Filed to story: Sorry Alpha I Am Wolfless Novel
As soon as we got back ,I asked if Mom and Eve could put Reagan and Rika to bed so that I could take Riviana to our room. They agreed immediately as they watched my Little Bunny apprehensively. I hoped this wouldn’t lead them to being afraid of her. She had actually done what she should have done. The thing is none of us had ever expected that from her.
When we were alone in our room on the top floor I called out to her.
“Little Bunny?”
“Yes, Fido?” She turned and looked at me seductively as she started to slink toward me.
“What happened back there?” I wanted to cut straight to the thick of it.
“I’m sorry. I should have given the drink to Pierre to try before I went to take a drink. I know that the idea of me being the one poisoned must have frightened you. I will take it all more seriously from now on. I am so sorry.”
She seriously thought this was about that? Granted she wasn’t wrong, I was terrified when the poison was discovered because just seconds before she was about to take a drink from that cup. Still, that wasn’t why I was talking to her now.
“That’s not it, Riviana. I’m talking about what came after that.”
“Oh, the healing? I have been working on that more, especially since the babies came. I wanted to make sure that no matter what happens to them I can heal it for them right away. I guess I still need to work on it though. I ended up needing Athair m贸r’s help to save Pierre. My healing is nowhere near where it should be.”
Oh my Goddess. I had to wonder if she was doing this on purpose. Seriously, did she know that she was being oblivious or was she really like this right now? If this was real then I was going to be even more worried about her because she wasn’t stupid. She made mistakes like everyone but she wasn’t stupid at all.
“Riviana, you have to know what it is that I am talking about here. Don’t you? Please tell me that you know that I am talking about the man that you killed.” I sounded like I was begging and pleading, even to my own ears. I could tell that I was becoming frantic.
“Yes, Joaquin, I know that is what you’re referring to. I just didn’t want to talk about it right now.” She narrowed her eyes and looked at me angrily. “And I didn’t kill him, I executed him. Isn’t that what someone who tries to assassinate a Queen and Goddess Incarnate deserves? I mean, forgive me if I am wrong, but isn’t that what you would have suggested?”
She was right. I would have suggested it, but I wouldn’t have done it in front of everyone. At least, I don’t think that I would have. Then again, doing what she did sent a message to all the Fae that were in attendance. She told them that she wasn’t to be fucked with.
“Yes, I would have. It’s just-.”
“Just what, Joaquin? Just what? Are you saying that because I am a woman and a Queen that I can’t do the dirty work? Remember we have seen Aunt Glory execute someone right in front of an entire banquet before. I am hardly the first.”
I remembered what she was talking about, it happened last year during our first visit, and it had freaked us out back then.
“No, I am not saying that. I guess, I am just surprised that you took that initiative. I never expected something like that to come from you. You’re my sweet Little Bunny.” I felt like I was grasping at straws right now.
“Joaquin.” She walked up to me and put her hands on my chest, feeling the muscles underneath my shirt. “I am still your sweet Little Bunny, but I am also a Queen. And when we finish setting up the kingdom back home I will need to rule my people. If a shifter or magic user were to try what that Fae did tonight then I will have to punish that person. Even if it is in front of a group of people. They will become a warning to the others.”
I thought about her words. She was right. She was one hundred percent right. So why did I have a problem with any of this? The truth was, I didn’t have a problem with it. I just didn’t like seeing her have to do something like that. It meant that I failed her.
“I’m sorry, Riviana.” I hung my head in the shame that I felt.
“You don’t need to be. I need to show my power to those that need to see it. I guess you needed to see it too, Joaquin. You needed to know what It was that I was capable of. Now that you know, now that everyone knows, we can move on from here.”
While my Little Bunny went to get ready for bed, I went to tell the others what she had said. They understood what she had meant, especially Dietrich. They all knew that she needed to prove herself to the Fae, to the shifters, and to the magic folk. She was a Queen now, and those weren’t just words. She needed to run a kingdom with so many people in it that we had a hard time counting them all. We needed to know that all of those people would recognize her and bow to her if the time ever came for that. We all knew it, but it had still shocked us to see that she had done it with no warning or preamble. It had just taken us by surprise, that is all.
I guess this was just further proof she was becoming the Queen she was meant to be.
****
Riviana
****
The day after the incident, my family was acting mostly normal, though I could tell that they were a little nervous around me. I guess that’s what happens when you become a powerful Queen. It made me sad, but it was also unavoidable.
Chances are that as time moves on they would see me do a lot worse than what happened yesterday. At least I killed the man without making it bloody or disgusting. I think that, overall, I did really well.
Now though, we had the New Year’s ball to attend and then it was time to go home. After the attempted poisoning, Joaquin wanted to skip the ball altogether, but I told him that we needed to go. If only to show them all that they hadn’t scared me away.
If that man had not been working alone, I needed his accomplices to know that I was not too afraid to show myself in their midst. This would also come in handy when we needed to come back to take care of that threat that Danu told us about. They would always be slightly afraid of me, and that might be a good thing.
This time, Athair m贸r was at the ball. He hadn’t been at the other three balls so I found this a little surprising. Aunt Glory had been at all of them so that wasn’t a shock. The shock from her, however, was that she had asked that I be escorted to her side as soon as I got there and I was to not stray too far from her or her guards. I guess it didn’t matter that my entire group was there to protect me as well. I had more back up than usual right now.
Joaquin and I danced to a few songs, and for the first time at a ball here, I didn’t have men trying to dance with me. That doesn’t mean that they weren’t looking at me. Some were looking at me with lust in their eyes, others with fear. But I was still the center of their attention.
I didn’t care. I was there to dance with my husband and celebrate the new year with my family that was with us. This was my last night here at the Fae compound and I didn’t want to waste it at all.
The refreshments that were served were, of course, tested by Pierre. He was fully healed and ready to get back to his duties. He took them seriously and was proud to have saved his Queen’s life. He said that he would wear that memory like it was a badge of honor. Honestly, I wanted to give him a badge of honor.
I was glad that nothing at all happened and we were all able to enjoy the ball. At the end of the night, when the clock struck midnight, there was a light and water display that looked just like real fireworks. Athair m贸r and Aunt Glory had done an amazing job, and I was happy to have been included in the night.
The next day Roisin was scrambling as she searched the house for anything that we might have forgotten. She was so efficient and skilled that she had managed the house with all of us single handedly. She was amazing.
Juliet, my guard, was actually staying behind here in the compound. She was going to live with Breon now that they were mated. She felt awful for leaving, me but I told her it was the way that things needed to be.
While I was doing my best to convince her that I didn’t mind there was a knock on the door to the house. Roisin answered it swiftly and then bowed to her knees.
