The Alpha King's Rebellious Queen
The Alpha King’s Rebellious Queen Chapter 89

Cassius’s POV

Jemma and I were approaching the pupcare building when we heard Nick’s horrific screams. Without words, we ran inside to a scene of horror. Barb, the head caretaker, was desperately trying to console our screaming pup. The other caretaker had the other pups corraled on the other side of the room.

Barb looked at us with tear-streaked eyes as Jemma ran over to Nick. The pup swatted out at Jemma as she called his name. “Nicky. Nicky.” She said repeatedly and then tried to grab Nick, but he ran from her.

“NO DON”T TOUCH ME!” He screamed and hid under a table.

I walked towards Jemma, but she held up a hand. “Wait, Cass.” She ordered, and I stopped.

I looked at Barb, who was shaking. “I’m sorry, your majesty. H-he w-oke f-from his nap screaming and I was just about to call you-” She blubbered, and instinctively I pulled the hysterical woman to my chest and let her sob.

I looked at the other caretaker. “Are they alright?”

The wide-eyed younger woman nodded but said nothing.

Nick had quieted down as Jemma had somehow gotten ahold of him and had him in her arms. She was talking to him as he continued to sob.

The doors of the building flew open as a few wolves, male and female, walked in. “I called a few of the other parents,” The younger caretaker told me.

The other wolves bowed to me, and Angela stepped towards me. “Cassius, what the hell is going on?” My friend asked as her son Nico ran over to her.

The other pups had run into the arms of their worried parents.

I still had Barb in my arms as I looked at the others. “I am so sorry, everyone. My young son suffered an episode.”

Barb backed away from my arms. She sniffled. “Thank you.” She said quietly to me.

I managed a slight smile and patted her arm. One of my warriors stepped forward with his young pup in his arms. “Will your son be alright?”

Shaking my head, I looked towards Nick and Jemma. Nick had stopped crying and was just being held by his mother. “I do not know. We were on our way to take him to his first therapy appointment.” I told the other parents. “I pray your pups aren’t traumatized. If any of you need anything. Anything at all, don’t hesitate to ask.” I told them all. They all seemed reassured by my words.

Jemma walked towards me. Nick was just resting against her chest. “Hey, Nick,” I said to him, and he looked up at me but said nothing.

“We are pulling Nick out of pupcare until we get a handle on this,” Jemma told Barb. “I am so, so sorry.”

Barb placed her hand on Jemma’s arm. “Queen Jemma, you don’t have to do that.”

“I know, but I think it’s best for everyone. I can’t have the other pups traumatized, and we have Liz to help.”

“I pray to the Goddess that Nick gets the help he needs. He is such a sweet little pup and deserves to be happy.”

Jemma smiled at Barb. “Thank you, Barb.”

Sighing, I placed my hand on the small of Jemma’s back and looked at the other parents. “Are you all alright?”

They nodded. “Cass, just get him help,” Angela said to me while holding her son.

“We are headed to the hospital now to meet with this Dr. Jennings.”

“Oh, she is good,” Angela remarked.

“That’s what Dr. Hansen said.”

Angela leaned into me. “She is a witch but also an actual doctor. So she may have medications that will help.”

“I don’t want to drug my son.” Jemma declared.

Angela sighed. “Jemma, I don’t mean like the human kind of drugs. More like herbs that will help but not be destructive to his wolf like human meds.”

I looked at my mate. “We have to consider everything, love.”

“Okay.” She looked up at me. “Let’s get going.”

I clasped her hand and nodded to the other parents and caregivers before we walked out of the building. We walked towards the hospital and saw a woman with olive-colored skin with curly black hair standing by the front door. She was wearing a black skirt with a blue blouse. I had never seen her before. She saw Nick in Jemma’s arms and regarded him.

“That must be Nicholas?” She asked.

“Yes,” Jemma replied. “He just had an incident.”

The woman looked between us. “Sorry, I’m Dr. Jennings, and I assume you are King Cassius and Queen Jemma.”

“Yes,” I replied to her and held out a hand.

She shook it. “Let’s go on in. Dr. Hansen has lent me an office we can talk in.” This doctor was very forward, but we followed her into a barren office with a couple of chairs and a low table. There were blocks and crayons with paper on the table. “You can set the pup down.” The doctor instructed Jemma.

Jemma set Nick down and then sat in one of the chairs. She held her belly for a moment and winced. The doctor tilted her head.

“How far along are you?”

“Three months,” Jemma replied.

“Twins?”

We both nodded.

The doctor picked up a briefcase that was sitting beside one of the chairs. She pulled out a pad of paper and a pen. “Let’s get started. First, I would like to talk to the three of you together to get some background. Then I will speak with Nicholas alone.”

I saw Jemma stiffen at the mention of him being alone. I grabbed her hand and held it tight. The doctor quietly observed the action. “Speaking with the pup alone is part of the process.”

“We understand, doctor,” I told her. Jemma chewed on her bottom l*p. Nick was coloring while murmuring to himself.

“What is your name?” He asked her.

She smiled warmly at him. “My name is Dr. Tasha Jennings, and who might you be?”

Nick looked back at us and then at the doctor. “I am Prince Nick.” He smirked at me.

I snorted quietly at his cheekiness. The doctor wrote something down. “Can either of you tell me what lead to your son’s alleged PTSD?”

Jemma sighed and looked at me. She squeezed my hand. “Well, it all started when I discovered who my mate was-” She then told the doctor everything from when she and I were mated, and I made her leave Nick behind to when they were captured by my cousin and Jeremy. When she was done, tears streamed down her cheeks, and she sniffled.

“Don’t cry, Mommy,” Nick was standing in front of his mother.

Jemma pulled him towards her. “I am okay, baby.”

The doctor was still writing, and she looked at me. “Why did you think separating your mate from her pup was a good idea?”

My mouth fell open, and I had to repress a growl. “Why do you need to know that? Can’t you just help him with the PTSD?”

“It helps me to know all of the background information. Because from what your mate told me, that was the start of his trauma. Being ripped from his mother that young has an effect.”

I gulped, remembering that day from Jemma’s hysterical crying to seeing Jeremy having to pry Nick from her arms. I hadn’t been thinking clearly and thought it was the best course of action. “I was selfish,” I confessed to her. “I was angry that my mate was not pure when I met her.”

Jemma stiffened and looked at the ground. I gripped her hand. “I mean, it was hypocritical of me. I wasn’t a virgin when I met Jemma. But I was angry she had a pup with another male, and my possessive nature came through. I saw Nick as the product of my definition of infidelity.” I explained. “But I was wrong. So wrong.”

I glanced at Jemma, who had tears in her eyes. The doctor was writing on her notepad. “Mmmhmm.” She murmured and looked at my queen. “And how did that make you feel, your majesty?”

Jemma cleared her throat. “How do you think I felt?” She said with an air of bitterness. She pulled her hand away from mine. “I felt like shit.” She looked at the doctor as she spoke. “I felt like a terrible mother for allowing him to take me away from my pup. I mean, I didn’t even want a mate because I knew Jeremy or I would have to be separated from Nicky, and I didn’t want that.” I sighed sadly as Jemma spoke.

The doctor regarded my expression and wrote something down. “It appears you both worked things out, though.”

Jemma patted her belly. “You could say that. I love Cassius more than anything. I couldn’t imagine not being his mate.”

“Mmmhmm.” The doctor murmured again while writing in her notebook. “So, you were in love with another male before the King?”

“We are here for Nicholas,” I growled.

Dr. Jennings ignored my growl and looked at Jemma.

“Yes, I was. My childhood best friend, Jeremy. We grew up together since his father was my father’s beta. I lost my virginity to him.”

I couldn’t contain another growl from rumbling out of my chest.

“Your majesty, please understand these questions are necessary.”

“What does it have to do with Nick?” I snarled.

The doctor adjusted herself in her chair. “Isn’t the man you mate was in love with before she met you, the father of your son?”

I nodded. “Yes.” I hissed.

“Well, then it has everything to do with Nicholas.” She took down some more notes. “And were you still in love with the other man after you were mated to the king?” Dr. Jennings asked Jemma.

“Not in love. But I still loved him,” Jemma replied, eliciting another low growl from me. “A year after Nicky was born, Jeremy met his fated mate and well chose her over me. I sort of fell out of love with him after that.” Jemma explained as she glanced at me. Her violet eyes showing a hint of regret. “But Jeremy was still in love with me as he and his mate weren’t compatible. My being mated to Cassius drove him over the edge. Or so I thought.”

“Perhaps.” Dr. Jennings mused as she wrote more down. “Okay, enough about you two. Tell me about the nightmares Nicholas has been having.”

Jemma explained the nightmares and the recent incidents where he saw the scenes while awake. Like the earlier incident at pupcare. Dr. Jennings wrote everything down. “Do you think you can help him? It breaks my heart hearing my pup screaming the way he does.”

“Of course I can help, Jemma. That is what I am here for.” The doctor flashed my mate a reassuring smile. “So that you know, I am a witch. Not a particularly strong one, but I do know my way around healing herbs.”

“Dr. Hall did mention you were. It doesn’t bother me.” Jemma said to her. “I just want my pup to feel better.” She sniffled as a tear fell down her cheek. I reached over and wiped it from her face, and she smiled at me.

“I will do everything I can. Now, I need to talk with Nicholas alone.”

Jemma sighed heavily and stood up. “We’ll be right outside.” She grabbed my hand and pulled me to my feet. “Nicky, stay here and talk to the nice doctor. Daddy and I will be right outside.” I followed her out of the office reluctantly. We went into the waiting room, and she sat on one of the chairs. Her eyes drooped slightly as she leaned her head against the wall.

“Are you tired, love?”

She nodded at me. “Very.”

I clasped her hand. “After this, I’ll take charge of Nick, and you can go rest in our room.”

She smiled weakly at me. “Thank you.” She leaned her head on my shoulder. “I am so worried about him, Cass.”

“We all are, Jemma. But I think that doctor can help him,” I brought her hand to my lips and gently kissed her soft skin.

“I got the impression that you didn’t like her,” she chuckled dryly. She looked up as Angela walked into the waiting room. “How is Nico?”

“He is alright. After you two left, the pups went straight back to playing.” She explained as she sat next to Jemma. “How are you two doing?”

“I don’t know, Ange,” Jemma replied. “My pup is in distress, and I feel like a bad mother because it’s my fault this all happened.”

“It’s not your fault, Jemma,” I said to her. “You are not a bad mother.”

“Cass, it right. You are a great mother. Sometimes s**t happens, Jemma. You couldn’t have known you and Nick would be captured and put through torture,” Angela explained to her.

I placed my hand on Jemma’s round belly and felt one of my unborn pups kick. “You would give your life for your pups, Jemma. They are blessed to have you as their mother.”

Jemma smiled sadly at me and placed her hand on mine.

Angela squeezed Jemma’s arm. “Everything will be alright. Dr. Jennings is good at what she does.”

“I hope you are right, Angie.” Jemma smiled at our friend.

Angela stood up. “I have to get back to work.”

“Wait, Angela, is that warrior that was brought in earlier still here?”

“You mean the one you threw across the field?” She asked me pointedly.

I gritted my teeth as I remember my earlier outburst of anger. “Yeah, that one.”

“He is. I am keeping him overnight to heal fully,” She explained.

I stood up. “Take me to his room.” I looked down at Jemma. “Love, I am going to go speak with that young warrior.”

She nodded and yawned. “Okay. I’ll be right here, possibly sleeping.”

I leaned down and kissed her forehead before following Angela out of the waiting room. She indicated the room the warrior was in. “Thanks, Angie,” I smirked at her, and she walked away. I knocked on the door before stepping into the room. A young warrior was sitting upon a hospital bed watching TV. He stiffened as I stepped into the room. “Good afternoon, warrior.”

He bowed his head. “King Cassius.”

“I just wanted to come here to apologize to you.” I sat on a chair next to his bed. The warrior trembled slightly.

“A-apologize, sir?” He sounded confused.

“Yes. Apologize. I shouldn’t have used training as an excuse to relieve anger. And because of that, I injured one of my warriors. So for that, I wanted to apologize.”

He nodded. “It’s alright, your majesty.”

“No, it isn’t alright. That isn’t an example I want to set for my kingdom. You could have been seriously injured.”

“I accept your apology.”

“What is your name, by the way?”

“Jeffery, sir. Jeffery Mace.”

I held out my hand to him. “You shall be compensated for your lost time and injuries.”

“I’m healing quickly, sir. That isn’t necessary.”

“I insist.”

The warrior laughed. “Well, if you insist. I require a million dollars and a yacht.”

I raised an eyebrow at him, and he laughed again.

“I was kidding.”

I threw my head back and laughed. “Good one, Jeffery. Are you a comedian as well as a warrior?”

He shrugged. “You sound like my father.”

“Please, I am not that old.” I rolled my eyes, and he laughed.

“I just like to make people laugh, your majesty. So I joke a lot.”

I chuckled. “That is a good quality to have, Jeffery.”

“Thank you.” He said as we heard growling coming from outside the room.

The growling sounded familiar, and I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose and stood up. “If you excuse me, Jeffery. It sounds like my queen is about to kill someone.”

Jeffery started laughing again. “Queen Jemma is a bit of a badass, isn’t she?”

I looked down at him. “She is a total badass. Have a good day.” I said as I rushed out of the room and looked down the hall to see my very pregnant queen holding Heidi, the nurse, by the throat against the wall. “Jemma!”