Blood of the Wolf: The Crown (Mackenzie Grey Book 11), Karina Espinosa [top 10 ebook reader txt] 📗

we stopped walking halfway through the field. Our guards encircled us. Bash turned to face me and held my hands. “We’ve come up with a solution, but you may not like it.”

“Who is we?” I said tentatively.

“Jackson and I.”

I relaxed a little. It couldn’t be too bad. They knew how much Ollie meant to me. They wouldn’t do anything that would put him in harm’s way.

“Well … what is it?” I asked.

“You know how Jack needs a beta, right?” I nodded slowly. “Well, he’s thinking about promoting Mohammad for the position, which leaves a captain position open.”

He paused and I raised a brow. “Okay?”

Bash squeezed my hands. “We’re going to recommend that Oliver go for the captain position.” I tried to jerk my hands away but he wouldn’t let me go. “Listen to me, Mackenzie! If Oliver is a captain in a pack, the alpha of that pack must approve the transfer first, which would leave the initial decision in Jackson’s hands. He won’t approve it, so it would never make it to you. You won’t have to do anything.”

Horrified, I realized if Ollie tried for a captain position, he would have to fight another pack member for it, potentially to the death. I snatched my hands away from him. “Are you insane, Bash? You saw everything Sterling had to go through! Ollie is still too new! He doesn’t understand everything yet. We can’t just throw him into that sort of initiation!”

Bash’s face tightened. “He’s going to have to learn someday, Mackenzie. You can’t protect him from everything forever. Let him learn. He’s not a little kid anymore.”

I paced in a small circle. Could I do that to Ollie? Even if he fought, it wasn’t guaranteed he would gain the position. He could lose and all of this would be for nothing. Not to mention Ollie could be seriously hurt.

I ran my hands over my face and then through my hair. This wasn’t the solution I was hoping for, but Bash was right. I couldn’t keep Ollie locked in a glass house forever. This may not have been how I wanted him to learn, but he wasn’t helpless. Ollie was strong, and a born fighter. He could do this.

I sighed loudly. “Fine. Do it. But you know this isn’t a guaranteed solution. He could still lose and then be shipped off to the Toronto Pack.”

Bash nodded. “We know. But have a little faith in your brother.”

I chuckled. “Right.”

He reached for my hand. “This will work, Mackenzie. I promise.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep.” I eyed him and looked away. “So where are we going?”

“Do you want to ride Shadow for a bit?”

I shook my head. “It’s probably best if I stay out of the forest.”

Bash grinned. “Aww, you’re learning to think things through.”

I rolled my eyes. “Don’t look too excited.” I bit my lip to keep from smiling when suddenly all our heads snapped in the direction of the forest at the sound of multiple feet running toward us at high speed.

“Protect the Queen!” William yelled. All the guards surrounded me and Bash pushed me behind him.

The guards went into a half shift and we waited with bated breaths for the incoming threats. I spotted her first when she popped out of the brush. Her hair dreaded with beads, clothed in animal skin, spear in hand and barefoot, Ailios led the Highlanders onto castle grounds.

“Stand down!” I commanded the guards, pushing past them to greet the Highlanders.

“Yer Majesty,” Ailios greeted as she bowed before me. She was caked in dried blood, as were the others in her small party. They looked as if they’d just returned from battle.

I offered her my arm in greeting and she took it. “I hope you’ve all been well, Ailios.”

“We haven’t lost anyone, thankfully. Some injured—”

“We’ll take care of them,” I offered. “Any news?”

She nodded.

“Let’s speak inside.” I turned to my guards. “Escort the injured Highlanders to Tavish for treatment and show the rest to their accommodations.”

“Aye,” the guards responded without hesitation and did as they were told. The Highlanders followed them, leaving me with Ailios, Bash, and William.

“Let’s gather the Council and speak in the council room.” I led the way back to the castle, anxious to hear the latest news.

We were the first to arrive at the council room, taking our seats as we waited for the rest of the Council members to arrive. I made sure they didn’t alert the Summits to the Highlanders’ arrival.

Once everyone arrived and was situated in their seats, I cleared my throat and started to speak. “Thank you all for arriving on such short notice—”

“Ye should be on bedrest, darling,” Alexander interrupted me.

I smiled softly at him. “I know, but some things are too important.” I motioned toward Ailios. “For those who may not know, this is Ailios, the leader of the Highlanders. They are a group of lunas who live in the highlands of Scotland.”

From the looks of some of those who weren’t from Sheunta Village, I could tell they were confused and wondering if they were lone wolves or not. The idea was confusing since the Highlanders were a pack that wasn’t officially sanctioned by the Summits, which meant they were technically rogue.

“I meant to ask Ailios a while back, but unfortunately her people were attacked by Abaddon and I didn’t feel like it was the right time.” I turned my attention to Ailios. “I was hoping to invite you to join the Queen’s Council as a voice for the Highlanders.”

The warrior luna looked a bit taken aback but she quickly nodded and bowed in her seat. “It’d be my honor, Yer Majesty.”

“Good.” I grinned. “But aside from that, Ailios is also here with news about what’s going on in the highlands. So I’ll pass it to you to fill us in.”

She cleared her throat and leaned forward, looking completely out of place compared to the rest of us. “The same one who attacked us visited our campsite two nights ago. We’d been