The King froze.
"What did you say,Leon?" he asked, but the little boy had already started dozing off on his shoulder.
Leon's statement left him deeply unsettled. Had something happened while he was away from the palace? Things were not adding up at all. "Something's wrong," he muttered and headed for the throne room immediately.
"Dre!" he called. Dre quickly appeared; he had already reported that none of the guards at the gate had seen Axel.
"Gather every single servant or worker who was on duty between yesterday and today. Every single one of them," the King commanded, his voice sharp. Dre quickly left to carry out the order.
Soon, he returned with rows of staff, and the King began questioning them one by one.
"I didn't see him, Your Majesty," a young maid said, her eyes avoiding the King's.
The King's fist clenched as he stared at her, his patience thinning.
"Look up," he ordered. She gulped. "Have you forgotten that you are dealing with an Alpha wolf?" he smirked. She trembled, batting her lashes rapidly.
"You can't lie to me, young wolf. It seems you've forgotten who is standing before you?" His voice deepened, and she bowed her head again.
"Look at me!" he growled. She quickly looked up, and it was evident to anyone watching that she was terrified.
"Your mouth may tell lies, but your heartbeat will give you away, don't you think?" he asked, a sinister smile on his face.
She tried to look away again, but a snarl from the king jolted her face back up. Staring into the King's eyes was a punishment in itself; they were filled with a simmering anger. She swallowed hard.
"Now answer me. Did you see Axel leave the palace? Yes or no."
She hesitated before nodding slightly. "Speak!" he barked.
"Yes! Yes, I saw him when he was leaving, Your Majesty," she quickly answered.
The King's demeanor grew fiercer as he crouched before her. She almost fainted, his dominating aura pressing down on her until she whimpered.
"Then why did you lie to the face of the Grand King of this country? How dare you!" he growled. A sword was immediately placed at the maid's neck, and she trembled violently.
"Forgive me, Your Majesty! I'm sorry, I'm really sorry! I didn't mean to lie to you. I'm the only daughter of my parents, please spare me!" she rambled.
"Then why did you lie? Tell me, and maybe—just maybe—I'll spare you."
"I didn't mean to!" she cried. The King chuckled darkly.
"It seems she doesn't value her life. Dre—"
Dre drew his sword and raised it to strike.
"The Beta asked me not to mention that I saw him leave!" she shouted. Dre's hand stopped mid-air. The King's brows arched, and he motioned for Dre to lower the sword.
"The Beta did what?"
"While I was in the kitchen, I saw Axel sneaking out of the palace through the back door. He had a very cold look on his face. Even though I was scared of the young prince, I wanted to at least ask where he was going at such an hour, but the Beta blocked my path so I couldn't stop him," she confessed, tears streaming down her face.
The King remained silent for a moment, then dismissed the maid.
"I'm grateful, Your Majesty. I'm really grateful," she said as she scurried out of the throne room.
"Keep an eye on that maid," the King ordered Dre quietly. "And dispatch a search party immediately. Search the entire grounds. Comb every goddamn place and bring back my son."
Axel sneaked out of the palace? The thought nagged at him, and he remembered Leon's words: "Maybe he ran away. If I were the one, I'd run away too."
Axel ran away? Why?!
What had happened in his absence? Why would his son want to leave the palace? What could have prompted such a drastic decision?
The King's thoughts were interrupted as the door to the throne room opened.
"Have you found him?" Elsa asked as she walked in. For a moment, Kaden simply regarded her. He had never once doubted his mate, but for a fleeting second, he saw something different in her eyes as she approached.
"No, I haven't," he said calmly, though his wolf stirred within him.
"That's surprising. This is getting serious," she sighed, feigning worry as she took her seat. But when she noticed the King staring intently at her, she paused.
"You were the last person to see Axel, is that correct?" he asked. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat.
"Yes, my King. I just wonder why Axel would worry us like this. He has never done anything like it before."
"Did Axel say anything odd while he was with you? Anything strange or unusual?"
"Not at all," she denied, shaking her head.
"Did you lash out at him? Or did he fight with his siblings?" the King pressed further. Again, she shook her head.
"Not at all. Why all these questions, my King? Have you found him? Did he say I did something?" she asked, finding his successive inquiries odd.
"No, I haven't found him. But apparently, he snuck out of the palace."
"He did?!" Elsa's eyes widened in performative alarm. She sprang to her feet, her voice rising. "Why would Axel do that? Oh my goodness, what could have happened? Why would he do such a thing? This is wrong on every level. I never raised him to be this worrisome. What is going on with Axel nowadays?" Her voice was laced with manufactured anger and frustration.
"First, he shut himself away for a whole week. I finally got him out of his shell two days ago, and even then... he acted irrationally."
"Axel acted irrationally? What did he do?" the King asked. Elsa looked away.
"You don't need to bother with that, Your Majesty. I have forgiven him." But the King insisted.
"Well... I had gone to his room to give him his food. While I was coaxing him to eat, his demeanor changed in an instant. He actually used his claws to cut my arm."
The King looked at her in surprise. Everything he had heard since returning from his trip was shocking.
First, Axel was missing. The Beta had silenced a witness—he would return to that later. And now, Axel had used his claws? What was really happening?
"You know what, Elsa? You don't need to explain further," he said. She grimaced internally. What is he talking about?
She had been alarmed by Axel's disappearance, fearing he was playing mind games and planned to reveal her actions to the Alpha. But then the Beta had told her he saw Axel sneaking out, meaning her poisonous words had truly taken root.
Well, aim one, checked. A successful hate bond created between the King and his dear Axel.
If Axel had decided to leave the palace, it was a double celebration. The mistress's son was gone. Now, all she needed was to convince the King that Axel had been acting like a monster, that he was something unnatural and deadly. That way, the King wouldn't even consider bringing him back.
But what was she hearing from him now? That she should stop talking?
"My King, I'm trying to explain what Axel did to me. He has been acting very unusual lately."
The King waved a dismissive hand. "Never mind, Elsa. When I am ready to hear what Axel did, I will ask. But right now, my son is missing. And if I don't find him, I will not hesitate to turn this palace upside down," he seethed.
Elsa's blood boiled within her. This is not how it was meant to go!