And then, there was his sister.The most exquisite part of his dreary existence. The only reason his heart still thrummed. The one who had inadvertently made him a protector. He loved her more than anything and he craved to see and touch her. The fact that Titan had constructed a bridgeless chasm between them had made him hate him the more. He could bet with every miserly thing he had that the psychopath was enjoying their painful separation to the fullest. Leo looked up at the single ray of light that shone from a hole in the ceiling, plunging the rest of the place into deep damp darkness. It was getting harder each day to keep hope alive. Whether it was to please his pack to please his people or to please himself, Titan Black relished this incarceration and had no intention of making him a free man once again. As the days passed, this belief hardened within him. The days were long and depressing and he would wake up to the sound of the first cockcrow when it was darkest before dawn
"Fine, but he gets out today,"Titan winked. "Not so fast,""So when exactly are you going to release him?""Relax…”"Relax? When you don't exactly have a history of keeping your word?""You don't have a choice but to trust me. If you don't trust me well enough to strike up a deal, then that's fine but you're jeopardising your brother's only chance at freedom,"Olivia sighed. "Alright,""Alright, what?""Alright, I trust you and I'll do whatever you say,""Now that's more like it," Titan said with a smile coming closer. "Kiss me," he commanded.Olivia looked up at him angered to her bone marrow. In that moment, seeing his eyes, she saw how much he relished and loved power. He had a sick obsessive need to be in control at all times and she hated it. She hated indulging him or being at his beck and call, but Leo was involved. If this was the only way to ensure his freedom and survival, then so be it. She leaned in and kissed him, and he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. Olivia sigh
It was long past midnight when she woke up. The minute Olivia was up, she knew instantaneously she wasn't in her room. The environment felt too unfamiliar for it to be her bedroom. She wasn't even sure what day it was but talking to Titan felt like more than twenty-four hours ago. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. The lights from the external premises illuminated the room well enough for her to see that Titan was absent but she wouldn't put it past him to have brought her here. Well, it was time to leave, at least she wasn't in servitude during sleep hours. She swung her legs off the bed, found her slippers and moved towards the door, closing it behind her and strolling down the thickly carpeted hallway. She was looking out the hallway windows when she unexpectedly bumped into somebody. "Olivia?" A familiar effeminate voice called out."Maya? What are you doing out and awake by this hour?""I could ask you the same thing,""I must have fallen asleep in Titan's room, so I decided to go
"I honestly don't think it's a good idea to leave your brother just like that," Olivia said to Maya, once they were downstairs."Well, I'm not leaving him, he's the one pushing me away,""He's not pushing you away, and upstairs I'm pretty sure he felt hurt and betrayed by you. Titan isn't just your big brother. He's been your family, your mother, father, caretaker and even though he barely shows it, I know he loves you.""Olivia I love my brother too but he needs to start showing that he cares for my happiness too. He hasn't supported me and Leo for once and at this point it's tiring. He asked me to choose, so I chose that's it.""But you know Titan isn't going to just let you go with us right? He's going to haunt us to the ends of the Earth if possible. It's already enough that his parents died at the hands of our father. You think he'll lose his sister to us too? And what about you? Are you truly over what our father did? Are you truly prepared to leave your brother?""Olivia is righ
Titan couldn't help but think that if he didn't have servants moving around in dedicated responsibility, the house would feel like a glorified grave. It had been two days since Maya Black made a life-altering turnaround and decided to turn her back on her brother and follow her heart by brazenly moving out of her brother's posh mansion to be with the man she loved.The man she loved.How on Earth could she love that bastard? The good for nothing who had no penny to his name? Heir to a murdering piece of trash? How? It baffled him. It saddened him. Maybe his harsh judgement was hypocritical considering how he felt about Olivia who was the man's sister but he didn't care. At least when he brought Olivia here, he had not known anything about her lineage. And if he had, he wouldn't have touched her with a ten foot pole.He recalled how much Maya had always cried when she was a baby as though she had understood the upheaval their lives had just gone through. As a toddler, she had been a he
It was midday when Olivia decided that against all odds she was going to call Maya and not stop until she picked up. Surprisingly, Maya picked up on the third ring. "Hello Olivia,""Maya! Finally!""Olivia, thank goodness! I was so scared to call you, thinking Titan might have seized your phone again. How are you doing?""I'm fine, and I'm much better now that I've managed to hear your voice. How's Leo?""He's doing okay, and I'm trying to do my best so he can forget those dark days in the dungeons.""I highly doubt he'll forget that," Olivia said. "And I don't know how I can ever forgive him for that. I was still processing my stepmom's death and still trying to forgive him for that, when he jumped me and my brother and incarcerated him, and then had to turn me into his personal slave just to release him. It's crazy. He's crazy.""Titan has always been crazy. He was such a bully growing up, he scared all my friends away. I imagine boys were scared to approach me because they were so
Rosalie ambled around exuding cool effervescence, and hiding alluring mysteries. Her eyes sparkled when she smiled, laughed, or spoke. It was evident that she liked people and she liked being the centre of attention. Olivia liked her, but she could detect a certain loudness, worldliness and looseness in her. She wasn't sure how these traits would ever play out, but it was a gut instinct and she knew well enough not to discard it.Olivia had retired to her bedroom shortly after exchanging pleasantries with her, believing she had nothing to say or do with the new visitor. She freshened up, changed her clothes and had settled in her balcony with a book, when she heard the door knocking. When she opened up, surprisingly she saw Rosalie standing there."Oh, what are you doing here darling?" Rosalie asked even before Olivia could speak."Uhm, it's my bedroom," Olivia explained."Oh I was told silly, but I was just wondering why you are staying in here all alone?""Because I want to,""Or bec
The night itself was sinister, pierced occasionally by chilly winds. She stood cold and bewildered, in the middle of a vast forest, listening fearfully to the eerie sounds of the night. Fear thrummed defiantly down her spine, making her heart beat so loud like a drum, she feared it would give her away. What was she doing here? The question bounced momentarily around her brain without anything remotely connected to an answer coming forth. Swallowing the fear that threatened to plummet her into an unknown abyss, she started walking forward. Then the growls came slowly from behind bringing both her thoughts and her feet to a grinding halt. She heard them again, low and less threatening at first, out of sight, somewhere in the greenery. Olivia managed to turn around slightly, feeling the first tendrils of trepidation course slowly through her blood. The growls decreased and then ceased altogether. Relieved, she continued walking. Except walking was more confusing than ever, as all she di
EPILOGUE(Three years later)"Stop spilling that all over my painting!" Arielle cried for the third time. She turned to Olivia and commanded. "Tell him!" And just like that she began to cry.Olivia looked up wearily. "Nate, would you be kind enough to leave Arielle's paintings alone please, don't you have yours?"Nate, a cherubic, vibrant bubbly kid with dark hair and his father's gray eyes piped up. "It's fun mom!""There's nothing funny about destroying your cousin's painting Nathaniel. You're ruining her hardwork." Olivia reprimanded."What's with all the noise?" Maya asked as she walked in. "Oh thank goodness!" Olivia said with relief throwing her eyes towards the heavens. "These kids are driving me insane!"Maya smiled. "Well, they are kids it's their job,""Mom, please tell Nate to back off my painting," Arielle reported. Nathaniel who had gone to sit in front of the television, was now studiously staring at the cartoonish figures with intense concentration when Maya glanced a
Rumours were rife throughout the house that Titan and Miriel were both talking privately in his home office. The omega maid he'd directed to go and fetch her had told all the others in the kitchen, and when Asher had gone to help himself to some snacks, he heard them talking about it with so much excitement that he had to inform Maya. Maya had suggested they keep it away from Olivia, but Olivia had found out anyway. She had retreated to the orchard, where there was a swing meant for kids, but she sat down on it, thinking of Miriel and Titan all alone in the office. Logically she knew they had to talk and iron out the intricate issues of the past. Emotionally, this logic was hard to swallow. Like the brain explaining endlessly to the heart. "There you are," Asher said out of the blue.She looked up. "I was hoping not to be found,""It's a big ginormous house but there is only a number of places you can hide,""So what are you hiding from?" she asked."Me? Nothing, you?""I'm not hidi
Asher led Olivia away. Miriel watched them from the foyer noting the bulge of the other woman's stomach. She'd heard rumors about her and about how smitten Titan was with her. Back in her bedroom, Olivia sat down on the couch in her balcony. Her Olive eyes stared up the ceiling looking at nothing. Asher watched her for a while. "Are you okay?""My husband's ex-girlfriend just made an appearance from the grave and you're asking me if I'm okay?""It's a lot to take in," he agreed. "But I don't think she's a threat,""Why not?" "Because she called me herself, told me she wanted to see Titan and talk to him.""I'm not sure I can agree she's not a threat Asher. Why appear now? If she's been in the Kingdom, she heard of our wedding. Of my coronation. Why is she just coming now when she has been alive all this time if she doesn't have ulterior motives?""I don't want you to worry your head about this Olivia, mental anxiety is one of the things Harley warned us about. Just take your mind of
"Better leave here to go check on my wife. Does anyone know how she's feeling by the way?" He asked, eyes darting between both of them.Titan and Olivia tried to talk at once, but only ended up stuttering. "You haven't checked on her have you?" Leo asked accusingly."Hey she's asleep, and Harley gave explicit instructions not to disturb her," Olivia said."Yeah, what she said," Titan added unnecessarily. "More like you have both been too busy playing sex games to check on her,""Hey don't act all moralistic pretending you and Maya don't schedule booty calls in weird parts of the house. Did you think my chief guard didn't see you when you guys were doing it at the back of the dungeons? I'm surprised you guys didn't even care about the captives." Titan said.Olivia turned to Leo looking pleasantly surprised. "Wow brother, you're into kinks like that?"Leo glared at both of them before stomping out. Olivia and Titan fell over each other in fits of laughter."Hey bro don't worry you can
Summer was converging at it's end. The skies were no longer encumbered with the beautiful western sunrise, and propitious rainfall meant to usher in the winter had been falling continuously. Titan Black was lost in thought as his chauffeured Rolls Royce cruised on the highway.Troubled thunderheads had sprung up and were already erasing the early sun from the skies, but he barely noticed. He was just coming back from his final meeting with the other packs who had been pressuring him to release the captives and give the members of the golden truce pack back their lives. Finally, after months of tension, back and forth accusations and counter accusations, coaxing, and cajoling, the captives and his opposers were finally on the same page. The Golden truce pack and Silver Crest pack would be merged into one, under Titan's hegemonic control as their sole leader. There was equally signed documentation by each party that gave him the authority to not just annex their territory, but to pres
"Olivia!"His hysterical shouts caused Maya, Celine and Ryan to rush into the room at breakneck speed. "What's going on?" someone asked. Titan didn't turn to see who it was. "S…She's not waking up," He managed to respond."Someone get Harley!" Ryan shouted."Harley is out," Maya said."Out? Out to where?" Titan demanded roughly. "She's getting some things for me from the market,""Goddamnit!" Titan swore."Titan, why not take a deep breath and check if she still has a pulse?" Celine suggested.In his paranoia and destability, Titan had forgotten completely. He checked her pulse and heartbeat. "It's all there but it's weak," he announced."Oh no," "Maya I need you to get Harley on the phone right now," Titan ordered. "Tell her to rush down here at once. It's an emergency,""Sure, of course," Maya said, scurrying out of the room.Ten minutes later, Harley came in. Yet for Titan, the waiting had felt like an age. And he had not been able to stay calm. Fear constricted his chest. What i
Leo slept beside Maya on the bed where she had birthed their child. Olivia sat in the far corner, rocking the child silently. The doctors had all gone to sleep in freshly prepared quarters. Olivia sat alone with the baby rocking her gently."Arielle, Crystal Black, welcome," she said gently. "And just like your name connotes, you are as bright as the moon."The following morning, Olivia called Titan while everyone else was having breakfast. "You'll never guess who came into the world last night," she said with a smile."I can't believe I missed her birth because of partisan politics," Titan said with a tone of regret. "How are they?""Mother and baby are just fine. Oh, you should see her Titan, her features are unbelievable. She's going to grow up to be such a beauty.""Well, she's got good genes," Titan said."Hold up, is that an indirect compliment towards my brother?" He chuckled. "I don't know what you are talking about but I'll be home tomorrow sweetheart,""You better be," she c
One week later, Titan was still not back. But Olivia had made sure she spoke with him on the phone each day, ending each call with how much she loved and missed him. She told him about her lessons with Mellor, animating her stories with everything she had and not skipping out on any anecdotes. Titan felt the meetings were getting more protracted, but he did his best to hide his displeasure. He was on the opposing side and he needed to prove his point and himself. The captives as free men were a threat to his kingdom.Surely they had to see that. But the other packs did not see it. They insisted that if any attacks were launched at him after he freed the captives, they would come together as one and fight by his side. A great suggestion, except that Titan Black didn't get where he was by putting his fate in the hands of others. And that was his main argument. Everyday, he discussed this with Olivia and Asher, who was in the heart of Gaza fighting alongside the Israelis. "You all hav
The party stayed on till dawn. But Olivia and Titan sneaked out early, simply to have their first intimate copulation as royals. It was still surreal and still hard for her to believe and accept that in the space of a year, she had gone from the depths of slavery to the heights of royalty. The lovemaking between them was orgasmic and heated as always. So intense that it was hard to tell when time passed and how much time had passed. The following morning when she opened her eyes, Titan was gone, and she kept her hands on his side of the bed for awhile to savour his warmth, before getting out of the bed to prepare for the day. No doubt, Mellor would eagerly make an appearance today to start his lessons and she had to appear as a sharp, incisive and inquisitive student with the most brilliant of minds. Downstairs, she found Harley and Maya seated behind the massive kitchen counter, drinking fresh orange juice from the pitcher between them."No breakfast?" Olivia asked pouring herself