Chapter 99

He needed men. He only had a few hours before sundown and he wasn’t trusting that the trial was going to happen without a fight breaking loose. It was supposed to be a civil trial between Marlon and his son, with the king and queen ruling, but he had a feeling there was going to be much more at play once they arrived.

He didn’t want to tell Deonna of his suspicions, but he knew he was going to need the strongest of the strong to fight by his side tonight.

He also needed his servants back so they can help clean up the mess Petra and Alex left around the manor.

Deonna slept peacefully in his bed beside him as he scurried out the door and into the darkened hallway. There was still no lighting, so it was darker than usual.

He made his way down the hall to the guest room that Petra was sleeping inside. He was glad that she was already awake. She was still cuffed to the bed; the cuff that he used was made to prevent her from not only going anywhere but also transitioning into a wolf.

“Where are they?” He asked as he barged into the guest room.

She frowned and stared at him as if she had no idea what he was talking about, but before she could ask, he spoke again.

“My servants. The ones around the manor, where are they?” Marlon clarified with force in his tone.

“I don’t know,” she said with a shrug. “They stormed out when I told them Alex was going to be their new master. They didn’t want to work for him.”

Marlon rose his eyebrows.

“You told me you drove them out; they left on their own terms?” Marlon asked.

She nodded once.

“Yes, they are probably scattered around the kingdom by now. But they didn’t want anything to do with me or Alex. So, they left,” Petra explained.

He breathed out relieved.

“So, I can still get them back?” Marlon asked more to himself than to her.

“If you can find them.”

“I don’t need to find them. They can find me,” Marlon said as he ran from the room.

“Bob!” He shouted from the hallway.

Bob popped out of one of the guest rooms; he was shirtless and looked flustered. Marlon cocked an eyebrow up at him, knowing that it was the guest room that Kamala was in. He made a mental note to ask him about that later, but not right now. He had something else he needed to do right now.

“Gather the rest of the guards that came back with us. We need to gather as many people around the kingdom as possible. Gather them to the center of town and I’ll meet you there,” Marlon ordered his son.

Bob looked at him confused for a moment.

“For what reason, father?” Bob asked.

“We need to build an army of the strongest men around the kingdom,” Marlon answered.

“You think there’s going to be another war?” Bob asked, raising his eyebrows.

“We need to be prepared for anything thrown at us,” Marlon answered.

He nodded once before heading down the hall to get dressed.

“What’s going on?” Deonna asked, poking her out of Marlon’s room.

She looked groggy and her curly hair fell in messy waves around her face; she yawned as she walked out of the bedroom.

“We need to go to the kingdom,” Marlon answered.

She looked puzzled for a moment and then her face fell as she read Marlon’s expression.

“There’s going to be another war?” She asked.

“If anything happens; it’ll be a revolution.”

…

It didn’t take long for Bob and the guards to gather the townspeople around the kingdom; they stood in the center of the kingdom, mumbling amongst themselves about what Marlon could possibly want. They all had worried expressions on their faces and rumors were already speculating.

Surely, they had heard that Alex was trying to take over the Roessler estate and that Marlon had abandoned everybody. But he needed them to see that it wasn’t true and that he was back and stronger than ever. He wasn’t going to allow Alex to take over his estate; it wasn’t his to take and North-Valley also wasn’t his to take.

He needed his people to know that he would never abandon them, and he was going to make sure the king understood that as well. He at least knew that the queen would be on his side. She was always kind to him, and she was the one who helped him rescue Mateo and Deonna from the king’s palace grounds. He hoped that she would help save his estate as well.

As he stood in front of the crowd, they all stared up at him with awe. It was no wonder he was the highest-ranked nobleman. His beauty alone made the crowd go silent; they held onto every word she spoke and would follow him anywhere. But with everything going on, they were unsure of who to trust and they had no idea what was happening.

He was pleased that some of the crowd he recognized to be his servants; Winston stood towards the front, staring at him with such dismay and doubt lingering in his eyes. He noticed Beatrice was standing nearby with some of the other maids that had worked in his manor. They all looked worried, but a couple of maids looked relieved to see him finally.

They must have been losing their minds trying to figure out what was going on. Petra had them convinced that Marlon had taken off with Deonna and abandoned them. With how Marlon had been acting towards Deonna, it wasn’t such a weird lie for them to believe. But what they didn’t like was the fact that Alex would be taking over as the estate owner. They didn’t trust Alex and they would be damned if they worked for them. With Marlon gone and Alex not in power yet, the servants didn’t need to stay. They felt there was no point in staying.

“I know I’ve been asking a lot lately. First, the war that took out most of the kingdom and now my absence,” Marlon began; his voice booming across the streets of Mooncrest. “But I want you to know that I did not abandon any of you. I was held captive and couldn’t partake in my role as a nobleman. For that, I apologize.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “I apologize to the people of the kingdom. I apologize to my trusted servants. And I apologize to my family.”

They all continued staring at him with awe.

“As most of you know, my son Alex had gone rogue. He’s after something bigger than us all and I fear once power gets granted to him, it will fully destroy everything we have built so hard to obtain. I will not allow him the chance to get my estate. I will not get him the chance to rule my kingdom,” Marlon continued. “I need the strongest of volunteers men and women, of all fur colors. If there is a fight, we fight.

He was surprised when Winston took a step forward.

“We are with you, sir,” Winston said, locking eyes with Marlon. “Whatever you need, we are with you.”

Marlon smiled down at him.

“It’s good to have you back,” Winston added with a small smile of his own.

Beatrice stepped beside him as well.

“I don’t agree with a lot of things,” she said, looking over at Deonna who looked down avoiding her eyes. “But I do agree that Alex shouldn’t have that estate. There’s no telling what he would do once he’s been granted the power. So, the other maids and I will return to the manor and do our part as we always have.”

Marlon stared around the crowd, grateful to have them all on his side. He knew it wouldn’t take a lot of convincing; nobody trusted Alex.

This was the final fight.