The Rejected Werewolf Princess

RYKER'S POV

We were thankfully able to get out of the room before Marie and Peggy returned but we took the dolls with us. I held onto them because Camilla wanted nothing to do with it. There were four dolls in total and I was more annoyed by the fact that they were not easily identifiable. They all looked the same, there was no hair or any defining features to figure out who the dolls controlled. Whoever had taken their time to create them had done so in a way that even now, we couldnt pin them to it.

“Is it possible that they were planted?” Christine asked. She was out of the physician's quarters but her movements had been very limited.

Even now, it took a lot of convincing on her part to even let Juan consider letting her come to the council room. He wanted to always have a close eye on her. He was still worried that something was going to her and I couldn't help but wonder if one of the dolls was for her. I didn't want to jump to conclusions which was why I had said nothing.

“I don't think so,” it was Camilla who answered. She was seated next to me with her hands crossed over her chest. “They were hidden very well and we would never have found them if the entire room wasn't searched. Something very weird is going on and I have no idea what it is.”

“Any luck with Marie and Peggy?” Christine asked but she shook her head.

“Their stories still don't align and neither of them is willing to talk about it anymore. I can try but I don’t want to come on as pushy or they might suspect that something is up. I already told them that I was getting part of my memory back-"

There was silence all around the room and it felt good to know that I wasn’t the only one who thought it was absolutely absurd for her to tell them that without first weighing the pros and cons. No one spoke and I saw Camilla shift anxiously in her seat. It took a full minute of silence before Juan finally broke the silence.

“Did you just say that you told them you had gotten your memory back?” he sounded exasperated and slightly annoyed.

“I told them I was having flashes of memory,” she corrected. “I thought if I told them that, it would give me some insight and I would be able to figure something out. I thought it would put whoever is responsible on the spot and they would make a stupid mistake.”

“How is that working out for you?” Christine sassed. “You asked us to keep this as a secret and we did. Why would you suddenly go behind our backs and damn it all to hell? It doesn’t make any semse to me right now.”

“It might work in our favor,” I cut in. I didn’t agree with what she did but she was my mate and at the end of the day, was always going to defend her. “We have the dolls and they think her memory is coming back. This might be a good way to catch them in the act. They will be panicking and Marie will make a mistake. It was a spur of the moment decision but it was a brilliant one.”

No one said anything. I wasn't sure if they knew I was just defending her or if they truly believed me but no one questioned it. Christine just sighed and nodded. There was nothing more to be said after that.

“Everyone just keep an eye open,” Camilla said softly. “A cornered animal is bound to strike. We don't know who or what we are dealing with. We have to be careful. I don’t want anyone getting unnecessarily hurt”

With that warning, everyone stood to their feet and left to handle their own issues. Just because we had a dead woman on the loose did not mean that we were exempt from our duties at the palace. It was exhausting to say the least and there were days I couldn't help but crave the less hectic life I had as a simple Alpha. I didn’t have a lot of responsibilities, it was just me, my family and my pack. I didn’t have an entire kingdom to care for.

“I'm really sorry about that,” Camilla whispered making me turn to her. “I put you in a position where you had to defend me.”

“I defended you because I wanted to. You made a choice, you thought about it and you thought it was the right one. might not agree with it but I trust you and I trust that you will not do anything with the intention to hurt us. That is why I defended you.”

She sighed. “I think we are in way over our heads with this one. I don’t even know what to do next. How do we defeat someone who is already dead?”

“I don't know,” I admitted. “What we can do is focus on what we do know and take it from there.”

I reached out for her when I heard footsteps and we both stilled. I turned just in time to see Riley rounding the corner. I loved my sister but this was the worst time she could have picked for a visit. There was far too much going on at this point and what was worse was that she couldn't know about any of it. I planned to make a quick escape but she already saw me and I couldn't just leave knowing that she was headed straight for me.

“I'm sorry to interrupt,” she mumbled as soon as she got close to us. “Ryker, can I talk to you for a moment.”

My brows furrowed. “Is it important because-"

“Please,” she cut me off and there was a sense of urgency that led me to realize that she wasn’t joking. Camilla gave me a small squeeze on the shoulder before walking off leaving Riley and I alone. “I wanted to-"

“I think we should have this somewhere private,” I grabbed her by the hand and led her towards the private living room. It was the closest to us and there were guards permanently stationed outside to prevent eavesdroppers and people spying. “What is going on? Is everything okay?”

“I should be asking you that,” she snapped back. “Is Christine alright? I haven't heard anything about what happenec to her. No one tells me anything around here.”

“She is fine, she is still resting. You could have just asked.”

“Would you have told me if I did?”

It was at that moment I realized this wasn't about Christine. There was an accusing edge in her tone that led me to realize that this was more than I thought. I leaned back in the chair and watched her carefully. She had her hands crossed against her chest and she was too tense, too stoic. She didn’t come for a conversation, she came prepared for a potential argument and the honest truth was that I was far too tired to engage in an argument with anyone. “Tell me what the problem is, Riley,” I sighed. “I cannot read your mind. I don’t know what you are thinking. Something is upsetting you and unless you tell me exactly what it is then I cannot help you.”

“Do you even want me here?” she asked finally. “It feels like I have been avoided by everyone since I came here. I understand Christine because of everything that happened with Damien but even you and Camilla barely look at me Did I do something wrong by choosing Damien? Is that what this is about? Do you want me to call things off?” “Stop,” I cut her off and she fell silent. “This isn’t about you or Damien and no one is avoiding you. You came at the wrong time, Riley.”

“What does that mean?”

“I cannot explain what that means but there is a lot going on right now that requires our attention. No one is avoiding you because we barely even have time to keep our own heads above the water. Look, I love having you here the girls love having you here and so does Camilla. I apologize if it feels like we are avoiding you-"

“Is it Christine?” she asked and I fell silent. “Is it because she is pregnant?”

“What are you-"

“I'm not blind, Ryker,” she snorted. “Besides, if she doesn’t want people to know, she should try hiding her scent because it is changing. If my presence is making her uncomfortable-"

“Your presence is not making anyone uncomfortable,” I knew nothing I would say would have worked when she frowned. I knew I was going to regret my next words but I still found myself saying them anyway. “We can do something tomorrow, all of us. Would that make you feel better?”

She nodded, “I just want us to put the past behind us. Damien is going to be a part of the family and I wouldn't want things to be uncomfortable.”

“I will talk to the others and see what I can do.”

That seemed to be all she wanted because she smiled wide and after a bone crushing hug, she skipped out of the room leaving me to wonder just how I was going to tell the others that I had just signed them up for something that was going to potentially take our attention off the life threatening crisis that was the dead woman walking.

I stood to my feet and prepared to leave when I heard a throat clear behind me. While leaving, Riley had left the doo open and Marie stood in the doorway. The guards were not letting her in but it didn't seem like she had any intentions to come in at all.

“Can I help you?” I asked and she nodded but when she opened her mouth to speak, no words would come out. “Marie, are you alright?”

She stood there for a full minute before shaking her head finally. “It is nothing, I apologize for wasting your time. Please, excuse me.”