Chapter 21: Answers better left Alone

**Coal**

I scrunched my nose, and a low growl came from my chest. I didn't want them to know the answer. I didn't want them to know Kai wants my mate. I didn't want them to know that he was going to try and steal her from me.

My mate sighed, and looked over to Zander's daughter. She leaned back in her chair, and glanced at me, "should I tell them?" She asked me.

I furrowed my brows, shaking my head, "no."

She nodded, "I apologize, but that information is going to stay between my pack and his Majesty," she smiled apologetically at Alpha Zander's daughter.

The daughter huffed, "so you have the King's support, and are asking for ours, when you won't even explain why you need guards on your person?"

My mate shook her head, "I am not asking for your support of me as an individual, nor is Alpha Shawn. We are asking for support of our pack in a fair exchange of goods for labor or labor for labor.

The daughter rolled her eyes and looked at me, "this is a ridiculous offer. You must see that your Majesty. She has brought problems onto her pack and instead of facing them herself she has opted to let others fight for her--"

I growled at the young woman, shaking my head curtly, "I will *not* hear you blaming Second Raegan for Alpha Kai's actions. She has not brought problems to her pack, Alpha Kai has. She has every right to request aid, from both crown and country."

"She's going to suck the kingdom dry--" The yong woman started.

"Would you rather I kill him?" Raegan asked plainly, her eyes trained on the young woman.

"Wh-- what?"

"I asked if you would rather I kill Alpha Kai. The former Prince and heir to the throne. Because if you don't want to aid in protecting my pack, and if you insist this is a problem I, as an individual, can fix, then by all means I'll *fix* it."

"You can't just kill the Prince--" Zander's daughter seemed taken aback, but before she even finished her sentence Raegan let out a growl that rumbled the room.

"*Former* Prince. He has no title here anymore, and he certainly has no respect here anymore. Not from those of us who know where to place our bets if we wish to win," Raegan snarled at her, "it's begining to become clear to me that more of you Alphas that claim to support his Majesty King Nicholas are treading dangerous waters boarding on treasonous. You wish for the primary enemy of the crown to have a fiancee who never wanted him returned to him? And vouch for his claim over her and refer to him still as a present Prince?" She shook her head, "perhaps there are more traitors in this room than meets the eye."

"*Raegan,*" I shook my head once at her, warning her to proceed with caution.

"Pardon, your Majesty. I wasn't aware that you are comfortable in this den of vipers. I mean," she laughed humorlessly, "I knew you were a bunch of wolves, but I thought wolves had loyalty to the strongest of their kind." She looked at each Alpha individually, "it seems now that I was wrong."

"Raegan," I repeated, narrowing my eyes at her.

She rolled her eyes, and glared at me.

Alpha Renald cleared his throat, "let us set this matter aside for the day, and discuss trade once more, yes?" He looked around the table.

I nodded, and thanked him before he turned to my mate.

He smiled at her in a way that had my wolf pissed, but I shut him up internally so that I could think while surrounded by as many powerful wolves as I currently was.

"Red Waters will pledge wolves in exchange for wheat and an alliance to try and make more of our unmated wolves happy." He said as he looked between Raegan and Shawn.

"What kind of alliance?" Shawn asked, leaning forward towards him, entirely interested.

"A yearly gathering of two packs, alternating which one we go to between years. All wolves in the pack are invited but its main purpose would be to let unmated wolves find their destined or second chance," Renald looked proud of his proposal.

Shawn smiled a little, and she and Raegan's eyes both fogged over. Then when they cleared, they both nodded their heads at him.

"We'll get the paperwork drawn up to sign by the end of the week," Shawn said.

Renald grinned ear to ear and leaned back in his chair looking quite like the cat who got the cream.

That got the room buzzing. Proposals for events like that started to fly around the room and Alphas from all places on the globe struck deals with one another.

I sat back and listened as they conversed, not needing to take part in it as more than a mediator.

I glanced at Raegan every now and again, looking for any sign of discomfort at the way some of the way the wolves around us were looking at her, but she didn't even seem to notice that they were looking at her.

"This is going well," Hannah said to me quietly.

I nodded.

"Cassian looks stoked to be on Stone Moon's good side," she chuckled.

Cassian had been seated directly across from Shawn and Raegan and he had gotten animated about the trade that they were going to set up between their two packs, despite his pack being located in Quebec and their's being located in Washington.

I smiled at the sight of Raegan getting along so well with Cass, Watson, and Finn.

Finn had shown up last night, flying in just for the actual event of the conference. He didn't want to be here earlier because, and I quote, "I'm not into watching a massive orgy full of wolves and bloodsuckers at my brother's behest."

He was smirking as Raegan and Cassian spoke to one another, exchanging curious glances with Shawn.

"Is Canada pretty?" Raegan asked, leaning forward towards Cass.

He nodded, his smile going wider, "it is. The snow isn't so bad either, not for us at least," he winked at her, "and Summers don't get nearly as hot as they do for you West Coast-ians."

"Washington *hardly* get's hot in the Summer," Raegan rolled her eyes, "you really want to feel the Sun on your skin during Summer you've gotta go further South."

"Texas is warm year round, but those Summer months are a different kind of heat," Alpha Grace clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth.

Shawn nodded her head, "California heat has nothing on Texas heat."

"That's so Texas of you to say," Raegan grinned at her Pack Alpha.

Shawn smiled.

"I don't know how the packs on the Southern part of the continent do it," Cassian shook his head, looking from Grace to Raegan. "Constant heat? Goddess, you'd have to get me half-dead to be able to withstand that shit."

Grace shrugged, "it's better than the snow."

"What color is your wolf, if you don't mind me asking that is," Raegan leaned around Shawn to look at Grace.

Grace beamed, "light brown. My pack ranges from blond fur to light brown fur. Think sandy colors."

Raegan grinned, "we're gray up in Washington. Shawn here has the darkest fur out of everyone in our pack aside from my brother. He's got black fur with gray paws."

"What color is your fur?" Grace furrowed her brows.

Raegan stilled, "uhm, I, actually, don't, uh, know."

"You don't know?" Grace chuckled, like she thought Raegan was joking.

Raegan shook her head, "I can't see the color of the big guy's fur up here," she tapped her temple.

"Haven't you seen your reflection in water or something? No one's ever given you a mirror?" Finn asked, suddenly fixated on Raegan with rapt attention.

Raegan leaned back in her seat, and shrugged, but didn't offer anything verbal. Cris took her hand in his, and Cassian growled at him, exposing his canines.

Cris looked at Cassian with a small smirk. I took in a deep breath, and tried not to let Cris' disrespect get to me.

Raegan removed her hand from Cris' shooting him a warning glare as she folded her hands in her lap.

Grace's eyebrows were raised high as she watched this interaction, and I realized Alpha Renald was paying attention to them too.

I swallowed the growing lump in my throat, and leaned back in my chair to try and look detatched from that conversation.

"Raegan is incredibly secretive about her wolf," Shawn offered to Grace with a sheepish smile, "she's got a thing about only letting the right people see her fur or know about it."

"Is she a white wolf?" Finn asked softly, looking between me and Raegan.

Shawn winked at him, "if you're lucky, she'll tell you if she is or not."

Raegan took Shawn's hand in her own, and I watched the tendons in her forearm pulse as she squeezed her friend's hand to comfort herself.

I wanted to be the one beside her comforting her, but I wasn't sure what I would be comforting her for. I didn't know *why* she wasn't comfortable discussing her wolf. Usually it's the pride of a were. The coat of your wolf side was something we all had a distinct need to share. If she were a white wolf, she wouldn't be hiding it. That was the greatest gift the Moon Goddess could give one of her children. White fur showed her favor of you, and we didn't have a white wolf in this generation. If we did, the entire Kingdom would know, and they would be fought for or under protection of the crown.

It had to be something else, unless... unless she didn't know what her wolf looked like. You can't see the color of their fur in your headspace. Not before the shift. If she'd never shifted she wouldn't know. My heart dropped into my stomach as the realization started to settle in my chest.