Free The Panther's Surrogate: A Paranormal Pregnancy Romance by Angela Foxxe Page A

auditorium and silently, their leader stalked to his seat with a frown on his face. It was a grim look that he carried and the weight of it was nestled in his shoulders. He was not happy, nor should he be. He looked at the Council without a drop of amusement. The anger that flickered in his eyes was something that looked like a wildfire getting ready to spread.
    He waited a moment, gathering his thoughts before he stood up and addressed the crowd that had gathered here before him. He looked at all of them all for a moment, passing from person to person and assessing the people that he had brought under his wing and offered his peace to. Each of them had been important to him, precious even.
    “There has been an incident,” he said after a moment. “Faraji of the Hyena Clan has fallen from the twenty third story of the hotel and plummeted into the swimming area. He has suffered severe injuries, but thankfully, his naturally blessed body will make a recovery form the incident. He has refused to explain what has happened, but at the scene of the incident, Clan Leader Josie Night-Hawk and Panther Clan Member Kheem Tafir were found. This incident has sparked a series of questions that the Council demands answers to before action is taken. But, before we begin the inquiry, I must address the gravity of the situation.
    “The Hunters have been notified of the incident on Warco and they are not pleased with these actions. I know critics of mine will say that I spend too much time pandering and attempting to appease the Hunters, but the facts are simple. There are more Hunters than there are Shifters and they are better suited for a war than we are.
    I have built a sanctuary of peace here, not a militia. We have neither the interest nor the means of fighting a war against the Hunters and so I am forced to use diplomacy as my only means of handling the situation. With that said, I have the authority to handle the situation as I see fit.”
    “Death to the Hunters,” Tomas of the Hyenas shouted at the top of his lungs.
    “Silence,” King Roland barked at him. His glare fell on Tomas and it stayed there as the Hyena slowly sank back into his seat. His rebellion was short lived and soon he was left staring at the floor with a dazed look in his eyes.
    “By the authority given to me by all of you and this Council, I hereby declare that the peace is paramount to our survival. Anyone who threatens the peace will be forcing their clan into exile from my island. The safety of my islands ends at the waters of the ocean. The moment you step onto a boat, the Hunters will see fit to do with you as they please. So, police your own.
    If you sense that there is mischief happening, I suggest you handle it among your Clan before I am forced to take action. Any offender will be publically executed and the body destroyed before their home clan is sent into exile. This is the punishment for treason and breaking the truce. Am I understood?”
    The silence was all the confirmation that he needed from the group.
    “I will have the peace or I will have the heads of those who disrespect all of us enough to break the peace,” King Ronald said with a pointed response.
    He was tired of all of this already and Josie wondered how long this battle had been brewing. He was talking like he’d been waiting for this fight to happen for ages now and that it had just burst into flames finally. He was on full containment mode and that gave Josie some hope that he might actually control the events that were spiraling out of hand.
    “Now,” he said after clearing his throat. “Are there any questions?”
    The roar was deafening.
    * * *
    “Are you happy with this?” King Ronald asked them in the locked doors of the conference room that they had taken over once again.
    Jonathan, Wahir, and Jamar were all present as other members of the Lion Clan were stationed outside while the inquiry was taking place. There was something about all of this that felt like it was