The Alpha King's Rebellious Queen
The Alpha King’s Rebellious Queen Chapter 39

Jemma’s POV

It was a relief that Cassius and I agreed about Alpha Reynolds. It was clear to me that he was an abusive a*****e to his mate. I saw the way she flinched whenever he moved his hands. I could see the pain in her eyes as she silently winced whenever she moved. The way he spoke to Izzy and Ainsley only made my b***d boil.

After Cassius had us leave the room, Izzy and I gently guided Nicole to one of the conference rooms. We all sat down. “Would you like anything to drink, Luna Nicole?” Izzy asked her.

The luna shrugged. “Just water.” She finally spoke. Her voice was almost a whisper. “Blake gets angry if I have anything that might make me gain weight.”

I looked her up and down. It was clear she was skin and bones under the “Little House on the Prairie” dress. “Well, he isn’t here, and we won’t say anything,” I smirked at her.

“My kitchen staff makes excellent lemonade,” Izzy added and gave me a concerned look. I wished we were able to mind link. But her eyes told me she was under the same suspicions. “I’ll have them bring lemonade and some cupcakes.” “So, Nicole. Can I call you Nicole?” She nodded. “You can call me Jemma.” I scooted closer to her. “Can you tell me about your life with Alpha Reynolds?”

She shook her head and pulled her arms to her chest. She looked at the ground. “H-he is a g-good mate.” She said robotically. “I am bad sometimes, and he has to discipline me.”

“Discipline? You are his mate. Not his child. Does he beat you?” I blurted out.

Nicole flinched as tears fell down her cheeks. “I-I can’t say anything. H-he will discipline me.” She sobbed quietly. “Please.”

I sighed heavily and leaned towards Izzy. “What do we do, Izzy?”

“You have to use your authority as queen to get her to open up, Jemma.” She replied. “I know it may seem wrong, but it’s clear this poor woman needs our help.”

“Mother, you guys can’t seriously still think it’s in my best interest to be with Casper,” Ainsely said to her mother.

“No, Ainsley. I don’t think that. Though it may only be his father, that is a mate beater. Okay. Trust us.” She looked her daughter dead on. Ainsley slowly nodded, understanding. There was a knock on the door. Izzy stood up to answer it.

I focused on Nicole. “Nicole, I need to know. Does your mate beat you?” I used my Queen tone. It made Nicole bow her head. I hated doing this to her.

“Yes,” She replied quietly through her tears. “But it is my fault. I am bad, so he has to punish me.”

My heart ached for this woman. Izzy set a tray of food on the table beside us. Besides the lemonade, there were some finger sandwiches and bags of chips. “Eat up, Nicole. I could hear your stomach growling the whole time we were in my son’s office.”

Nicole shook her head. “I was bad this morning. So Blake says no food for three days.”

“Blake has no authority here, Nicole,” I explained to her. “Please eat something. I would feel I failed as your queen to allow a luna in my kingdom to starve while in my palace.”

Hesitantly, Nicole picked up a sandwich and bit into it. Then she devoured it ravenously. I sighed and looked at Izzy. “We can’t let this woman go back to him,” I whispered to my mother-in-law.

“We won’t.” She replied.

“Nicole, what did you do that was bad this morning?”

She was in the middle of devouring another sandwich when she paused. “I tried to wear a dress with shorter sleeves. He doesn’t like me to expose skin. It makes me a slut if I do. But it’s warm out, and I thought he’d understand. But he is right. I am a slut.” She picked up the lemonade and drank from the pitcher.

“Can we see your bruises?” I asked hesitantly. She put the pitcher down. “Look, Nicole. We will not tell your alpha anything.”

She stood up and tried unzipping her dress. “I-I can’t unzip my dress. My arm hurts too much.”

Izzy stood up. “I’ll help you, dear,” She gently unzipped Nicole’s dress, and we all gasped as she slowly slipped it down. Her body was almost completely purple from the bruises on her. “How long has this been going on?”

“Ever since the first night, Blake brought me home. He’s not my fated mate. He tells everyone I am his second chance, but he just claimed me three years ago at the Royal Mating Ball. He told my father that I would be well cared for. My real mate was there, but I never saw his face because Blake insisted he was my mate. And I believe him because I heard how great an alpha he was.” She began to sob, and she sat down again. “He is a monster. I am not allowed to speak to anyone but him. Not even other she-wolves. Though I sometimes speak to the omegas that clean our room. They are my only friends. I cannot eat unless he says so, and only what he says I can eat. He controls how much I eat. I am not allowed to leave our room hardly.”

I trembled with anger as she poured her heart out. ‘Cassius,’ I mind linked my mate. ‘Alpha Reynolds has been beating Nicole for three years. He controls her food intake. He doesn’t allow her to talk to anyone. Her body is covered in bruises.’

‘I suspected that. Take her to the hospital and have them do a full evaluation on her. In the meantime, I am taking the alpha into custody.’ He explained.

‘And what about Ainsley’s mate?’ I asked.

‘Dad and I will speak to him alone. We will make sure he is nothing like his father before we decide.’

‘Good.’ I replied to him. “Nicole, you are not going home with Blake. Cassius is taking him into custody. There is no tolerance for males who abuse their mates in this kingdom. We are going to take you to the hospital to have them examine you to see the extent of your injuries.”

She smiled slightly. “Then can I call my father? He is or was the alpha of the Eclipse Pack. My brother may have taken over by now.”

“Of course you can,” I said to her.

“Eclipse pack,” Izzy repeated. “Alpha Roland Case, right?”

Nicole nodded. “Yeah, that’s my dad.”

“We’ll call him as soon as you are done at the hospital,” Izzy smiled. “Now, let’s go.” She helped Nicole back to her feet and then helped her with her dress. As we opened the door, we heard growling in the hall. Nicole cowered behind Izzy and me while Ainsley was behind Nicole.

As we walked out, we saw Alpha Reynolds struggling to free himself from Sam and a few other guards as he shouted expletives. He saw us and lodged a death glare. Cassius and Terry were standing just behind him and the guards.

“NICOLE, WHAT DID YOU TELL THEM? YOU LYING w***e!” He bellowed.

I took a step towards him. “You will not speak to her that way.” I nearly spat at him. His eyes turned red as he glared at me.

“f**k YOU!” Alpha Reynolds roared at me. “YOU PUT HER UP TO THIS. I KNOW IT!” I saw the color of his eyes flickering. He was fighting his wolf.

“No, Blake. You only have yourself to blame, you lying abusive pig,” I sneered at him.

A roar like a growl shook the hall as Alpha Reynolds managed to break free from the guards and ran right towards me. I took a fighting stance as the angry alpha swung his fist at me so fast I was unable to block him. His fist connected with my chest, and it sent me flying backward a few feet. I saw stars as a thunderous growl shook the palace and then watched as Cassius had the a*****e alpha pinned to the wall within seconds of my assault. “DO NOT TOUCH MY PREGNANT MATE!” He bellowed.

My mouth fell open. What did he say?