Princess survival rule number one: do not look at the dragon king. Do not look at the dragon king. Do not look at the dragon king.
She looked at the dragon king. Again. Briefly. He was already back to looking at her. She looked away first, and added that to the running tally of small humiliations she would be addressing with the Moon Goddess.
She missed her father's next sentence and zoned back in on a few words.
".... Lunaris takes our alliances very seriously… court trained…."
Cassian didn't move next to her, but his eyes slid sideways towards her like a man watching a carriage wreck in real time. A smirk on his face.
"—leave here with a virgin bride."
She choked on her drink, coughing. For a moment there, she thought he said something about her going somewhere with one of these strangers. After she just escaped.
Her father shot her a look that communicated everything. He held it two full seconds. Almost like a 'try me' which she wouldn't have.
He held the stare long enough that it was an assertion of dominance. Any wolf with two eyes would've seen that she wasn't challenging it. Just genuinely surprised.
He turned back to the crowd. "Any house that sees value in such blood and wishes to strengthen our houses, may approach me tonight. I will consider all offers."
She blinked again. She hadn't misheard. She didn't know what was worse being here or making a run for it with at least twenty wolves capable of Alpha speed.
"Has she had a heat yet?" Alpha Ashfang asked.
Guinevere's face heated at the very question. Gods. What was it with Alphas asking that.
She wondered if it was possible to set yourself on fire through sheer embarrassment alone. She was about to find out.
"She has not," her father answered. Guinevere didn't know if that was a bad or good thing.
"How do we know if she is fertile then?" An Alpha that she didn't know asked.
Ashfang's eyes raked over her openly as he named his price. "I'll take my chances. Two million pounds of northern gold, plus the iron mines along the Black Ridge. My pack controls the best steel in Nyros."
Tyler blinked. Cassian blinked. Guinevere strongly considered blinking herself right out of existence.
Renwick Lunaris kept his expression neutral, but Guinevere knew her father. The man hadn't invited every Alpha to the same room by fucking accident. This was exactly what he wanted. No private offers.
Across the hall, King Drakencrest's fingers had curled into the edge of the table hard enough that the wood was complaining about it. Gwen watched a knot in the grain split under his thumb. His golden eyes had darkened from sun to fire, and the message his face was sending was one she did not have a vocabulary for yet.
If she wasn't stunned by the fact that this was happening, she'd have blushed. But at the moment she was detached. Like this was happening to another girl in a white dress. Not her.
"Four million pounds of pure gold," Alpha Duskwin said. "The entire eastern timber forest, and safe passage for all Lunaris trade through my rivers for the next fifty years. Timber and gold — what more could a pack need?"
The room went still. Jaws collectively fell on the floor. Somewhere in the back of the room, a fork hit a plate. Nobody picked it up.
Alpha Nighthowl leaned back with a predatory grin. "Six million pounds of gold, plus my pack's entire information network across Nyros. Every secret Stonehowl thinks he hides will be yours within a week. Open borders between our packs. And I pledge my armies."
This time, someone did choke on their drink. Next to her Tyler let out a breath. Cassian shot her a look, like he was confused why they were offering that for her. She gave him a flat unimpressed fuck-off look right back.
Snickers followed. Whoops.
Alpha Ravencrest's voice carried clear across the hall. "Nine million pounds of gold, my personal fleet of twenty war galleys, and I'll throw in the hand of my sister as a secondary bride for your son Cassian. Two alliances for the price of one."
Cassian smirked like a man who was confident, but then it fell because he just realized the joke was about him. Good. He turned his head to towards his father and Guinevere fought the urge to laugh.
Tyler was full on grinning, the smart ass energy radiating off of him could have powered the castle. His entire posture was a victory lap.
Alpha Grimscar rose halfway from his seat, eyes locked on Renwick. "Ten million pounds of gold, delivered in chests by dawn, plus permanent control of the trade route through the Crimson Pass."
He turned to Alpha Bloodfang. "To keep our alliance, I will open the pass to Grimscar if he throws in the hand as a secondary bride for your son Cassian. My Beta's daughter is also unmated, for your Beta's son. Three way alliance."
Tyler's smirk vanished so fast it should have left skid marks. There it was. Justice. Swift, brutal, and wearing a three-way alliance as a disguise.
It would have been funny. Actually, a few high ranking officers were taking obvious sips of their drinks, fighting laughs. One had his goblet pressed to his mouth so hard the rim was leaving a mark.
Her father seemed pleased with that. At least if she was going down the two geniuses next to her her were going down with her.
Lord Raventhorn from the continent of Velkaris spoke next. "I offer a dragon fleet of protection. And twenty million pounds of gold in payment every year for the next five for one hundred million."
Silence exploded in the room. Dragons were more powerful than wolves. One dragon could burn an entire wolf army. Her father opened his mouth. Closed it. That was too good of an offer to refuse. Everyone knew it.
He opened his mouth again, but King Shadowfell spoke first. The most powerful man on the entire continent of Nyros, ruler of the largest pack and the most territories. The young one that she hadn't seen before tonight.
"One hundred million pounds of gold paid tonight and every year for the next ten. Full military support. Open borders. And I will personally ensure Stonehowl doesn't step foot in your territory again."
His eyes were locked on Guinevere with blatant possession, there was no mistaking it now. Half the alphas growled softly under their breath at the open claim, the other half joined the stunned faces.
Then the Drakencrest King spoke. The one she told to go hide in a hole. The one who'd been staring at her for the past thirty minutes and that she kept accidentally looking at.
"Two Hundred and Fifty million pounds of gold paid tonight and every year for the next decade. A full dragon fleet," he said. "And I've already taken care of Stonehowl."