The Rogues Who Went Rogue
Chapter 46

When the introductions were done, Xandar and Lucianne followed Greg through a cream-colored corridor which had so many turns that it felt like they were in a maze. There were doors the whole way in but some were actually red herrings - certain doors open up to walls, not

rooms. This was a precaution taken to buy time to escape, if they were ever found.

They finally entered a room with the same cream walls with a rectangular glass table placed in the middle. What was odd about this room was that there were no office chairs. Not one.

After those who followed the royals from the police station entered, Hailey closed the door. Greg placed his palm flat on the table. A faint blue glow scanned his handprint horizontally, vertically and around the shape of his palm before the blue words "ACCESS GRANTED" appeared in the middle of the table.

Lucianne's eyes widened in awe again as Greg tapped on a button that was so subtle that one couldn't see it because it looked like it was part of the glass. A clear hologram appeared right in the middle, floating right above the table. And Xandar started getting insecure when he felt Lucianne's awe over his cousin's highly-advanced technological devices.

The duke opened up a map of all territories, zooming in just enough to identify the inhabitants around Falling Vines and Saber Vagary. Deputy Chief Laurent spoke, “As impressive as this is, Your Grace, why are we looking at a map that can be found in any stationery store?" Greg's tapping pause at that remark before he continued tapping as he asked rhetorically, "Do all maps in stationery stores show this?"

Red and green dots appeared everywhere on the hologram in different densities. Lucianne's legs developed a mind of their own, and she gently detached herself from Xandar's hold, taking slow steps to get a better view of the dots.

She studied the color pattern with wide, analytical eyes, and wasn't aware that she was only two steps behind Greg's left shoulder, a little too close for her husband's comfort. Xandar stood a half a meter from his cousin before pulling Lucianne to stand in front of him as his arms gently wrapped around her shoulders and abdomen from behind just to make sure she stayed where she belonged, in his arms.

Suddenly, Lucianne started muttering to herself, "Green ones are the wolves. That's the Lone Light Pack, and then moving south, Misty Dawn and Cold River. The red ones," her head cocked to one side as she studied the two measly red dots in wolf territory on the hologram. Greg waited for her to figure it out as he stole a glimpse of her beautiful thinking face.

Lucianne eventually guessed, "Probably rogues."

Desmond's excited voice came from the corner, "Damn, the queen's good!"

Greg smirked as he said, "It's funny how you're still surprised, Desmond."

"I ain't surprised, boss. Just celebratin' that, for once, a royal is smart AND ain't judgy."

Greg's sharp eyes zoned-in on Desmond when he asked in a low voice, sounding somewhat offended, "And what the hell does that mean?"

Hailey patted Desmond on his shoulder as she pressed back a smile. Ivory looked at him and shook his head with a 'you're doomed' expression. Desmond then explained as cheerfully as he could, "Boss, I love ya. But ya gotta admit. Ya're judgy. Ya're smart. But reeaally judgy." Xandar swallowed the enthusiastic agreement he had in the name of 'being nice to his cousin', but Lucianne chuckled lightly at Desmond's remark. And because of that, any venomous words Greg was going to spit at Desmond couldn't come out through his parted lips when he got lost in that melodious sound. Desmond glanced at Lucianne and then back at Greg's softened features, suspecting that the queen might have just saved him from his own boss.

Greg smirked at the former Money Retriever, and said, "You got lucky today, Desmond."

When Xandar's grip around Lucianne's abdomen tightened, Lucianne started stroking his strong arm with her thumb as she asked, "Is it safe to say that the red dots come and go, Your Grace?"

Greg's eyes continued to fix on the screen as he said, "Yes, My Queen. But this is not recorded in real time. My followers scout sites like these once a week, or once in two to three weeks depending on the popularity of a particular location for rogue inhabitation and activity. This was updated two days ago, so perhaps w-"

Xandar's eyebrows furrowed when he cut Greg off with a question, "Does this mean you knew where Kylton's third supplier was this whole time?"

The cousins locked eyes, as the duke admitted in a dead tone, "Yes."

Xandar's tone turned homicidal when he prompted, "And you didn't mention this because?"

"Because they're also my supplier. Without them and their products, my followers would have no jobs, no money, and no life. I have legitimate businesses but it isn't enough to sustain ninety-eight creatures and the security measures required to keep them safe. There's also the fact that most of my people don't like being dormant. Selling, transporting and trafficking the supplied goods were the only ways to make an income and not die of hunger and boredom. You already had the suppliers you needed to do what you wanted to do with the Kyltons and ex- ministers. You didn't need this last one, cousin." Greg spat the last word with intense hate that he didn't bother to mask.

Lucianne's voice suddenly cut through the tense atmosphere, "Just out of curiosity, Your Grace, is that supplier also made up of previously-convicted felons by some...error on the justice system's part?"

The duke's eyes softened but he felt guilty for keeping this information from Lucianne, so he avoided her gaze as he answered, "You could say that, My Queen. The reason they're there as suppliers, and not here with us, is because it's safer for them to be there." "What do you mean, Your Grace?"

Greg slowly met her curious orbs, and after taking a breath to steady himself, he explained, "It's more risky to be on the field, My Queen, be it as transporters or traffickers. Moving about without raising suspicions is not a skill that's easily mastered by all. Those in the supply department either lack the talent, or have a family so they themselves cannot risk getting caught."

Lucianne processed this before she asked uneasily, "So...unlike Ivory's situation where his mate is NOT associated with him in formal documents, the suppliers are rogues as spouses?"

Greg nodded in confirmation before he added, "And some have rogue children, My Queen. No parent wants their kids to end up in an orphanage, brought up by creatures who'll tell them that their parents are traitors who never cared what happened to them." Lucianne instinctively glanced at Alissa, whose eyes fixed on the ground as she stared into space, no doubt thinking about her triplets again.

Xandar turned Lucianne around. His hard gaze penetrated into her eyes when he mind-linked her, 'Baby, there comes a point where we need to draw a line in this.