I stretched, spaying my fingers high above my head before rolling my shoulders back. The setting sun sent light through the stained glass window, painting the room in an orange glow. My gaze lifted with my head, settling on the man tied to the chair in front of me. My hips swayed as I stalked forward.

"Lovely evening, isn't it?" I purred as my knees hit the edge of his seat, "Puts me in the mood for an interrogation."

The man swallowed. "Why me, my Queen?" His winter coat was filthy with dirt and blood. Judging by the scrapes up his arm, Cerberus had dragged him quite a ways.

"Your queen?" My hands gripped the back of his chair, allowing me to roll my knees up onto the seat. "Am I really your queen though? Because I have it from a reliable source that you smell like a certain Askance."

The color drained from his face. "I-I don't know why. I've never been there... The lycan mountains..."

I frowned. Cerberus gave a low snarl. I leaned forward until my mask's nose touched his. "Don't lie to me. Please me, and I'll give you pleasure beyond your wildest imagination. But displease me..." I purred, then sat back, looking down on his wandering eyes. A smirk crossed my face as they flicked back up to meet mine. "Well, you already know my hellhound can put you in a world of pain."

Cerberus growled to emphasize my point.

The man began to breathe heavily, though if it was fear or something else was a guess. I suspected it was a mixture of both. "Pleasure...?" He panted, eyes alternating from my mask to my chest, "Wha-what kind of pleasure?"

"Yes, I was wondering that as well," a voice echoed from behind me. I flinched, though I mentally jumped from my skin. I resisted the urge to whip around, instead swinging one leg back, standing and turning on my heels in one smooth motion. Cyrus was leaning on the doorframe, arms crossed and eyes narrowed. One eyebrow raised as he looked to Cerberus. I glanced over to see the lycan's hackles half raised.

"Surprised I managed to sneak up on him," he continued, "I wasn't even trying."

I let an easy smile hang on my lips, though I knew my act didn't fool him. Still, I had to keep it up for the prisoner. I couldn't let my ex-manager ruin the fantasy I had created in this old meeting hall before I managed to get any information. In fact, I planned on using him.

"Cyrus," I trotted over to greet him. My arms wrapped around his neck, pulling myself to his chest. "You're back. I'm so happy. Did you bring anything for me?"

Cyrus's frown deepened. He knew what I was doing. "No. We didn't find anything."

"How disappointing," I pouted, stepping back but keeping my hands on his chest. "And where might Crimson Claw be?"

"Down the hall," he huffed. He pushed my hands away. "Sniffing out a good bone or something."

This was my chance, a way of laying down the rules to this fantasy. Yet I couldn't deny it was just a tiny bit of revenge, though for what I couldn't say. Either way, I stepped back, gaining the space I needed to swing my leg forward, kicking him in the gut. Cyrus stumbled, tripping over the threshold and falling on his back.

"What the hell-?"

"I told you to stay with him!" I barked, placing a boot on his sternum, "Not down the hall from him! You are to stay within eyesight. Is that so difficult, you useless human?!"

"What?"

"Who is your queen?"

"You are-"

"And I expect to be obeyed. So you stay here until I dismiss you, and I may, possibly, think about forgiving this misdemeanor." He tried to sit up. I slammed the heel of my boot into his chest, perhaps a little harder than was strictly necessary. "No. Don't even get up. You will stay exactly as you are. Is that clear?"

He glared at me, but made no further movements. "Yes, My Queen," he bit out.

"Good," I snapped, stepping off him and marching back into the room. Halfway across, I paused to take in a deep breath. I needed to collect myself, to focus on the task at hand and not let Cyrus distract me. I was interrogating an Askcan prisoner. This was more important than anything at the moment.

My eyes opened, focusing on the man tied to the chair. "Now, where were we?" I asked in my sweetest tone. The heels of my boots clunked on the stone floor as I returned to my previous position, straddling my prisoner. "Ah yes, I remember... Pleasure." I rolled my shoulders again. "Surely Howens told you about the particular kind of pleasure I can give."

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"Howens gives us minimal information," he breathed, "Even Eemeli, he doesn't want us to know more than necessary."

It was working. My teeth grazed along my finger, biting down on the tip. The leather slipped from my hand before falling to the floor. Just for the briefest of seconds, I touched my middle finger to the bridge of his nose.

The man drew in a sharp, shuddering breath. I waited for a moment, allowing him to come down from his high, then leaned in close again. "Don't you want more?" I whispered in his ear. "And all you need to do is tell me what Howens wants to hear about Preene..."

His body was trembling. He was panting, eyes unfocused. The man's mouth worked a few times before he was able to produce words. "Nothing... Nothing in particular. Just politics, economy, military affairs... Anything we find, really. Keeping an eye on the neighbors, he said..."

"But surely he has a reason." The intricately carved fur designs on my mask pressed to his cheek, though I was careful to deny him skin contact. "You must have some inkling... Just a suggestion of a suspicion..."

"Well, I always get this impression that he is looking for some weakness."

"Like he is planning on attacking?"

"Possibly," he said, then spoke in a firmer tone, "Yes, that's what I believe."

A rustle from the doorway. I supposed Cyrus had enough of laying on the floor and chanced sitting up. He never took my games seriously.

"That's very good," I said, running my gloved hand up to his face, the other resting on his shoulder. "I am very, very pleased." Cyrus was watching, but I didn't care. Somehow, knowing his eyes were on my back spurred me on. I tipped my mask's nose up just enough to press my lips to those of my prisoner.

"Anything else you want to tell me?" I said, pulling away just enough to speak.

"Yeah..." His dazed murmur brushed against my neck. "My name... is... Luis Lexing."

I slid off the chair, standing and taking a few steps away. "That's nice." My gaze switched to the alpha lycan. "I'm done."

Howens's spy was too drugged to cry out as the canine pounced on him, knocking the chair back to the floor. Any pain he experienced would be impossible to express with Cerberus's jaws clamped around his throat, crushing his esophagus. The lycan gave a slight twist of his head. The man's spine dislocated with a muffled crack. Long claws tore at his coat. The fabric ripped open, exposing pale skin beneath. I turned away just as Cerberus grabbed hold of his bicep. It was difficult to ignore the sickly squishing sounds the meat made as it was being chewed.

"Get up." I booted Cyrus's thigh as I passed. "And don't interrupt an interrogation again."

Wood clattered under my feet. I paused, briefly studying the remains of the door. There was hardly any left in the palace. I wondered if a lycan had managed to lock themselves in, or if it was simply caught in one of their daily brawls. Either way, it seemed I would have to round up a few brave carpenters to fix some of the damage my legion caused.

So, Howens was looking for weaknesses in Preene. Askance was nowhere near strong enough to take the larger country by force, not to mention no where near as technically advanced. To bother would be throwing away his military, leaving his own country open to attack. Even if he moved at an opportune moment, he stood little chance of victory.

Then there was the matter of the head trainer, Eemeli. If there was a spy so close to the king, perhaps there were others. I would need to be cautious of all officials from here on out, even more so than I already was.

It might be easier to dispose of them entirely. I wasn't too fond of politicians, anyway.

Then again, simply removing them from office may serve the same, and look better in the public's opinion. Making an example of known criminals was one thing, but it wouldn't do to appear unjustly cruel. I couldn't deal with Howens if I was busy resisting a revolt. If I elected commoners in their place, raised simple citizens to power, they would be much more likely to stay loyal.

My thoughts were cut as I was pushed against the wall. Strong hands gripped at my shoulders. I looked up into storming gray-blue eyes peeking above black fabric.

"Sealing ideas from Cerberus now, are we?" I growled, glaring up at him.

If Cyrus was amused, he didn't show it. "It seems the only way to get your attention. That or be your prisoner, apparently."

"It never turns out well for them."

"I thought that too," he huffed, "So, I was wondering, after all the loyalty I've shown, why I'm still in the same boat as Luis in there."

"You're not tied to a chair-"

"No, I don't get those kinds of perks." He set his jaw, prominent even through the fabric cover, "Look, I'm not going to just abandon Claw. We're friends, partners, so it's not that big of a leap of faith. All I'm asking is for a little trust."

I blinked. "You know that was just part of my persona. You don't really need to be chained to Claw's-"

"Desire, I know when I'm being followed."

"Right..." I had hoped he wouldn't notice that. The captivebred lycans didn't have the experience stalking like their wild cousins did.

Cyrus sighed, temporarily releasing my shoulder to pull down his mask. He tugged my wolf off. "Listen, I wasn't surprised at first. But after months, you should know that I would do anything for you." I tried turning my face away. He grabbed my chin in sheepskin gloves, forcing my gaze to stay fixed on his. "Cerberus trusts me, I wouldn't be standing here if he didn't, so why can't you?"

I closed my eyes. I couldn't look at him. His face showed too much. I couldn't answer that. If I did, I might have to look for answers to questions I would rather avoid.

"Really?" Cyrus nodded. He let go of me, stepping back. I turned my back to him. His mask was pulled back up, covering his frown. "You know, you can't run from your issues forever. It's screwed up a lot of people. Screwed up the whole world once."