Marked By The Mad King Alpha (Phoebe and Perry) novel Chapter 41

Standard POV Format

“Excellent work.”
I clapped one of the warriors on the shoulder after sparring—rare praise from me. The poor man looked more terrified than proud.
I’d nearly flattened the entire training squad before Flynn dragged me off the field.

“What’s gotten into you?” Flynn asked, scrolling through his tablet of appointments. “You’re almost… pleasant. That worries me.”

“Nothing.” I drank half my water, poured the rest over my head, and kept walking.

“‘Nothing,’” he repeated dryly. “You smile like that only when trouble’s coming.”

He wasn’t wrong. I’d already decided to cancel a few unnecessary meetings. My mood was too good to waste on politics.

“No more wars,” Flynn warned. “The treasury’s drained, and the alphas are ready to revolt.”

“They’ll calm down once the new cities start paying tribute.” I glanced at him sideways. “Ten packs out of forty complain. Hardly a rebellion.”

He muttered something under his breath and changed the subject. “Elder Tricia wants an audience about your mate.”

“Tell him to rot.”

“Perry, you can’t keep ignoring tradition.”

“Watch me.”

He sighed, following as I strode down the corridor. “We still need the elders—”

“For what?” I spun on him. Flynn nearly crashed into me. “If it were up to me, I’d send them to the front lines. Let them die for something useful.”

“Perry!”

I grinned at his horror and pushed into my office. “Relax, I said if. Though it’s tempting.”

Flynn pinched the bridge of his nose. “One day you’ll mean it.”

“You realize appearing without notice is a breach of protocol,” I said lazily.

“My apologies. I only seek permission to see my daughter. I’ll be brief.”

I leaned back, studying him. “You want to see Phoebe? Word is, you despised the girl. Said she was unstable.”

Cameron’s jaw twitched. “Gossip exaggerates. She is still my daughter. I worry she might cause… problems under your roof.”

I laughed softly. “Concerned for me, or for her?”

He didn’t answer. The silence was enough to tell me he feared both.