Timothy stood behind his boss inside in his office, in a building that was a fortress. The office had wide windows, draped with velvet curtains. The walls were lined with shelves of books, scrolls, contracts and a suspicious number of fox-shaped statues. His desk was massive, carved from interstellar mahogany that was polished so thorough that assistants could see their terrified reflections in it.
Meetings in this room were rarely ordinary. Beast men nobles seeking alliances, merchants in need of trading licenses, security plans and protocols and other important things. But, today, every proposal and request had been met with the same icy tone: "No."
Timothy, the nervous rabbit beast man wanted to escape himself. "M--my lord, perhaps we should just call it a day?"
Elias responded with a glare.
Timothy got the message. "Maybe you can be gentler."
Elias looked back, shooting him another glare sharp enough to cut steel. "Gentler? Do I have to pat them and sing lullabies for bringing stupid proposals? You have hawks fighting mer beast pirates, seeking our help to side with them. The mers are our neighbors, if I send foxes to battle them, they will match right into the city and wreak havoc. So no, Timothy, I cannot be gentle. This is politics, not bedtime."
Timothy gulped. "Yes, my lord." He wondered if the boss's terrible mood was related to the trending topic on BeastNet, the largest interstellar beast man social platform. Usually, the Fox lord trended for his looks. Today, he was trending because of his wife.
The trending headline read: "Dreamy Fox Lord Elias Called Horrible by His Wife--Sienna Speaks Out!"
Comments were flooding in:
"What did he do?"
"Sienna the terrible, calls her husband horrible. Does anyone believe this?"
"Sienna is not a bad wife. Fox lord is too strong in bed!"
It had been thirty minutes since Timothy last checked his phone. He wanted to take a small peek, and see what was new on the 'horrible husband' front.
"Help, my husband is too horrible and fierce in bed! cried Sienna."
This was the new trending topic. Accompanied by an animated image of a fox beast man that looked a lot like Elias, standing over a an extremely chubby non beast man woman supposed to be Sienna.
It was not the fact that Sienna had been drawn like a massive shapeless frightened blob that made Timothy burst into laughter. It was the look on Elias' face. Huge teeth, long claws and big feet that were nothing like his boss.
"Care to share?" Elias asked Timothy. His voice was colder than the wind in winter.
Timothy squeaked. "I...I...nothing my lord. I mean my boss." He pursed his lips and briefly closed his eyes. This issue needed to be brought to Elias. "Just...you are trending on BeastNet."
Elias groaned. "No matter which version of Sienna I get, it doesn't change the fact that I married a public relations disaster."
Just as he was about to look at Timothy's phone and see what else was being said about him, the door creaked open. Patience Murchison stepped inside. She was an average woman, in everything. Not too tall, not too slim and pretty but not stunning. Even her mental strength was average, at a firm 'C'. But, there was nothing average about her perfume that was thick enough to choke a dragon.
Elias clenched his jaw, watching the liar approach his desk with a smile. Her lies had made him destroy what could have been a happy home. Now, the truth had surfaced.
His tail lashed like a whip. "You! you dared to lie to me."
Over the years, Patience had made friends among the Veythar servants. Friends that kept her updated on the comings and goings of the family. She was already aware that her lies had been uncovered.
She smiled nervously. "Elias, I came to explain--"
"Explain?" His voice thundered. "Explain how you slandered the mother of my children. My wife? How you watched me treat her coldly. How you whispered lies about a relationship between us whenever she was in listening distance?"
Patience's eyes widened. She looked around, seeking for Liman. If anyone had found that information, it had to be the tiger beast woman. Sienna was cowardly and she would not have dared to say it out loud.
Timothy, took a step back as Elias rose. His ears were trembling. This is going to be ugly, he thought.
Patience wrung her hands. "Elias its not like that. She is not a beast man, you married her just because she was knocked up. I was just trying to help you out. You deserve a woman that can be respected--"
"Respected?" He barked a laugh. "Who are you to decide for me what kind of wife I need? What right do you have to make decisions concerning my personal life?"
"I am your friend and I am loyal to you." She replied, very self righteous. Not one ounce of regret on her face.
"You are no friend of mine." he snapped. "Your loyalty stinks of treachery and ambition. You wanted to climb into my household by trampling my wife's dignity."
Patience rolled her eyes. "What dignity does a gold digger have?"
Elias slammed his paw on the desk. "Silence!"
Patience flinched. "It's the truth. If you didn't think so, you would have told someone to investigate her. I overheard you and Liman discussing it. She asked for your connections and money in exchange for sex. She sold her body to you so who knows who else she sold sex to? It was by luck that those children turned out to be yours. She doesn't deserve to be your wife."
His tail lashed out, slapping Patience on the cheek. It left a cut and a bruise.
Patience's face crumpled. Her eyes widened in shock. He had never struck her before. Now, for a prostitute like Sienna, he dared to lay hands on her!
Timothy, desperate to diffuse tension piped in, "My lord, Miss Patience, maybe ....:
Elias raised his hand. "You have let me down Patience. My biggest taboo is deceit and the second is disloyalty. You have done both. Our friendship ends here and so does your position of enforcer on the fox vanguard."
Patience's face lost all color. "Elias....no. I...."
"I expect you to apologize to my wife before the day ends." He said coldly.
Patience laughed. "You want me to apologize to a non beast man!"
Elias' face remained cold. "Before the day ends, Patience, or you will face my wrath. Do not make me your enemy. You know better than others how I treat my enemies."
There were times when Elias could be reasoned with, but this was not one. Both Timothy and Patience knew this.
Patience bowed and left.