Chapter 16: New Pack, New Rules

ELAINE

Connor and I walked into the room filled with our pack of warriors. They bowed their heads in respect as we entered. It was a sight to behold.

All my dreams were coming true, except for one thing. I never thought that becoming queen would mean losing my virginity to someone I despised.

“Hello, everyone.” I smiled, scanning the familiar faces of the pack. Some warriors looked pleased, others seemed uneasy.

Was it because they were loyal to Connor, or was it because of me?

I turned to Connor, who glanced at me before moving closer.

~“Stand back and let me handle this,”~ I told him through our mind-link. He raised an eyebrow. ~“Just trust me.”~

He was still upset about our earlier argument. I got it. Maybe I was too hard on him, but I needed to set boundaries so he wouldn’t get the wrong idea.

As an alpha male, he would have some control over me. Now that we’d completed the mating bond, his lycan would be jealous of everything I did. I couldn’t let that happen.

“I’ve gathered you all here to introduce some new pack rules,” I said, trying to sound authoritative. The room fell silent as they watched me. “They’re simple rules. I hope everyone will follow them.”

I glanced at my brother and Sorin. Connor didn’t know why Sorin was here, why I’d called him.

“As you all know, when a new alpha takes over, a new beta also steps in. We have two betas here, the king’s beta and mine.”

I smiled at my brother. “As you know, my beta is my brother. Starting today, he’ll be in charge of border patrols.”

I nodded at my brother, standing next to me.

“This is Beta Regulus. He’ll be training the new warriors and leading patrols,” I explained.

~“WHAT?”~ Connor spat through the link. ~“My beta will do that.”~

I forced a smile and turned to Connor.

“No, your beta can handle castle security,” I whispered, keeping my smile in place. Connor sighed but didn’t argue.

“Starting next week, training will begin at five instead of six.

“Patrol times will stay the same, but we’ll have additional groups checking the borders,” I explained. Everyone nodded in agreement.

“You’ll get your extra assignments later this week. I hope everyone is ready.”

Everyone howled in agreement. As I stepped back, Connor stepped forward and cleared his throat. I shot him a glare from behind. What was he going to say now?

“As the luna mentioned, the pack will have a lot of new rules. This applies to everyone, including betas,” Connor growled, looking at Sorin.

“I’ll be taking some patrols with me. We’ll do runs and train together once or twice a week.”

After dismissing them, I walked over to Regulus and Sorin. Everyone bowed, and Connor thanked them.

“Sorin, your turn. Let’s go,” I said. Connor grabbed my arm, stopping me. Here we go.

“What’s all this about?” he demanded. “Why didn’t you tell me about this before we came here?”

“First, let go of my arm,” I snapped. “Second, I’m the queen. I make decisions. You have your king duties, so focus on those and let me handle the rest.”

“The pack warriors are mine too,” Connor growled.

“Yes, but some things will be done my way, whether you like it or not,” I retorted, pulling my arm from his grip. “Now let’s go. I need to introduce Sorin to the rest.”

“For what?” Connor asked, following me.

“You’ll see.” I smiled, making him roll his eyes.

***

We walked toward the south part of the castle. I could feel Connor’s confused gaze on me.

I’d called Sorin because he was an excellent strategist and great at management.

“Let’s go to the conference room,” I said, pointing the way. Connor reached for my hand and laced his fingers with mine.

“I told you not to touch me without a reason, Connor,” I whispered as the men walked a few steps ahead of us.

“It’s all part of the plan,” Connor replied, not looking at me. “I wouldn’t do it otherwise.”

I clenched my jaw as we walked hand in hand. It was uncomfortable, but necessary. We had to make it work.

Once we entered the conference room where the rest of the pack members and alphas were, I let go of Connor’s hand and took a seat across from him.

Now it was Connor’s turn to lay out his new rules.

I listened quietly to his welcome speech. My eyes drifted to Sorin, sitting three seats away from me.

~“I’m sorry,”~ I said through the mind-link. Sorin looked surprised as he turned to me.

~“Why are you apologizing?”~ Sorin asked after a moment. ~“If it’s about Connor and you… We have no choice but to accept it, right?”~

I lowered my head, feeling awkward. Sorin was right. I had to accept this terrible truth, even though it hurt. I had to accept that I was now mated to my enemy.

~“Hey, don’t be so serious, Elaine. It’s not your fault,”~ Sorin whispered in my mind. ~“As long as I’m by your side, I don’t mind.”~

~“But I do!”~ I shot back. ~“I didn’t want this.”~

~“Neither did I, Elaine. Neither did I,”~ Sorin whispered back.

I broke the connection and refocused on Connor. I tried to pay attention to his explanation of the new rules to the other alphas.

“Luna?” Connor suddenly said. I looked up and saw everyone’s eyes on me. “Your turn.”

I nodded and stood. At my cue, Sorin rose to stand beside me.

“Hello, everyone. I’ll keep this brief. The new rule I want to introduce is that Alpha Sorin will take over managing the castle.”

I smiled at him. “Alpha Sorin is an excellent administrator, as you all know. He’ll be the go-between for the humans and us.”

Just as I was about to continue, a loud bang on the table made everyone, including me, jump.

We all looked to see where it came from. It was Connor. I shot him a warning look, but it didn’t change the scowl on his face.

“Everyone out,” Connor suddenly commanded. Whispers filled the room as I glared at him.

“No,” I said, raising my hand to quiet everyone. “Is there a problem, Alpha?”

Connor’s eyebrow twitched as I held his gaze. I tried to keep Ashina in check for the sake of everyone there, but Khan was pushing through the bond.

“Connor?” I forced a smile to appear sweet.

“I gave an order. Everyone out.” Connor stood, his eyes locked on mine.

I cursed under my breath. Couldn’t this guy think?

“No way!” I shot back. “If you have something to say, say it here!”

Now all eyes were on me too.

Connor growled louder, making the room shake. My eyes moved to Sorin, who looked just as outraged.

I could feel my father’s and Alpha Martell’s eyes on both of us. They knew we didn’t have to pretend in front of them.

“I said if you have something to say, say it,” I repeated.

“Fine,” Connor grumbled, making my eyebrows shoot up. “He can’t take over management. Alpha Sorin can’t,” Connor hissed.

“Excuse me?” I snarled at him, making the room tense. “I can choose who I want.”

“And I can reject that person too,” Connor retorted. He moved closer, standing in front of me, his gaze challenging me to defy him in front of everyone.

“Not entirely,” Sorin’s voice echoed. I glanced at him over my shoulder. What was he doing?

“The queen’s choice or recommendation is decided by votes. Here…” Sorin gestured around the room. “The council and alphas vote in this room.”

A slow smile spread across my face.

“It’s not your decision,” Sorin continued. “The luna suggested it, so everyone else decides if I join the council or not.”

Connor looked around him. All the alphas present nodded as murmurs filled the room.

“He’s right, my king,” Alpha Martell said with a wicked grin. “The decision is ours.”

I smiled at Connor, whose veins were bulging in his forehead. He was about to explode.

“Alright, let’s vote,” I commanded, clasping my hands. “Anyone who wants Alpha Sorin to take over management, please raise your hand.”

I kept my eyes on Connor’s red face as I gave my command. His eyes slowly moved around, taking in everyone who raised their hands.

“It looks like Alpha Sorin is the new castle manager.” I beamed.

Connor’s hand slammed the table as he tried to suppress his anger.

“Thank you. Everyone is dismissed,” I added as everyone stood to leave. Sorin looked at me, but I just smiled, shaking my head to signal him to give us some space.

Once the doors closed, I turned to face Connor. He was already facing the other way, but from behind I could see his annoyance.

“Anything you want to say?” I asked as I sat down again. Connor turned his head first, then his body, until he was close to me.

The half-shifted face and those black eyes meant Khan was in control.

I waited patiently, showing no emotion.

“You’re defying me again,” Connor’s mixed voice echoed in the room. “You’re making things harder, Elaine.”

“Me?” I said with a coy look. “No, you’re mistaken. All I’m doing is setting my rules and choosing the people I need by my side.”

“And you need Sorin by your side?” Connor asked, his voice sharp.

“Yes,” I answered without hesitation.

Connor’s intense gaze met mine, making me swallow. It was so hard to look into those eyes for more than a minute. It felt like they could see right through me.

“I didn’t realize you two needed each other so desperately,” Connor whispered, making me stare at him.

I blinked, confused. Why did it bother him so much? It’s not like we were actual mates or in love.

“I… Sorin is what I need,” I stuttered, standing. My hands rubbed over my thighs as I sighed tiredly. “Sorin stays by my side.”

“Sorin, Sorin! Is that all you can say?” Connor growled. I put my hands in my pockets and walked toward the door, ignoring him.

“Yes, Sorin is always on my mind,” I answered coldly. Connor’s face twisted as he pushed me out of the way. I stumbled but caught myself on the door.

Rubbing my shoulder, I watched him leave. I didn’t know why the whole situation was making me sad, but I hated it.