Her Unwanted Mate On The Throne

Chapter 242

#Chapter 32 a wavering village

William POV

Alec had a habit of always sleeping during these meetings. His crib was set up close to William's chair and no one was allowed to disturb him unless they wanted to be kicked from the room. William was impressed that he never woke even when the meetings got a little tense and loud, if only he could sleep that deep when his mind wouldn't rest.

"Where are they?" William asked his guards.

They looked at each other and offered a small shrug before they turned back to their king. "We haven't seen them, your majesty. This morning they went to the villages but they haven't returned."

William curled his hands into fists under the table. It wasn't the first time the rulers had showed up late or tried to show some sort of sign that they were the ones in control. He knew they did this on purpose despite the way they always tried to act like it was an accident.

It was enough to make him want to throw them and their smug faces back to their kingdom, but what intrigued him more was their business in his village. They were rulers of another kingdom, it wasn't common to want to check out another village unless they had a reason to.

"Prepare my horse, I'd like to see what kept them in my village." William said as he stood. He gathered Alec in his arms and went to take him to Doris before he left. If only he could remain unseen to the villagers, he didn't want to cause a scene.

When he entered their room, Doris was asleep on the bed. William laid a sleeping Alec on the bed beside her and kissed both of their heads before he left. It was good she was getting sleep, after everything she had been through.

A small ache formed in his chest with how much he missed her. He missed hearing about her day and all of her worries. He grabbed his most drab coat and glanced back once more before he left. The guards had set up his horse along with four others to follow him. William pulled himself up on his black steed and held up his hand. "Not too close to me. Fall back. I want to try and remain undetected if we can."

They did as he asked without a comment. They knew better than to question him and his requests.

William guided his horse down the path towards the village at a steady pace. The last thing he wanted was to scare off his villagers or make them think that there was trouble if he came galloping down the road. © 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

When he first entered the village, not one head turned towards him. The streets were crowded and filled with conversation. Dozens of people wandered in and out of stores and didn't seem to have time to observe their surroundings. William stopped his horse and slid off before anyone paid attention to what he was doing.

His guards came up beside him. "Sir, are you sure it's a good idea to walk among the crowd?" William pulled his hood up the shield his face. " Yes. Don't hover near me, blend with the crowd and find any answers you can. Don't make it obvious."

William didn't wait for their response, he stepped into the crowd and they blended him in like he was one of them. His clothes were fancier, but they were hidden beneath his drab cloak he usually only used for riding.

His wolf instincts caught the scent of the rulers instantly. They were like a rotted orange he could sniff out anywhere since he had spent weeks in meetings and lunches with them. They wouldn't be able to hide from him if they tried.

His only concern was that they might have sniffed him out too. He could only hope that they wouldn't take the second to see if he was near them.

Their scent led him to the middle of town. The gloomy sky promised rain and made his shadow follow him across the streets. His guards tried to hide their attire with their own cloaks and walked the streets as if they were one of them— William was only glad that the town was busy otherwise he knew that they would have been caught with how hard they tried.

Their scent stopped at a bar. William walked by the window and saw them in causal clothes laughing with members of the village as if they were part of the crowd. He didn't know why that bothered him so much, he pulled open the door and slipped inside the busy space.

Drunken people stumbled around the bar and bumped into him, he didn't take his eyes off them for amoment. The music was too loud to hear what they were saying until he got close enough to touch.

"isn't that something?" Sail laughed and slapped one of the villagers on the back. "I wouldn't make that foolish—"

William clapped Sail on the shoulder and he saw the light drain from his eyes when Sail looked up and saw him. "Join me outside?" William said calmly.

It was crowded enough that no one paid them attention as they left the room. In the alley beside the bar, the two rulers looked stoned face as they followed him.

"Is there a reason you found this more important than keeping your meetings?" William asked. "We were just enjoying your lovely village, your majesty. I didn't think you would come down here to find us. We heard that you never visit your villages."

"You heard wrong." William glanced out into the street to see his guards lingering nearby. "I find it interesting that you have so much interest in my kingdom. It makes me wonder how much you miss your own." The rulers were quiet for a moment. "We were curious to see how your villages compared to our own. I assure you that we only came here because we miss our own kingdom."

"They say a ruler should never stray from their kingdom for too long." William started to back away from them. His hood hid most of his gaze. They didn't need to see it to know he was angry. "If you find yourself distracted from a meeting that you called again, I will have my men bring you back to your kingdom since you miss it so."

He turned away and his guards fell into step behind him. Once they were far enough away, he glanced back at the closest one. "What did you find?"

"They've been coming to the village every day and meeting with store owners and other villagers. Apparently a lot of the people here already know them by name." William glanced back to where he left the rulers, but they were already gone. "Do the villagers know who they are?"

"Yes, they're aware. They like that they come to them dressed as one of them and talk to them like they're equals." William pulled himself up on his horse. Perhaps he had let them stay for too long.