Wolf's Claim (The Royal Heir #3) - Jen L. Grey Page 0,37

hair, and he pulled at the edges of his goatee. "You were right about that."

"I would disagree with that." Louis turned his head in Brent's direction and grinned. "At least, with them, you know exactly where they stand."

"For a prince, I'd expect better from you." Brent tsked as he shook his head.

"It's not about letting people know where they stand but having the strength to do what's right." Richard's arrogant voice floated across the table.

At this very moment, I wanted to take my dull knife and slice his neck.

"Hi, can I take your order?" An older lady smiled awkwardly as she took in our table. "Or should I come back later?" She took a step back as if she was trying to gain distance from us.

Great, we're making a scene. I took a deep breath and smiled. "I'd love a coffee and some eggs and bacon."

The others followed suit, and soon the lady was walking away.

"So, you wanted me here." Brent leaned back in his seat and spread his arms apart. "I'm here. What is it that you want to discuss?"

"Forgive me if I'm not willing to be so forthcoming when there is someone present that was involved in my parents' murder." I wasn’t going to name the elephant in the room. Even though there was no reason to pretend that he wasn't here.

"See, I told you that's what she'd say." Richard rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "She had the audacity to kill my father and tries to pretend it was us that are the bad guys."

"That's bullshit, and you know it." Mona's normally sweet disposition was gone. "You're no better than your father."

"I tend to agree with Richard." Brent's brown eyes darkened. "I mean it seems largely convenient that you somehow remained alive and then killed his father. I think there's way more to the story than you're sharing."

"It's a shame that you're just an evil, opportunistic prick like good ol' Dick here." Ella's hazel eyes narrowed as she leaned over her mate. "What'd they promise you?'

"You should never talk to an alpha that way." Brent shook his head and wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Then, earn the respect." Mason leaned closer to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. "You came in here with him, of all people, and you're wondering why this isn't going well."

"I don't need this to go well." Brent stared Mason in the eyes. "You are the ones trying to mend the rift that you created. I'm assuming the Chicago alphas warned you about what we're planning."

"We've been in power for only a handful of months and had wars we had to battle. Did you expect us to drop everything to make our rounds throughout the entire country?" It pissed me off that he was acting so cavalier. It's not like we were locking ourselves in our house, refusing to come out as my uncle had done.

"You visited Chicago." He arched an eyebrow. "But didn't even bother attempting to come here."

"Because the vampires took a pack member and were torturing him." Mason's voice lowered and turned into a growl.

"One pack member’s safety isn't as important as the millions of other wolves who need a queen and king who take care of them." Brent shook his head. "That's what a true king and queen know."

"I told you that you weren't important to them." Richard shook his head and closed his eyes. "Even though Dad didn't visit, he made sure your city got the financing it needed to become a bigger paranormal city and the protection that it needed. He was so scared and heartbroken to leave after what had happened to Corey, but he always called you regularly to check on you."

So this is what had happened. Darren financed the city, growing it bigger so they could charge the supernaturals more for traveling back and forth. It wasn't to help our people; it was to take advantage of them.

"When did he actually help your pack?" I couldn't believe how easily he was being manipulated. "My parents were killed, and I'm still sitting before you today."

"Being young is thinking you're indestructible. Believe me, I know." He shifted in his seat. "But King Darren gave us funding to keep the hub brimming. We've got new hotel rooms, restaurants, everything we need to cater to the supernatural needs."

"That's not taking care of your people." Mason chuckled hard. "When someone was sick, did they offer aid? When something went wrong, did they offer protection?"

"That's what I'm here for."