Chapter 13: Meeting.

I barely slept last night, but I was determined to make today a little bit better. I couldn’t let this mate situation distract me more than it already had. I didn’t just have to face Ezra because his nightmare is just about to begin but I also had to have a meet the other Alphas. I wasn't sure I’d even be able to stand in his presence without reacting, so I made up my mind to avoid him, at least until I'm ready to face him. But that was easier said than done. "The Alpha King called an emergency meeting," Terence said as soon as I let him into my room the next morning. I frowned, adjusting the collar of my jacket. "What is it about?" "New information about the hybrids," he said. I sucked in a breath. I wasn't sure it was a good idea for me to go anywhere near Alexander right now, especially with my wolf acting so restless and excited inside me, but I didn't have a choice in the matter. I was already dressed, and the meeting was commencing any minute now. So Terence and I made our way down the wide marble hallways toward the royal meeting room. These old, traditional men were going to have no choice but to respect me, even though I knew most of them were misogynistic and had a hard time treating a woman with any real respect. "Do we have problems with the other Alphas?" I asked Terence, who was walking right by my side. "I mean, there has been chatter about what happened yesterday," Terence murmured, looking at his phone. "But other than that, everybody is pretty much looking forward to understanding you and getting to know how Silver-Falls works. And apparently, Alpha Ezra is digging into you and your past." A smirk touched my lips. "We already expected that to happen. Make sure nobody hides anything from him. I want him to know everything I've become, and I want him to fear me." "Of course," Terence nodded. "Your Uncle Marcus is also very worried about you after hearing about last night." "My uncle is always worried about me, so that doesn't surprise me," I sighed, shaking my head. "I'm guessing you told him what happened last night?" "Well, I would've told him if I understood it myself, but you refused to talk about it, so I don't know what happened," he admitted. I appreciated his honesty, because I know my uncle uses all of them as spies to spy on me. He called it taking care of me, but I called it not trusting me. However, I did understand that he only did it because he loved me and worried about my safety. I could already feel my wolf's excitement as we were drawing closer and closer to the meeting room. It was making me more and more nervous, but I had no choice but to suck it in and keep my head high. We stepped into the massive council chamber. Dozens of powerful Alphas from across the territory were already seated around a grand oval table. To my absolute horror, everybody was allocated their seat and my seat happened to be placed directly at the right hand of the Alpha King. I know he did it on purpose. Especially with the way he was looking at me when I walked in. Alexander was already sitting at the head of the table, looking broad, powerful, and dangerous in his suit. His piercing blue eyes locked on me the second I entered, burning with a deep, heavy possessiveness that made the air in the room freeze. You couldn't hide that kind of energy from people, because everybody in the room could feel the suffocating tension in the air. I walked over and pulled out my chair, sitting down with perfect composure. Across the table, Alpha Ezra was staring at me. His face was pale, but his eyes were filled with a sick mixture of shock, anger, and longing. I completely ignored him, but I could feel his burning gaze on my skin like poison. "You certainly kept us waiting, Alpha Maya," one of the Alphas sneered, trying to break the quiet chatter in the room. Before I could even reply, Alexander did. "I think she has more right to arrive late than you do, considering that your pack is doing nothing but failing," he said, his voice deep, harsh, and cutting through the room like a sharp knife. I finally faced the Alpha who had talked, and it was none other than Alpha Darius, whose pack was a complete joke in our region. But I certainly didn't need Alexander defending me like I couldn't handle myself. "While I appreciate the need for you to think that you have any right speaking in my defense, my King, I however find it quite disrespectful and demeaning," I said, turning to face Alexander directly with a cold smile. "Because I don't think you would've done the same for any other Alpha in the room." A collective gasp echoed around the massive table. Nobody talked back to the Alpha King like that. Terence held his breath beside me. I waited for Alexander to snap or get angry, but he didn't give me the reaction I was going for. Instead, a slow smile spread on his handsome face. He gave me a smile like he was thoroughly impressed with me, his eyes gleaming with pride. "Now that everybody is here, let's commence the meeting" he said, taking total control of the room once again. Alexander slowly stood up from his leather chair at the head of the table. As he stood to his full height, he unleashed a heavy wave of his royal Alpha command across the room and a suffocating, crushing pressure slammed down onto everyone sitting at the table. Alphas instantly dropped their heads, their eyes forced down toward the table as they gasped for air under their King's terrifying power. I pride to hold my ground but it was hard and my heart was hammering at the sheer display of force. He rested his hands on the table, his eyes sweeping over the bowed heads of the most powerful leaders in the world. "Late last night, another hybrid assassin was captured on our northern border" he announced. "I personally interrogated him in my dungeons before snapping his neck." An uncomfortable murmur broke out among the Alphas. "This hybrid problem no longer just hybrids trying to be something that they are not" Alexander continued, his tone dropping to a lethal, freezing edge. "It's an organized army. And according to the creature before he died, they are getting help from the inside." Silence fell over the entire room. "High-ranking wolves within our own borders are giving route maps, weapons, and secrets to these monsters" Alexander growled, his anger was so terrifying that the crystal chandelier above us rattled. "So let me make one thing crystal clear to every single leader in this room." He leaned forward, his glare falling on everyone. "If I find out that anyone in this room or anyone in your packs is working with the hybrids, I will not hold a trial. I will not accept apologies. I will drag you out, tear your skin from your bones, and kill every traitor personally. There will be zero mercy." The raw power rolling off him was so intense that several Alphas trembled, nodding frantically in submission. He then turned his head, his glowing blue eyes dropping straight onto me. The scary monster that had just terrified all of these grown Alphas vanished, replaced by an intensely protective, possessive mate who looked at me like I was the only person in the world that mattered.