Page 13 of The Wolf King's Demand

Henry pulled out a small dagger and looked at it with interest as he spoke. “Do either of you know what an orchiectomy is?”

Tyler almost laughed out loud. He couldn’t believe Henry was doing this ploy.

When neither prisoner said anything, Henry continued with the small knife. “Well,” he said, “I’ll tell you how the procedure is done.”

Henry lunged forward and swung the blade down to one of the rogues’ groin. “First, a small incision is made just above your pubic area, then your testicles are pushed up and removed through the hole.”

All the color in the two men’s faces drained.

“Of course,” Henry said, “the procedure won’t kill you. We’ll let you live. But will you really want to after that?”

One of the men opened his mouth, and the other kicked him and growled. These shifters truly were not giving up information. No matter. He would still get what he wanted out of them.

With a knock on the door, his guard’s playtime came to an end. “Oh, darn,” Henry said, sheathing his dagger. “It was fun while it lasted.” The enforcer opened the door to a frail-looking female in a dark robe.

“You called, My King?” she asked.

Henry nodded to the chained shifters. She entered without a word and stood behind the first seated rogue. Her hands lay on both sides of his head.

“Please begin,” she whispered and bowed her head.

Henry asked his first question. “Where is the rogue pack’s home base?”

The prisoner said nothing, but the mage said, “At the outpost on the edge of the kingdom.”

Both rogues gasped, and Tyler smiled. With magic, reading minds was as easy as pie. No torture or injury is needed. But there was the problem of the brain exploding if the person mentally fought too hard to keep thoughts hidden. He hoped that didn’t happen, but he would do anything to get the intel to keep his queen safe.

In response to the next question Henry asked, the mage replied for the prisoner. “The Fleetfoot pack was hired to assassinate the queen, Your Majesty.”

Tyler rocketed out of his chair with a shout. “Who? Who ordered such a thing to be done?”

The prisoner, with his thoughts being scanned, found his tongue. “Sir, we don’t know.”

Tyler strode up to the man and stared at the mage, waiting for her reply.

“He speaks the truth,” she said. “He has no knowledge of the name.”

Henry drew his dagger. “Then we have no further use for you.” He stepped forward as if to slit the chained man’s throat.

“No! Please! We will describe the messengers who came to the lair that night. Clothing, looks, anything you need to know! I beg you. We did not hear the conversation as our alpha ordered us out of the room, but we could describe them.”

Tyler smiled to himself and motioned for Henry to come to the door. In a whisper, he spoke. “Get what you can from these fools. I suspect they know less than nothing. But get what you can, then take them to the dungeons.”

Henry nodded. Tyler met the mage’s eyes, silently letting her know to keep doing what she was to drag the needed information out of the rogues. With that, he left with too many questions in his mind.

Who could hate me enough to do such evil to my mate? He shall not live a single minute more if ever I meet the bastard. And now he had a daughter to protect as well. His wolf’s determination solidified. He would do anything and everything to keep those he loved safe.

Tyler’s footfalls slammed hard against the well-trodden path. He knew well where his future lay. And how to get there.

NINE

ADDISON

Addison surveyed all the baskets and packages the guards carried to their new cottage hideout. She was thankful for such a large space where the women and the children had room to live and play. The collected group only totaled seven in all, four children and three women, but they still needed room to spread out and get comfortable. Even now, the children were outside enjoying fresh air and games in the grassy field, something they obviously hadn’t experienced in a long time, if ever.

“It looks like you have been well-supplied by our alpha. I’m relieved to see that. More beds, more linens, and even new dresses. I believe my king has thought of everything you might need.”

“Oh, My Queen, the food. Just look at all the food. In the Fleetfoot pack, when the larder was near empty, the alpha would come in the dead of night and raid what was left. He would keep it for himself while, in the morning, the rest of us starved. He didn’t even give us anything for the babies and toddlers, and they would cry day and night.”

---