Queen of the Lycan, Karina Espinosa [accelerated reader books .TXT] 📗

won’t deny that, and I’m not ashamed of it, either. Those traits are what’s going to help me lead the Lycan. But I’ll tell you right now, my origins in the human world have nothing to do with me wanting to free the lunas. Freeing the lunas is morally correct. It’s right. They weren’t put on this earth solely for your pleasure. They’re not there for you to order around to clean and breed when you please. And if you can’t see what’s wrong with that, then maybe you shouldn’t be Alpha of your region. As a matter of fact, you shouldn’t be an alpha at all.” I stared at each and every one of them, making sure to make eye contact with every person sitting in the room.

Their shocked gasps were audible, and I knew what they were thinking. They were considering the fact that I could replace them just as easily as I replaced the King’s Council. Now, changing the Summit membership would be a bit trickier than the Council was, not to mention a far bigger headache, but if I had to do it, I would. For the sake of the lunas.

“You can’t replace us,” Lucas said slowly as if he couldn’t quite believe I could insinuate such a thing.

I turned to him and smiled. “Watch me.”

“This is ridiculous!” Charles shouted, jumping from his seat. “You got rid of the King’s Council, and now you’re going to get rid of the Summits? Are you on a power trip?”

I grinned at my arch nemesis. “Ah, Charles Cadwell, my favorite alpha,” I joked. “Am I on a power trip?” I shook my head. “No. But I will take out the trash. The Queen’s Council is supposed to be filled with her most trusted advisors. Since I didn’t trust any of them, I was well within my rights to remove them and fill their seats with people whom I know can help me lead the Lycan to a better, more inclusive future. As for you lot, I’m still debating whether you’re worth saving.”

“We can replace you, too!” someone whispered from the left side of the room.

I jerked my head in that direction. My eyes narrowed and I searched the seats for the owner of the voice. “Who said that?” Not surprisingly, no one spoke up. “If you had the balls to say it, man up and own it. I promise I don’t bite,” I added with a smirk.

A tentative hand went up in the back of the room, belonging to a young man with shaggy blond hair. “Your Majesty,” he said a little louder this time.

“Your name,” I demanded.

“Stefan. I’m the Alpha of the German Pack,” he answered with a gruff accent.

“And you just said I can be replaced as well …” I repeated as the others craned their necks to stare at Stefan.

He swallowed a few times before replying, “You might be Queen, Your Majesty, but we are the Summit. As such, the offices work hand-in-hand. If we feel like you’re not protecting the Lycan properly, there are laws in place—”

“And how exactly am I not protecting the Lycan properly?” I interrupted. “All because I choose to protect the lunas from your abuse? You have no grounds for my dismissal.” I waved him off and rolled my eyes. “Also, I don’t take well to threats, so keep that in mind the next time you speak.”

“Are you threatening us?” Grayson asked suspiciously.

“Are you threatening me?” I countered. “Because from what I can see, this entire meeting was about getting the lunas to toe the line or else, and now you’re threatening my crown. As your Queen, I’m entitled to respond.”

Lucas suddenly stood and held up his hands placatingly. “Your Majesty, that was not our intention. Please do not misunderstand.”

“I don’t believe I’ve misunderstood anything, but let me make it very clear, here and now—leave my lunas alone.” I scanned the room, daring them to disagree. “If I hear of any unpleasantness, you will feel my wrath. And trust me, you don’t want to be in my path when it comes out.” I flashed my silver eyes to drive the point home. Until now, I’d been very careful to contain my anger with great difficulty.

“What about Sterling Rose?” Charles asked. “She’s in my region. Does she get to stay as a captain of the Brooklyn Pack?”

I snapped my head in his direction. “If anything happens to Sterling, I will hold you personally responsible, Charles Cadwell. Remember that.”

His expression darkened and he slumped in his chair. Whatever he had planned for Sterling just went out the window. I hoped they realized I wasn’t playing around with them. The lunas were my top priority. I didn’t know how long I would be Queen, but until my last day, I vowed to make sure they were free to make their own choices.

I walked back to the throne and sat down smoothly, crossing one leg over the other and resting my arms on the armrests. “If you thought it would be easy to manipulate me, or if you thought you could railroad me and possibly dethrone me, think again. I won’t make it easy for you. And I can be very vengeful, so tread carefully. My goal is not to be your enemy, but if you make one of me, that’s on you, not me. We can do great things if we work together, but you have to be open minded and get past your prejudices. If not, the Lycan will never be the great race it can be. And the weight of that tragedy will rest solely on your shoulders. So think very carefully about your next steps.” I glanced at Ranulf. “Set up another meeting with them before the mating ceremony.” Ranulf nodded and I returned my attention to my captive audience. “Hopefully next time you’ll be singing a different tune.” I stood and straightened my clothes. “Until we meet again, gentlemen.”

With that, I stepped down from the platform and strode out of