The Lycan King's Defiant Surrogate

"S-sir?" one of the advisors stutters, when Caleb continues to glare at him specifically.

"Is it you?" Caleb demands. "Are you plotting to kill me?"

"No!" the man says at once and lowers his head in reverence. "Of course not, m-my

y King

Caleb doesn't like how he denied it twice. Too many denials could just as easily be a confession.

"If any one of you is plotting to kill me, I will find out about it." Caleb threatens. "And when I do, I will tear you limb from limb while you are still alive." A few faces pale further.

Only Tristan seems utterly unbothered by Caleb's outburst. Instead, he watches Caleb curiously.

"You seem agitated, my King." Tristan says. "Are your headaches returning?"

Caleb does have a headache, yes, but he's had that since early this morning and only started feeling this nervous tension a few brief minutes ago,

If only Harper were here, he would demand a massage and some of pressure in his mind and muscles might give way Unfortunately, she's still in the hospital. The doctors still haven't discovered what's wrong with her, despite Caleb's threats to end them personally if they don't fix her.

Thinking of Harper makes that prickling feeling return to his skin, tenfold. He's on his feet before he even realizes he's moved.

""Beta," Caleb says.

Tristan immediately rises.

Caleb heads to the door and exits, with Tristan in his shadow. The other advisors let out a loud breath as soon as his foot is past the threshold. They must feel relief, thinking his ire pulled elsewhere. They have no idea of the danger they are still in

After he checks on Harper, he will return to delve deeper and find the one who plans on betraying him. That person will then be tortured slowly before being killed.

More pangs of discomfort crawl through Caleb's insides, forcing his feet to move faster. Before long, he's running toward the hospital ward, without really understanding why.

When he reaches the ward, doctors and nurses are swarming, rushing toward Harper's room.

"What's happening here?" Caleb growls at one of the nurses. She cowers at once,

"The slave from the arena," the nurse replies nervously. "Her vitals are dropping. No one knows why..

"She's dying?!" Caleb blares.

"Yes, my King," the nurse says. "I'm sorry, I must assist..."

Caleb steps back and lets the nurse go forward.

"My King." Tristan says, moving toward Caleb's side. Caleb follows the length of Tristan's gaze to where a familiar woman is moving like a salmon upstream away from Harper's room. "That's one of thy harem," Caleb says.

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"Nina," Tristan supplies the name. Caleb doesn't bother remembering them all. Most of the time, for what he needs his harem for, names are not necessary.

"Have I given her permission to train as a nurse?" Caleb asks, already suspecting the answer.

Sometimes, the more curious, more established members of his harem grow bored with sitting around all day. If they ask him, he sometimes gives them permission to train or observe other areas of his capital. So long as they do not embarrass him, he genuinely does not care what they do to pass the time.

"No." Tristan says.

"Stop her. Bring her to an interrogation room," Caleb says.

"At once," Tristan says and starts forward.

When Nina seems him approach, she pales. All the more suspicious, then.

Anger flares up hot and fast inside Caleb. If she had anything to do with this, Caleb will show her no mercy.

Tristan, moving swiftly, snatches Nina by the arm and immediately drags her away.

"I didn't do anything wrong!" Nina shouts. Everyone ignores her

While the doctors work on Harper, Caleb paces outside of the door to her room.

She must survive this. He's already threatened to end her pack. Surely she will continue to hold on to ensure that does not happen.

At his growing worry, he scoffs at himself, reminding himself that he only cares because he needs her alive to find his child

He doesn't care about her beyond that.

After a few, long, agonizing moments, where Caleb wonders if he's lost his only lead to his child as well as the most annoying woman he's ever met- the sirens and blares finally stop, and one of the doctors steps out of the room. Seeing Caleb, he approaches him at once.

"With the care we've been giving her," the doctorsays, "There is no reason for her health to plummet like this, let alone so quickly." The doctor's face tightens, grim. "We have cause, I believe, to suspect her recovery is being sabotaged" The image of Nina rushing away from the scene flashes through Caleb's mind "How?"

"There's evidence that the IV has been tampered with. We need to run tests to find out what exactly has been injected - "She's being poisoned," Caleb finishes, tired of his doctor double-talk. Caleb is a man of action. He needs clear concise verbiage so that he can move to action.

"That's a blunt way of putting it, but yes. Though I don't have concrete proof yet, that is what I suspect"

"Can you fix her?" Caleb asks.This belongs © NôvelDra/ma.Org.

"We're making every

every effort to," the doctor says. Caleb respects this man, who lowers his head in reverence to Caleb while still being upfront and honest with him. He is not just saying what he thinks Caleb wants to hear, as so many others do. "It would assist us greatly if the source of that poison were to be stopped. And if we knew the specific kind that's been used.."

"Leave that to me," Caleb says, voice dropping dangerously low You fix her." He points at Harper's room

"Yes, my King."

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11:57 Mon, Nov 18 B BU.

Caleb dismisses him and the doctor returns to Harper's room.

Knowing what he must do, Caleb pulls out his cellphone and tex Tristan.

Where did you take her?

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Ten minutes later, Caleb has descended to the interrogation rooms on the level above the dungeons. Personally, he would have preferred to

Stuff Nina down into the dank and dark pits rather than these sterile, over-lit boxes, but perhaps that part

can come later.

Torture can come later.

Right now, what he needs are atiswers.

Confirmation. Proof.

Then justice.

Tristan stands outside the room in the hallway. With his arms crossed and his eyes closed, he looks more annoyed than usual. Even when we torture, he generally seems bored. He opens his eyes as Caleb approaches. "Should I enter with your

"Yes," Caleb says. "When she gives up the name of the poison, alert the doctors."

When she does. Not if. There is no if

Caleb already knows what she's done.

Tristan nods and opens the door. Caleb steps through first.

Nina sits at a metal chair behind a card table. Spotting Caleb, she stands. "M-my King

She's nervous. Caleb immediately clocks the way her voice trembles and her hands twitch.

Caleb walks across the room to the far wall and waits for Tristan to close the door, locking her in the cage with his monster

"You are not going to lie to me," Caleb says.

"Of course, my King." Nina replies.

"Good," Caleb turns to look at her. He allows some of his wolf to break free, flashing red over his eyes and extending his canines. His body starts to surge taller. His hands turn to claws. He's careful to keep himself from going full-wolf. He wants to be able to talk.

The effect of his beastly wolf never fails to intimidate.

Nina's eyes are wide with fear now, as she inches backwards away from him.

"Tell me," Caleb growls. "What poison did you inject into Harper"