The Queen of the Exiles

Ceremony

King Damien stormed into his office essentially kicking the door open as he went straight for the bottle of whiskey next to his desk, pouring a big glass as his beta walked on wondering what exactly had happened that had put him in such a mood.

"Did you learn anything?" Jared asked cautiously as the King drained the glass on several gulps before he refilled it.

"Arrange an undercover protection detail for her, girls that can pass for school age preferably. Make sure they are ready to leave by the end of the ceremony as well as installed into the school." Damien said calmly before he drank the second glass of whiskey as his Mate entered the office after hearing the commotion.

"What the hell is going on Damien?" Victoria demanded as she watched him drink the second glass before he refilled it a third time before finally setting the decanter down.

Damien looked at his Mate while lifting the glass and drinking from it before he lowered it and glared at his Beta. "Are you waiting for something Jared, or are you going to go arrange what I asked you to do?" he demanded coldly making Jared bow.

"At once your Majesty." Jared said before he walked out of the office closing the door behind him.

"Why are you sending a protection detail for some rogue b***h?!" Victoria demanded angrily while she watched Damien drain the third glass of whiskey before he grabbed the stack of files and tossed them in the trash, save one. He handed it to her, her eyes widening as she realized it was the Mate he banished 17 years earlier for her.

"What the hell does she have to do with this?" Victoria demanded throwing the file on his desk.

"That is the mother of Amanda Dillinger, my daughter and Heir to the Royal Authority." he answered getting to the heart of the issue as her eyes widened.

"You can't simply believe whatever that b***h told you. She is a f*****g Rogue that would say or do anything-" she said as he began growling at her.

"She hasn't claimed a damn thing. What she did do was momentarily stop hiding the scent that would give her away to any Pack Wolf in a heartbeat. So if you think my senses are somehow lying to me, please go ahead and accuse me of being an i***t again!" he yelled at her as her eyes went wide.

Victoria knew the scent would be impossible to fake, no matter how hard someone wanted to try. Rogues could do a lot of things with their scent, but that wasn't one she had ever even heard whispers of them trying. Add to that the fact that they weren't looking for a lost child and there would be no reason for anyone to try. "What kind of scandal are we looking at?" she demanded letting his words of anger slide as she knew it wasn't a claim she had voiced.

"For the moment, none. We have a rare opportunity to control the narrative, as she has no desire to change the status quo at the moment. We however will need to begin training her as quickly as possible, preferably before she becomes an adult and the authority really kicks in." Damien said pouring each of them a glass as she fell into the chair across from his desk.

"She is willing to play ball?" Victoria asked taking the glass and drinking it in one go.

"I have no idea what she is or isn't willing to do. It isn't like we had a lot of time to discuss everything, especially as she didn't release her scent to me in the car until just before we exited the vehicle here. All I know is for the moment we have a chance to come to an understanding with her that will allow us a modicum of control over the narrative when this scandal does tear it's ugly head. Because I assure you it will be ugly when it comes to light that the Heir to the authority was raised as an Exile." he said before draining his glass and storming out of his office so he could prepare for what he was about to face.

While Damien was in his office, and a walked into the ballroom where the Ceremony was being held, escorted to her table by the same man that had brought her in. She was surprised that he took her to the head table, sitting almost directly across from King Damien when he came. She was still looking around at all the Alpha's and Luna's that had already arrived when she heard someone clear his throat behind her. It made her turn around quicker than she intended making him take a step back as she did.

"Excuse me, but I take it you are Miss Dillinger?" he asked making her nod. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am Alpha Eric Claw of the Blood Fang Pack." he said holding his hand out for her to shake.

Amanda quickly took it, knowing that his pack was the largest Wolf Pack in the entire Kingdom, making up a large portion of those who served the Royal Army protecting the Packs from Rogue Attacks. As soon as she took it however she felt the tingling that was indicative of a Mate Bond as they both looked at the other stunned. "It is an honor to meet you Alpha Eric." she said letting go of his hand as he growled slightly.

"Forgive me if I am mistaken, but I was under the impression you are only 16?" he asked curious as he looked at his hand for a moment before he looked at her blushing face.

"For another few weeks at least." she answered easily as her eyes narrowed at him as he smiled.

"Well I am not sure if you know who your father is, but I would be willing to bet he is an Alpha. The reason being on a rare occasion we are able to find our Mate when we are 16 instead of the usual 18." he explained to her as she shook her head in disbelief.

"Alpha Eric, I don't know what you expect to happen, but I assure you I am in no way prepared to accept a Mate Bond before I am even 18." she told him seriously as she sat in her seat and he sat beside her where his seat was as she groaned.

He looked at her amused as a waitress came over and he ordered two glasses of wine for them. He waited until she left before he looked at her, "I don't know how familiar with Mate Bonds you are as an Exile, but being my Mate entitles you to join my Pack automatically. Your mother would also be welcome to join if she is interested." he told her.

Amanda laughed lightly at that as she nodded. "I appreciate the offer Alpha Eric, I think you should discuss it with the King first however. I have a feeling one way or another he will have something to say about it." she said just before the waitress returned.

"The King has no say where there is a Mate Bond concerned." he said sure of himself after the waitress went to the other tables that were sitting already.

"Be that as it may, I believe you will find he has something to say on the subject of my mother at the very least. I wouldn't be surprised if he had something to say about me as well, however you do have Wolf law on your side to force his hand where I am concerned." she said knowing the law well as she had studied it for years.

"I guess we will find out when he arrives." Eric said smugly.

"No, you will have better luck approaching him in private. Trust me, you do not want to approach this subject in public. Not tonight." she warned him as he looked at her curious.

"Why would it matter what night? Surely you don't expect me to hide the fact we found each other." he said slightly hurt.

Amanda sighed as she took his hand, the sparks traveling up her arm as she held it. "I don't expect you to hide anything, however now is not the time to announce it to the world. There are far more serious matters wrapped into this enigma and blindsiding the King with this in public will not end well. Trust me for this evening and I promise I will explain everything when you take me to a private dinner tomorrow night to celebrate."

"You expect me to let you leave my side tonight?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

"You will have to if you expect to speak to the King about us before tomorrow. Who knows, perhaps he will be generous and inform you of the minefield you just got thrown into." she said as the other Alpha's and their Luna's joined them at their table as it was apparent most of the Alpha's were now in the room prepared for the Opening Ceremony to start.

Amanda has barely made it to her room before her roommate closed the door behind her sharply, ready to help her out of the dress she had worn to the opening ceremony for the Alpha Council. She was glad to be away from the stuffy atmosphere, hating the fact that for the next 3 days she would have to go be part of the politics of the Lycan World.

"So how was it?" Amy asked as they got the dress off and Amanda felt like she could breathe again.

"Your telling me you didn't watch the entire broadcast?" Amanda asked skeptical of her new friend.

"Of course I did, but the TV only shows so much that isn't directly related to the King during the Opening Ceremonies. That guy they had you sitting next to looked yummy enough." Amy said as Amanda sighed thinking about it all.

"Oh he was definitely yummy, especially because it turns out he is my Mate." Amanda sighed as she sat down on her bed looking at Amy who was stunned.

"You must be the daughter of an Alpha, that is rare for an Exile." Amy said seriously as she sat on her own bed.

"That isn't the half of it, but you have to keep it a secret if I tell you." she replied as she couldn't help but confide in someone else finally.

Amy looked at her with a smile. "We may not have known each other long, but you are pretty much the only friend I have. The other Exiles think being in the advanced courses is a betrayal of what we represent, so they hold it against me." she admitted forlornly as she just wanted a friend. anda was in the same position, but it didn't seem like it bothered her.

Amanda nodded as she walked over to her boombox and put on some music and activated an anti eavesdropping device that would emit high frequency static in any device capable of hearing them. "I am not just a daughter of an Alpha, I am the daughter of the Alpha." she said looking at Amy who looked confused.

"When you say 'The Alpha', you don't mean the King do you?" Amy asked making Amanda nod that yes she in fact did.

"Yes, the King is my father. My mother was the Fated Mate he rejected before he and Victoria concocted the lie that the two of them are Fated Mates." Amanda told Amy who gasped surprised that such a scandal hadn't been revealed in 16 years of her life.

"No one knows, do they?" she asked seriously as Amanda sighed again.

"King Damien learned who I am tonight. If he is as smart as everyone claims he is, he will know by my scent that I inherited the Royal Authority from him." she finally said as Amy squealed.