m recommending is r
After flipping his light brown ponytail tied with a maroon ribbon to the back, Riven cleared his throat and spoke, “Your Highnesses. Your Graces. I am of the view that any replacements should only be temporary. Deciding otherwise would just be the government coming to its own verdict for our arrested colleagues before the courts deal with the crimes themselves. And, as much as it pains me, I must say that wolves are nowhere near ready to help run the Kingdom. I am not saying that there should be an indefinite bar of their species but it is dangerous to include them in discussions in the near future.”“Dangerous how, Riven?” Xandar asked as he tried his best to control his temperament.Lucianne’s sarcasm came to mind but Riven knew better than to insult the Queen. So, he chose to say, “Well, there m
Annie thought for a moment before she met Harold’s gaze as she said, “Yes, minister. I am.” The Duchess’s non-apologetic answer and confident tone made Christian smile. Lucianne and Xandar were proud to see Annie standing her ground as well.The Duchess continued, “Despite my absence, I know what has been going on in recent weeks. Cummings and Whitlaw have proven to be incompetent in defending a significant population of the Kingdom. Caunterberg is a perpetrator of the very offence he was expected to safeguard the Kingdom from. One of the two sons of our Finance Minister saw it fit to make false sexual harassment complaints for slanderous motives. What’s worse is that this son of hers even hoped to succeed his mother.”“I recommend a review of all current ministers. We should have every