Alpha's Regret: Marked By The Lycan King

Chapter 135: Chapter 135: Unwelcome Escort

Estelle’s POV

Josephine sighed deeply, setting down her fork with a gentle clink against the fine china. “Zayne is completely swamped with work these days. Between managing lycan territory and handling deals and relations with the werewolf packs, there’s far too much on his plate.”

I nodded, understanding the weight of leadership all too well from my own experience with pack management.

“He’s always been a careful man,” Josephine continued, her electric blue eyes reflecting a mixture of pride and concern. “After his difficult childhood, he doesn’t trust others easily. He has this terrible tendency to shoulder everything on his own.”

My chest tightened with worry. “Does he skip meals often then?”

“He’ll sometimes come down to have a bite or two with me,” she admitted, “but these days, it’s been more and more difficult. Especially right now.”

I leaned forward slightly. “Could I try asking him down to dinner? How is his body able to sustain itself if he works like this?”

Josephine shook her head with a soft laugh. “I’m afraid he isn’t even in the palace right now, dear. He’s currently in Spirefalls.”

Spirefalls. I knew that name. It was a small border town at the very edge of lycan territory, remote and often forgotten by most.

“He’s handling some unrest there,” Josephine explained, her expression growing serious. “There have been riots recently, and he needs to make sure the townsfolk are appeased. There’s been rogue activity on that side of the borders too. He doesn’t want the rogues to exploit this weakness and break through our defenses.”

She paused, swirling the wine in her glass thoughtfully. “It may be just a small border town, but these things can snowball into much bigger catastrophes if left unchecked.”

I felt my face scrunch with conflict. Every fiber of my being wanted to go see him. However, I was currently Josephine’s guest. Without Zayne around, she was probably feeling lonely and wanted some company. It would be incredibly rude to just leave.

Josephine, however, seemed to read my internal struggle like an open book. She laughed warmly. “If you want to see Zayne, you can leave right now, dear. I understand what it’s like to yearn for a mate.”

Heat rushed to my cheeks. Josephine clearly thought Zayne and I were fated mates. I didn’t have the heart to correct her assumption, even though our situation was far more complicated than that.

“However,” she continued, her tone becoming more cautious, “Spirefalls is currently a dangerous place to be. Zayne probably won’t want to see you there, fearing you might get injured.”

I straightened my shoulders. “I’m not scared.”

A knowing smile spread across Josephine’s elegant features. “I figured you’d say that.” She dabbed at her lips with her napkin. “I can arrange for the royal family’s helicopter to take you there. Otherwise, it would be a long and dangerous drive. That’s the same transportation Zayne took to meet with the warriors at Spirefalls.”

Gratitude flooded through me. “Thank you so much.”

“One condition, though,” Josephine held up a finger, her expression becoming stern. “You finish your food first. You need to be well-fed and rested if you want to be of any help. Otherwise, you’ll just be putting yourself and Zayne in danger.”

I nodded eagerly and attacked my dinner with renewed gusto, practically inhaling the roasted chicken and vegetables.

***

The helicopter ride to Spirefalls took roughly two hours. The landscape below gradually shifted from the manicured grounds of the palace to wild, untamed territory. As we approached the landing zone, I could see smoke rising from several points in the distance.

The helicopter touched down in what appeared to be a cleared field on the outskirts of town. A small team of warriors was already waiting for me—three men and one woman.

The leader stepped forward as I climbed out of the helicopter. He was a tall man with dark hair and a cocky swagger in his step.

“I’m Clyde,” he said, though his tone lacked any warmth or respect. His eyes scanned me up and down before he sneered openly. “I’m here to escort you to the camp.”

Behind him, I caught snippets of conversation from the other warriors.

“I don’t understand why such a weak and fragile woman is here,” one of them muttered.

“She’s just going to cause more trouble than she’s worth,” another added with a shake of his head.

Clyde didn’t say anything to correct them, but from the look on his face, it was clear he agreed completely with their assessment.

“We will be headed to a military camp,” Clyde said flippantly, turning back to me. “It doesn’t have the luxuries that werewolf Lunas such as yourself are used to. Hope you can handle roughing it.”

“I expected as much,” I replied evenly, keeping my voice steady despite the obvious disrespect.

Clyde scoffed and turned away. “Follow me then. Try to keep up.”

As we walked toward their vehicle—a rugged military truck—I observed the group more carefully. The woman stayed silent but watched me with calculating eyes. The two other men continued their whispered commentary about my presence.

None of them had bothered to introduce themselves beyond Clyde. They treated me like an unwelcome burden rather than someone they were supposed to protect and escort.

I climbed into the back of the truck, settling onto the hard metal bench. The ride to the base camp would take about half an hour, according to what I’d overheard.

As the truck rumbled to life and we began moving through the rough terrain, I couldn’t help but think to myself that these people clearly didn’t respect me at all.