The White Wolf Chapter 137: Committee Meetings

By the time Alexia made it back into the palace Enzo had caught back up to her. Her eyes shot to him but she said nothing. 

She slowed her walk making sure she was level-headed. She remembered Enzo’s words from earlier. No one she was meeting with would be doing her a favor. They were doing their jobs that they were paid handsomely to do. 

It was still all overwhelming as she did not quite feel like the Queen but she would have to put her feelings aside. There was a job to do. 

Arriving at the meeting room the footmen outside the door bowed and opened the door. Inside the room was a long table with leather chairs with seated dignitaries. When the queen walked in they all rose to their feet and bowed. There was one chair that was empty at the far end of the table but Alexia paid it no mind. 

A footman pulled out the queen's chair and slid it in under her as she sat down. “Shall we begin?” 

Quickly they retook their seats. In front of every place was a binder filled with papers. Harley sat in a chair against the wall behind the when ready to do her bidding. Enzo leaned against the wall next to her looking at his phone without an ounce of interest in the meeting. 

Alexia looked to the man in a navy suit sitting at her right assuming he was the leader of the grow. 

Taking her look as a prompt he introduced himself. “I am Thomas Sherry head of catering.”

“Thank you Thomas perhaps everyone can go around the table and introduce themselves.” Her hand gestured to the room. 

“Holly Gordon, secretary.” She introduced herself. 

“My secretary Harley will coordinate with you,” Alexia stated. 

“Yolanda Hayes, floral design. We have prepared several arrangements for you to look at but we are still waiting on a center flower.” Yolanda told her. 

“Roses. Always roses.” She said immediately. “Never a carnation.” 

Yolanda nodded and scribbled in her notebook. 

“Bernie Asada, fire management.”

It felt self-explanatory so the queen offered a welcoming smile and then moved on. 

“Silvia Rain, the treasure.” The thought of more ledgers made Alexia almost let out a groan. Almost but she held it back 

“Henson Sheridan, traffic control.” A topic she knew little to nothing about and would defer to their judgment. 

“Brandon Glen, emergency services.” accidents happened and they would need to be prepared. 

“River Smith, security.” Enzo looked at River having already known him. He would coordinate with him on the queen's behalf. 

They came to the empty seat and there was a pause many eyes looked to Thomas. He swallowed before we spoke. “The empty seat belongs to the foreign relations member.”

“Why do we need a foreign relations position? Can you elaborate?” Alexia turned the page and looked up with her brow furrowed. 

“I’m afraid not. We only received word this morning all that we know is some of the alphas pushed for the position.” The poor male seemed as if he was going to sweat under the queen's scrutiny as he pleaded with his eyes. 

“Do you know who was nominated to the position?” Her voice was calm and even as she spoke. Pursing her lips she waited for his answer. 

“No, your grace we have not been privy to that information.” He seemed afraid as if he were afraid she would order him to be beheaded. 

The names continued and their roles were soon forgotten. She wished she could make them wear name tags but that may seem a bit rude. 

“Alright, we learn their identity with their arrival.” She gestured to the one sitting next to the empty seat. “Please continue.” 

“Thank you, Your Majesty I am Paul Anderson head of public affairs. The public affairs committee has prepared a press briefing.” He had a coolness about him that could only be attributed to years of working in the press. 

Alexia turned into the binder to the table labeled public affairs. Mock drafts of public statements as well as media campaigns were all accounted for. 

“I will look it over and send approval. Let’s start with the invitations. Have they been printed?” The queen asked knowing they were short on time. 

“No your grace, there is a mockup in your binder. Once it receives your approval it will go to press.” He said with such ease she wondered how easy it was for him to lie. 

Turning the page she found the mockup and skimmed it quickly. They needed to get those out immediately so she said “Everything looks satisfactory, my office will send over an official approval immediately.”

Relief washed across his face “Thank you, your majesty, we will begin printing immediately.”

She smiled and then looked to the next person. Surprised he showed any emotion. 

“Wilmer Gleeson, your grace head of waste management. There is a diagram of placed receptacles as well as a schedule of how often the bins will be emptied.” His hands were clasped together as he spoke humbly. 

“Excellent and very thorough,” Alexia said approvingly causing Wilmer to smile happy he had pleased the queen.

“Jessamine Sander, head of catering. We will prepare a tasting for Your Majesty at your earliest convenience.” 

“Let us set up a time immediately. Harley will coordinate. Can we also go over any table setting at that?” Alexia asked looking up from the prepared menu that was provided to her. 

“Of course your grace, we will prepare both at the same time.” Jessamine agreed immediately. 

“I look forward to seeing what you have come up with.” The queen ended the short conversation. 

The meeting continued with different discussions. The public affairs committee led by Paul presented the vision for the blood moon ceremony had what they wished to achieve. 

The theme would be rebirth. With a new queen and king who only had ascended to the throne recently, it seemed perfect as they started their reign. 

They discussed how all committees would work together to achieve this. Alexia felt reassured that they were capable but she did not let her guard down. Not wanting to seem eager she stayed composed and listened occasionally asking for clarification but for the most part, watched as they interacted. 

As the meeting drew to a close, a commotion was heard outside of the door. Alexia turned looked at the door and then looked at Enzo who pushed off the wall and left the room. 

Enzo’s voice carried but Alexia could not make out what he was saying. The others in the room began to get nervous anxiously moving in their seat. 

Finally, Enzo opened the door and stuck his head through. His face was full of anger and annoyance. “The foreign relations member has arrived.” He said through gritted teeth. 

Just then he was pushed aside and in walked Delilah. She strutted in as if she owned it turning to the queen she smirked. “Your Majesty.”

Alexia was shocked but quickly remembered herself. “The meeting has long since begun.”

“My apologies but I was unpacking and lost track of time.” She said as if it were no big deal. 

“Perhaps then you are not up to the task and your position is given to someone else.” Alexia sat back in her chair in a relaxed manner. 

Delilah gritted her teeth. “My father and other alphas believed me to be the best candidate I could not disappoint them by stepping down.”

“Then you should honor their decision by being on time.” Alexia’s voice was serious and her eyes were void of emotion. 

“I will take my seat at once. Is this me?” Delilah walked over to the empty seat and sat down. 

“It’s too bad since we have already finished.” Alexia rose to her feet prompting everyone to get up as well. 

Delilah scrambled to stand up. “Since I was not here, it would be helpful if someone filled me in.” 

“I will not waste anyone’s time because you cannot be punctual. The meeting is over, we are leaving.” Alexia said turning and walking out the door. The other committee members followed her out the door but she did not look back.