Chapter 230 A spy

Chapter 230: Chapter 230 A spy

_Rowena’s POV_

After the intense drama in the main council hall, Alaric had his guards push my wheelchair straight back to the private VIP wing of the hospital.

The swelling in my left ankle had gone down significantly thanks to Kyle’s cooling gel, but my stomach was letting out loud, pathetic rumbles every five minutes. Between the failed presentation and the chaotic trial, I still hadn’t eaten a real meal all day.

Kyle walked into the recovery room holding a clipboard with my latest chart; somehow, it was strange that he’d just transferred here and I happened to be his first patient.

He glanced at me, his eyes flashing with a light spark of amusement as my stomach let out another obvious growl.

"Your medical chart looks great, Marchioness," Kyle said calmly. "But your body needs actual nutrition to heal properly. There is a great bistro just two blocks down that serves amazing grilled salmon. Allow me to buy you lunch, Rowena. My treat as your attending physician."

I was quite surprised that he knew of a good restaurant when he had just arrived here, but I shrugged it off.

Before I could even open my mouth to respond, a towering figure stepped straight into the space between my wheelchair and Kyle.

"No," Alaric spat out instantly, his deep voice dropping into a harsh protective tone. He crossed his arms over his chest, his broad shoulders completely blocking Kyle from my view as he glared down at the doctor with hostility. "She does not need food from a bistro. My personal chef is already preparing a full three-course meal for her."

Kyle simply raised his eyebrows, looking entirely unbothered by Alaric’s aggressive stance. He offered a small, calm smirk, stepping back slightly. "Just a friendly offer, Your Majesty. Patients recover faster when they eat good food."

"She will recover just fine with me," Alaric growled back, his jaw locked tight.

Before the tension between the two men could boil over into another staring contest, the door to the room swung wide open.

Pierre walked inside, looking calm. The moment his eyes landed on Ezekiel, who was leaning against the window sipping whatever, Pierre’s face completely lit up with a bright, handsome smile.

"Ezekiel,” Pierre called out happily.

Ezekiel immediately dropped his cup onto the side table, his usual sarcastic smirk vanishing into a look of pure joy. He took three fast strides across the room and threw his arms wide.

Pierre stepped straight into his space, and the two of them wrapped each other in a tight and open hug right in the middle of the room, patting each other’s backs with loud, happy laughs.

Alaric turned his head, staring at the emotional reunion with a look of visible discomfort and annoyance. His eyebrows pulled down into a deep frown as he looked away, clearly having zero patience for Ezekiel’s loud display in a medical room.

Ezekiel caught Alaric’s disgusted expression out of the corner of his eye. Without letting go of Pierre’s shoulder, Ezekiel turned his head and shot a fierce glare right back at Alaric, tilting his head slightly like a petty child before turning back to talk to Pierre.

I let out a chuckle, shaking my head at the ridiculous group of people packed into my hospital room.

Suddenly, the light atmosphere in the room shifted.

The door opened once more, and Celeste stepped inside. She was dressed in her official suit, her hair pulled back into a tight braid.

Her face was unusually pale, her brows drawn together in a look of seriousness and concern. She looked around the room, her eyes sweeping over Pierre, Ezekiel, and finally landing on Kyle.

"Alpha, Rowena," Celeste spoke, her voice dropping into a whisper. "Something has come up. Something is very wrong. I need to discuss a critical matter with both of you in private."

Alaric turned to face her, a brow coming up in a questioning way. "There is no need for you to be so secretive, Celeste. Everyone in this room is cleared for high-level pack business. You can speak out in the open."

Celeste hesitated, her eyes darting over to Kyle, who was standing quietly near the back corner of the room. She frowned slightly, pointing a gloved finger straight at him.

"I don’t know him," Celeste said flatly, her tone cold and guarded. "He is an outsider. Ask him to leave the room first before I talk; this matter is critical.”

Kyle nodded calmly, putting his pen back into his pocket. "I understand. I will step outside...."

"No, stay, Kyle," I cut in immediately but calmly, raising my hand to stop him. I looked at Celeste with a calm expression. "Kyle saved my life in front of the hospital this morning, Celeste. If he hadn’t pulled me out of the way of that speeding SUV, I wouldn’t be sitting here to listen to your report. So he can stay."

What was there to lose anyway? Kyle looked harmless.

Celeste looked at me worriedly, then looked at Alaric, who gave a brief, reluctant nod of agreement.

She let out a long sigh, stepping further into the center of the room. She reached into her leather belt pocket, pulled out a small black data drive, and held it tightly between her fingers.

"Fine," she finally began without holding back, her voice dropping into a serious tone that made the matter’s gravity clear. "I just received an urgent encrypted report from our intelligence scouts on the northern border." She looked directly into my eyes, her expression darkening. "As we know, Drake is active again," Celeste revealed, and I nodded. "According to the intercepted files, Drake has officially implored someone inside this very city to keep a close, constant eye on everything both of you do."

Both of you, as in Alaric and me.

The entire room fell into complete silence.