Accidental Surrogate for Alpha

#Chapter 383 – Cora’s Decision Ella

“What?” Cora asks, laughing a little as if it’s a ridiculous notion. “What on earth could I have to pick and choose from?”

“Let’s back up a little,” Roger says, tugging her into the room and gesturing towards one of the chairs around the table. As she settles herself into a seat Sinclair pulls over the little armchair that I’ve been using when I feed Rafe, and I murmur my thanks to him as I settle down in it. As Roger begins, Sinclair swiftly hands me all of the things I need to feed Rafe – a burp cloth, a little blanket to throw over my shoulder, etc. – and I smile to myself at his consideration in anticipating my needs without me having to ask.

My Alpha is a warrior, but he’s also a sweetheart. And I’m grateful for him every day. Everyone waits for me to get settled, but then once Rafe is happily eating Henry begins.

“We discovered,” Henry begins, his eyes moving between me and Cora, that Xander has fled east to Adalaxia.”

“Shit,” Cora sighs, slumping down in her chair. My emotions match hers. We knew that Xander was on the run we’d largely decimated any of his that martial forces in taking out his priests. But our great fear was that in the time it took us to regroup, that he’d leave the country and find allies who might help him.

And it looks, now, like he did precisely that.

“Is Adalaxia…a good place for him to go?” I don’t know a lot about the neighboring kingdom, especially as I was raised as a human and hadn’t known that overlying the map of the human world there was a hidden world of wolf kingdoms with its own wars and politics. Of course, ever since Damon broke the secret of the of the wolves to the human world those maps have increasingly combined to become one, but still – what I don’t know about wolf politics could probably fill its own book.

Which, considering that I’ll likely soon be Queen, is…unfortunate. But I force myself to pay attention to Henry’s answer.

“Adalaxia is a notoriously ruthless wolf nation,” he sighs. “They stick even more strictly to what they perceive as the traditions of wolf kind even more than we do. In comparison to them we are…ridiculously liberal.”

“What does that mean?” Cora asks, crossing her arms over her chest, her face worried and confused.

be on board with our own nation’s current policy, which is that wolves and humans are equal and deserve to be treated with the same respect. They would also,” he continues, hesitating now and looking between me and Cora, “really not like the fact that we’re having this conversation with our mates. For Adalaxians,

best,” Sinclair finishes for him. “And at worst,

wide. ” Seriously? Are they also a

it,” Roger says, tilting his head to the side. “Women there are not taught to

makes sense why

they’re staunch nationalists and monarchists as well. They’re likely to respect Rafe’s claim to our future

I look down at my baby, this

“It’s unfortunate that he was able to get there so fast. This would all be much easier if we had caught him at the border, had been able to prosecute him here without having to go through a foreign government to do

I ask. “Can’t we just…demand that they give him back? Extradition,

down at me. “If

eyes going wide. Because while all of the

technically, that he doesn’t yet have access to any of the powers which would allow him to make any

up straight and looking easily at Sinclair. “Can we do like… some kind of quick and dirty coronation? Slap a crown on

real cheer in it, because I think we all know the answer. “It’s more complicated than that,” Sinclair says, running a hand through his hair. ” First, I have to claim it, and then my claim has to be ratified by the governors. It’s…all a bunch of bureaucratic nonsense. Interestingly the kind of bureaucratic nonsense that the Atalaxians don’t care about. In their country, I’d have been king the moment I killed Damon. But,” he shrugs a little, rueful. “That’s what we get for

I say, looking up at him. “Can we get it

down at me. “But this is where your choice comes in, Cora,” he says, shifting his gaze to

spreading out her hands on the table. “I can’t with the suspense anymore. Can one of

is King and we have access to the state military and protection,” Roger says quickly, “we don’t think it’s a good decision to split up anymore. Which we all agreed