Chapter 218: Chapter 218 Silver Chains Accepted
"What do you mean with that?!" Alpha Sterling’s voice cracked with insult.
The silver bracelet represented nothing but criminality - a restraint that prevented shifting into beast form. Wearing one was pure humiliation.
Reginald dragged Royal Beta Allen aside, hissing viciously. "What’s this about? You never mentioned any silver bracelet."
Allen’s innocent expression fooled no one. "I had no idea. Alpha Murphy demanded this condition."
They’d landed in Whitestone pack territory, under Alpha Murphy’s jurisdiction. He had every right to make such demands.
"I couldn’t tell you because I didn’t know either. Deceiving you was never my intention. We’ve been through too much together - I trust you."
Allen’s hand on Reginald’s shoulder made the latter want to recoil, but he restrained himself.
"But they don’t trust you. They only know you’re from the Mya Kingdom - the kingdom that’s been slaughtering us. Of course there’s a trust issue."
"You should have convinced them!" Reginald’s anger flared. Exhausted and annoyed, now he faced treatment like a criminal. He wanted to strangle the old man, but that would bring consequences worse than any silver bracelet.
"I tried. You saw how long I talked with them. They wouldn’t budge - they follow their alpha’s orders."
"You’re the royal beta. Your word should outweigh their alpha’s."
Allen shook his head. "That’s not how things work here. Pack territory remains the alpha’s domain." His gaze shifted to the anxious warriors behind Reginald. "I promised to bring you and your warriors safely to the Valerium Kingdom, and I’ve done it. I’ve fulfilled my promise. Whether you accept these conditions is your choice."
Reginald’s fury burned. His pride couldn’t stomach being chained with silver - it stripped away his dignity.
But what choice did he have?
"If you can’t accept this, you can return to your kingdom. The boat’s still there, but Fiona stays." Allen’s eyes fell on Fiona, then traced down to her stomach. "She’s carrying my child."
"You won’t keep her," Reginald hissed without thinking.
"No disrespect intended, but you can’t take her either." Allen glanced at the warriors behind him.
If Reginald insisted on taking Fiona, bloodshed would follow. Either way, Reginald would lose. They’d be slaughtered easily.
The warriors with him had lost hope. They moved only on survival instinct, but against Whitestone pack warriors, they stood no chance.
They were tired, hungry, and consumed by grief.
"I’ve done my best. The final decision rests with you," Allen said, softening his tone to placate Reginald. "Think of the people with you. Fighting is pointless. They only want the silver bracelet to ensure their safety against strangers from enemy territory. You must understand this. Once you pledge loyalty to our king, you’ll regain your freedom."
Reginald didn’t need to contemplate. The decision was obvious. He’d accept this humiliation to preserve their lives.
"Fine." Reginald ground his teeth in hatred.
"Good." Allen patted his shoulder. "Now, you’ll talk to your warriors and I’ll talk to mine. Keep them calm and level-headed. That’s the last thing we need."
---
Phoebe’s POV
I felt utterly depressed with nothing to occupy my time here. Time had passed, and boredom consumed my mind.
Even though Justin shared war updates with me, it wasn’t enough to curb my restless feelings. I missed Perry desperately.
Now pregnancy was taking its toll, bringing morning sickness that none of the three warriors understood.
"You look pale, are you okay my queen?" Justin asked one morning as he accompanied me to feed the wild wolves.
This was the only activity I anticipated each day.
After I returned the pup to the pack, days later it came back to the house, but this time with a bigger wolf.
I would feed them, and they began visiting regularly. Sometimes some simply played around the house, guarding it every night.
The warriors sensed their presence and while grateful, they remained worried.
No matter what, these were still wild animals.
Their concern grew because I took initiative to get close to them. They feared the wolves might snap and accidentally harm me.
But nothing like that happened, and Justin started lowering his guard. At this point, these wolves resembled guard dogs more than anything.
"Should I call Marcela to come check your condition?" Justin asked while I played with three pups, two adult wolves sitting nearby.
Justin kept glancing at the adult wolves.
’Can you do that?’ I thought we weren’t allowed to contact anyone in the palace, since my location was secret.
"We can sneak her out of the palace," Justin said, though he seemed to contemplate his answer. "I think it’ll be fine..."
Excitement filled me at the prospect of seeing Marcela. ’Yes, please.’
The last time we met, we parted on bad terms. I kept thinking about that, feeling terrible.
With that, I felt better for the rest of the day.
Marcela would arrive in the morning.
"You look happy today, my queen," Wade observed. He’d noticed too - I’d been feeling down the past few days.
"Tomorrow Orion will return to the palace to pick up Marcela. You’ll cover his shift," Justin told Wade.
"Is the queen sick?"
I shook my head and wrote my answer. [I only feel a little off. Besides, I miss Marcela too. It’s been a while since I talked with her.]
"Oh..."
The rest of dinner proceeded as usual. Wade dominated conversation, telling stories about how amazing he found Gamma Timothy.
"I feel like I’ll become Timothy’s fan just from hearing you talk about him constantly." Justin shuddered.
"Stop that."
Wade pursed his lips, looking like an insolent child.
Despite this, I’d learned Wade was actually the best warrior in his year. He could be quite scary when serious.
The thing was - he rarely got serious. He looked like a curious child in my eyes.
Later when night came, I couldn’t fall asleep. I kept tossing and turning in bed, my stomach feeling bloated with discomfort in my throat.
Therefore, only when morning approached could I close my eyes and get some sleep before Marcela’s presence woke me.
I felt warmth from my hand, and when my mind cleared slightly, I realized someone was holding it.
I opened my eyes to find Marcela there, holding my hand while infusing her healing ability into me. The healer looked worried.
"How are you feeling, Phoebe?"
I didn’t miss the concern in Marcela’s voice, and I missed this healer so badly. I immediately sat up and hugged her.
I wanted to tell her how sorry I was for overreacting the other day.
"Phoebe, tell me how you’re feeling." Marcela pushed me back slightly to see my complexion. "I’ve been worried sick when you left and I don’t know where to find you. I need to check your condition regularly."
Marcela had already checked on me, so she knew I was still pregnant.
’I’m sorry,’ I mouthed. ’I’m sorry for being angry with you.’
Marcela sighed and hugged me. "I don’t take it to heart, but there’s something important I want to tell you."
