Chapter 416
They knew what Gerald had done to him and there were whispers here and there about his infertility because Iris had not yet conceived.
Moreover, Cane didn’t need to explain where he had gone that night, the very night he was supposed to spend with Sofia.
Jace knew that Cane also noticed, by keeping Sofia close and not revealing the fact that the baby was not his would put Iris in a difficult and uncomfortable situation. In addition, with this, they could buy some time for themselves to strengthen their stronghold before everything went down.
Because if the Alpha’s infertility was exposed, the King would see it as a chance; as there would be no reason to let Cane be the Alpha of the pack anymore, since that was the same reason Cane used to drag down Mason from stepping up to the Alpha’s position, pinpointing he couldn’t have an heir of his own. That was how important an heir was for someone like him.
It was not the right time yet. They were not strong enough to wage a war against the royals. The forces they assembled thus far were not enough.
At the very least, that was how Jace saw the situation.
“Where is my mate?” Cane asked, as he walked toward the pack house with Jace following behind him.
“I think she must be in the kitchen, overlooking the making of the dishes that will be served for the King later.” Jace didn’t know Iris’ schedule to the smallest detail, but from what he learned, since Cane would often ask about her, she must be there right now.
Cane nodded and walked into the pack house.
Needless to say, the Beta could guess where he would go, but the sight when they just arrived there, simply made Jace’s blood run cold. Three omegas were confronting Iris.
The three of them were the help in the kitchen. Jace knew them quite well, as he used to come to the kitchen and ask for food in the middle of the night, since his work did not allow him to sleep peacefully.
“Luna Iris, it is not fair for you to exclude lady Sofia from the dinner with the King.” Aira looked at Iris with a frown, as she dared enough to talk to the Luna with such an attitude.
“She can come if she wants.” Iris’ reply sounded unbothered, she looked at them one by one. Her blue eyes were slightly dim. “I never objected to her coming.”
“But, the dinner is so late, you know lady Sofia will be asleep by that time,” the other omega chimed in.
Because of her pregnancy, Sofia started to sleep very early, that was why she had not bumped into Cane during dinner. And during breakfast, she didn’t dare to pull the same trick as before after seeing how scary the Alpha could be. Moreover, Cane preferred to have his breakfast delivered to his bedroom, so he could have a quiet breakfast with his mate.
Iris looked so aloof when she explained this, as if she was reading a book. “The King usually has dinner around that time.”
“How do you know that?” Aira didn’t look satisfied with the explanation.
“Because I have had dinner with the King a few times.” Iris didn’t show any emotions and she answered their questions one by one with composed detachment. This was akin to an interrogation if one could say.
“But…”
“Do you want me to ask the King to adjust his schedule for Lady Sofia?” Iris tilted her head. “That sounds a little bit arrogant.”
Meanwhile, outside of the kitchen, Jace stared at Cane. He couldn’t tell what was running in his mind while overhearing this conversation, but he knew the Alpha didn’t appreciate the way those omegas spoke to his mate.
The Beta had finally come to terms with the importance of Iris in Cane’s heart. It was not just on the surface, as Cane truly cared about her.
“Don’t you want to intervene?” Jace asked Cane, but the Alpha didn’t budge. He just kept listening.
Actually, this quiet Cane was pretty intimidating and rather scary.
“That’s not what we want to say,” Aira said immediately, then she scoffed. “Jill is right, you always put words in someone else’s mouth. You know I don’t mean it that way.”
But, before they could argue even more, their bodies stiffened, as they turned around out of instinct after feeling a strong presence. Their hearts thumped wildly inside their chests to see the Alpha standing not too far from them. The doorway framed his figure perfectly, as his dark eyes fell on them.
He walked into the kitchen and the atmosphere became tense.
“Any problem here?” Cane asked, he kissed Iris’ forehead and could feel how tense his mate was. She was clearly holding back her emotions.
“No, not really, Alpha.” Aira shook her head, followed by the other two girls. They were trying to find a way to escape, as they resigned themselves.
“Did I allow you to leave?” Cane asked. He didn’t raise his voice, but his tone dripped with so much coldness.
Their bodies stiffened hearing the question, as they immediately lowered their heads.
Cane pulled out a chair for Iris and told her to sit down, but then he mouthed to her. ’Need help?’ This time, Iris lowered her head and stared at her fingers. She didn’t answer him.
Cane had asked the same question several times before, but she would always reply with a firm ’no’, yet it hurt her to see how she couldn’t handle the situation the way she wanted.
Not only did they not accept her, they didn’t even try to warm up to her on the surface. The only thing they needed to do was be polite to her, since she was the Luna, yet they couldn’t do that. If anything, they became a little bit rude to her.
“Call all the omegas who work in the kitchen. Maria especially,” Cane ordered Jace, who immediately gathered all the people Cane wanted.
Meanwhile, Iris sat on the chair with Cane standing behind her as he placed his hands on her shoulders. He looked at the three omegas callously and then went to brew a pot of tea for himself.
When one of them tried to help, Cane glanced at her sharply, which made her stop in her tracks as she immediately lowered her head and fell beside the other omegas.
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