CHAPTER 6

>>>>Meeting Rex.

After Akira and Madam Estelle left the hall, the other maids cleaned up her mess. The other siblings couldn't stop looking at Dominus, especially Brevin. They knew it was so unlike him to let anyone go just like that.

Brevin narrowed his gaze at him, inquisitive. “So what was that about?”

“What?” Dominus raised his gaze, acting oblivious to what had just happened a few minutes ago.

Brevin tilted his head slightly, arms crossed, a slow grin forming across his face. “No, no, no. Don’t ‘what’ me. That little scene back there? You don’t let people off the hook like that. Do you know her?”

Cierra and Aurora leaned in, their curiosity piqued as well. Everyone in the Northern pack knew Prince Dominus avoided women. When he was in the pack, he was more focused on either his training or the duties his father assigned him.

Cierra and Aurora exchanged glances and smirks.

“She was being a little too emotional,probably the first time she’s seen me. There’s no reason for you all to escalate it to something it isn’t.”

Brevin’s eyes widened. “Emotional?” He chuckled. “Come on, senior brother, we both know you wouldn’t have let her go. Perhaps you’ve even fucked her before?”

“Oh, shit, Brevin!” Dominus sighed, looking away to avoid his gaze, and Brevin giggled. The two men couldn’t help but burst out laughing, just like they used to in the past years before Dominus left the pack for his royal duties.

Meanwhile, as the two of them laughed, Cierra and Aurora's faces turned grim, with a flicker of jealousy beneath the surface. They hated seeing Brevin even close to happy or giving a smile. They believed he shouldn't be allowed to smile at all. Their mother died while giving birth to him, and since then, the family had not forgiven him, except for Dominus, who had always loved him irrespective of being a dwarf.

For others, he was a curse to the royal family. Cierra and Aurora believed he was the reason their mother died. Being a dwarf in such a large pack was seen as a disability, so Brevin was picked on whenever anyone had the chance. Well, he was used to it.

After a few minutes of silence as they waited for their father, Brevin broke the silence again, turning to Dominus. “I have missed you so much. So tell me, how has it been outside? How was the Eastern pack? How were the Southern packs? How many women did you sleep with daily, and how many of your men died? I mean, just tell me everything!”

Aurora suddenly chuckled. “Oh, come on, Brevin,” she turned to him with a scowl. “What would you know about all those things you just mentioned? What would you know about a man sleeping with a woman? Last time I checked, you're an eunuch! No wolf, no strength, and also no... well, you know! Brevin, you shouldn't speak when others are speaking!”

A cold chill ran down Brevin's spine as Aurora and Cierra burst out laughing.

He swallowed hard, trying desperately to ignite them. It wasn't the first time they were picking on him this badly. He had lived with the discrimination all his life, even from his own father—Grand Alpha King Kaelen. He hadn't chosen to be an eunuch; he was forced into it to cover up the family's shame, which resulted in his mutilation.

Since then, he hadn’t really forgiven his father for that act. Even if he wasn't his least favorite child, unlike Dominus, who everyone saw as the perfect child, Brevin felt the weight of his family's expectations. Dominus could transform into his wolf using the talisman without going feral; he had grown to control his wolf so well. The same went for Aurora and Cierra,they were so skilled with their wolves that they now headed an academy teaching the upcoming pups how to control their transformations and avoid going feral.

Each of his siblings had an impact on the pack, except him.

He was upset by his sister's words, but he chose to ignore them and refocus on his brother.

“So tell me,” he pushed an empty cup in front of Dominus, urging him to pour a drink, which he did at once.

“Tell me, who is the mother of my new nephew? I met him a few minutes ago, and I can say he's as hot-headed as you. Just six, and he is so rebellious,” Brevin pointed out. Dominus froze, the memories of Akira rushing back.

“I just hope he doesn't make some crazy scenes in public like you,” Brevin added teasingly.

Dominus looked up at him with a smile. “Crazy scenes in public? Oh, come on, Brevin, you know I don't embarrass myself in public spaces,” he said, and Brevin laughed.

He leaned closer to the table, resting his short arm and elbow on it. “Since when do you care about public scoldings? Don’t forget you dragged me out of a council meeting once for using the wrong fork to eat.”

A loud roar of laughter filled the room.

Dominus exhaled slowly, setting the glass down with practiced calm. “This is different. If Rex is hot-headed, he didn’t learn that from me.”

“Then is it from his mother?” Brevin threw the question at him without caution. Dominus suppressed a laugh, reaching for his drink to take a gulp. He didn’t know if Akira was hot-headed. The realization began to dawn on him that he actually knew nothing about her, except for their encounters at night. He barely knew which pack she came from or if she was a wild rogue.

Dominus finally gave him a calm, calculated look. “Maybe—”

He tilted his head, his eyes sweeping through the hall as he attempted to change the topic. “Where is Father? We’ve been here for more than an hour, and he’s still not here?”

Cierra and Aurora quietly reached for their drinks, avoiding the question and making it even more suspicious, while Brevin just flashed his brother a smile. “I don’t know; I haven’t seen our father for the longest time. I’ve tried to ask why he never comes out, but the council never gives me answers, nor do the women I call sisters. So, as the useless son, I stopped trying to find out what’s wrong.” Dominus gazed at him, slightly taken aback.

Brevin pushed himself forward, his hands sliding down the armrest as he jumped down, landing on both feet. “I have something better to do right now.” He patted Dominus on the back playfully. “You could go check on him or ask the council members; they might tell you. You’re their hero.”

Dominus didn’t reply. He just gave Brevin that look—the one that usually made people shut up. However, with that, Brevin walked off, leaving his siblings in the dining room.

Meanwhile, in the hallway leading to the kitchen, Madam Estelle hastened her pace, trying to catch up with Akira, who was ahead, heading to the kitchen to drop off her tray.

Madam Estelle quickened her pace, her heart racing with a mix of anger and embarrassment. She couldn’t wrap her head around what had just happened in the hall. She couldn’t help but continue to storm behind Akira in silence.

She couldn’t believe she had been disrespected like that. Clenching her fists, she followed Akira, each of her steps heavy with thoughts of how to punish her. However, Akira, oblivious to whatever was happening behind her, kept her eyes on the kitchen, her mind filled with thoughts about Joe. She thought she had escaped Dominus, only to find herself back in his pack—the very pack that had taken everything away from her. She knew it wouldn’t take long before he realized it was her. But then she was curious and couldn’t wait to enter the kitchen so she could at least thank Madam Estelle for covering her tracks without asking.

When Madam Estelle couldn’t catch up with Akira, she let out a deep sigh.

Once she entered the kitchen, she found Akira standing by the counter, her back still turned and her eyes wandering. A sinister plan began creeping into Estelle’s mind. The sight of how oblivious Akira looked, standing there after the embarrassment she had caused, made Estelle’s blood boil.

Finally, Madam Estelle’s gaze fell on the wooden spoon hanging on the wall. She quietly reached for it, her fists tightening around it, ready to swing at Akira from behind before a kid rushed in.

It was Rex. He burst into the kitchen, and Madam Estelle paused, her eyes wide with surprise. Then she forced a smile and let the wooden spoon drop.

“Hey—” she choked out, and Akira turned at once when she heard the voice. As she did, surprise flickered across her face at the sight of Rex.