Beta Belief

*Isla*

Walking down the hallway toward Maddox’s office, I hear Trinity’s voice echo in my head. “You need to be more assertive,” she’d told me. “You have to make sure the king realizes if he can confide in Trinity, he can confide in you. Why is it she always knows what’s going on and you don’t? Because she asks! And when she asks, he feels compelled to tell her. She demands it.”

My friend isn’t wrong. I definitely don’t know how to be assertive like Trinity.

As I approach his office, I hear voices filtering out into the hallway. I recognize Maddox’s voice immediately. The response comes from Seth.

I shouldn’t be standing here eavesdropping, but the door is open just a crack, and they are standing right by the door. I can’t NOT hear them. I could walk away or announce my presence.

But they’re talking about Maatua. I can tell by the few phrases I’ve picked up. If Maddox isn’t going to tell me the truth, I’ve got to find out some other way what is going on.

“I’m just saying, Alpha, if yo