~Lucian~~The next day~ As the sun's rays pierced through the window of my chamber, I squinted and opened my eyes. The first thing that caught my blurry vision upon opening my eyes was Cassandra lying beside me. I blinked twice to bring clarity to the scene, and a smile instantly brightened my face.Even in her sleep, she exuded the same timeless beauty. Though I didn't want to disturb her peaceful slumber, I couldn't resist the temptation to touch her face. Gently running my fingers along the side of her face, she stirred slightly, tightening her eyes.A soft moan escaped her lips, accompanied by a gentle smile lighting up her face. "Good morning, sleeping beauty," I whispered, and she opened her eyes, still maintaining her smile. "Good morning, my handsome husband," she replied, causing a chuckle to escape me."If only you knew how incredible it feels to wake up with you by my side. It's the most wonderful sensation," I responded, and she reached out to touch my face, nodding i
~Lucian ~ We settled in the throne room, where I took a seat on the throne while Damian occupied one of the chairs to my right."I'm all ears," I said, propping my chin on my hands and gazing at him intently."Thank you, Lucian. As I mentioned earlier, I am Damian, your twin brother who was separated from you since birth. It all began before we were even born. King and Queen Walker were unable to have a child for many years, and they eventually decided to seek alternative means to secure an heir," he explained, and his story made me scoff."Are you suggesting that King Walker isn't my father?" I asked, feeling a strange mix of emotions towards him."I never said that. Can you please let me finish?" he requested, and I swallowed, nodding in agreement."The only reason I'm here talking to you is because of our striking resemblance," I murmured, leaning back. He nodded and resumed speaking."During the reign of King and Queen Walker, there was a maid named Melissa. The queen confided in
~Cassandra~ As I stood there, gazing at the man seated in the throne room, who bore an uncanny resemblance to my husband, memories of my encounter with the stranger came rushing back in an instant.The intensity with which he locked eyes with me spoke volumes, though I couldn't fully comprehend its meaning. And when he called out my name, everything seemed to fall into place.It was the same way the stranger had addressed me back in the hut."He is that stranger," I thought, hastily making my way out of the throne room and rushing to my own quarters.Entering the room, I slammed the door shut behind me, leaning against it for support as my heart raced and a multitude of thoughts flooded my mind.Looking at him, I sensed a peculiar yet undeniable connection. I didn't need anyone to confirm that he was the stranger I had spent that night with in the woods, but it left me with even more questions."Why is he here? Who is he to Lucian? Why are they so alike? Why did he do what he did to
~Lucian~ Upon arriving at the temple, I observed Priest Elsen positioned in front of it, accompanied by approximately five disciples who were collecting leaves. "Priest Elsen!" I called out, and he raised his head to meet my gaze. The moment he saw me, a smile illuminated his face, and he gradually approached me. Each passing second seemed to age Priest Elsen further. Compared to our last encounter, his walking pace had noticeably slowed.He relied on his staff for support, his back was more hunched, and his balance had deteriorated. "I'll come to you, Priest Elsen," I expressed, causing him to pause as I swiftly approached. Reaching him, I grasped his right hand while one of his disciples held onto his left."I apologize, King Lucian. Old age continues to afflict me each day," he spoke, his voice cracking and struggling to emerge."I'm sorry, Priest Elsen, but you still appear quite distinguished," I playfully remarked, prompting a chuckle from him."Indeed, I do."After enterin
~Cassandra~ After Lucian departed from my chamber, I took a seat at the edge of my bed, lost in my thoughts for a few minutes. Eventually, I rose and made my way to the closet, intending to select the perfect attire for the upcoming party when a knock interrupted me.A feminine voice from outside my door spoke, "My Queen, King Lucian has requested us to bring you an outfit and assist with your preparations for the party.""Please come in," I replied, and the door swung open, revealing three maids carrying various items in their hands. One held the outfits, another had lotions and scents on a towel, while the third carried a makeup box."I would like Zoe to attend as well. Please prepare an outfit for her," I requested, and they bowed in acknowledgment."We already have one prepared, Your Majesty. King Lucian arranged it for her," they informed me, and a smile formed on my lips. I was impressed by his thoughtfulness."That's wonderful. Let's get started then. I would love to have a mi
~Damian~ As I inhaled the aroma of her hair, my jaw tightened, intensifying my already heightened sexual attraction towards her. I had long been captivated by her allure, but the scent further ignited my desire for her.While I enjoyed how good she smelled, she abruptly pushed me away, distancing herself and staring at me like I had gone crazy. "What do you think you're doing, Damian? I am your brother's wife! How dare you gaze at me and address me in such a manner?" she exclaimed, deliberately avoiding eye contact."I am fully aware of that, Cassie..." "Don't call me that. My name is Cassandra. You have no right to call me that. Stay away from me," she replied through clenched teeth as she walked past me towards the door. Reacting swiftly, I grabbed her hand, causing her to come to a halt."I know that you recall every detail of that evening. The way you held onto me, refusing to let go while buried myself inside of you, Cassie. I saw the love in your eyes. We cannot deny the emo
~Cassandra~ I awoke to the faint sounds of Lucian preparing to leave. When he noticed I was awake, a wide smile brightened his face."Hey beautiful, good morning," he greeted, moving closer to the bed and leaning in to plant a gentle kiss on my lips and cheek."Good morning, handsome," I replied, a wide smile adorning my face as I sat up."I'm sorry if I woke you up. I tried to be as quiet as possible," he said apologetically, and I shook my head."You didn't wake me up. It was time for me to wake up," I assured him, smiling softly. "Are you going somewhere?" I asked, curiosity filling my voice. He nodded in response."Yes, I am. There's a council meeting arranged by the empire. It requires the presence of all the kings. It came up unexpectedly," he explained, causing me to furrow my brow."Is everything alright? Such meetings sound rather serious," I voiced my concerns.He chuckled and shook his head. "Well, I'm not entirely sure. We'll find out when we get there. But don't worry, n
~Cassandra~ After hastily closing the door in Damian's face, I spent a few minutes preparing myself before finally being ready to leave. Glancing at my reflection in the mirror, I maintained a composed expression, determined not to reveal any vulnerability to Damian.Approaching the door, I swung it open and discovered Damian seated on the floor beside it. When our eyes met, he broke into a wide smile and sprang up energetically."Finally, you're finished," he exclaimed, and I responded dismissively by rolling my eyes and shutting the door."Did you have nothing better to do than loiter by my door like a puppet?" I retorted rudely, but he continued grinning and shaking his head."I am at your service," he replied, causing me to shake my head and disregard his comment. Swiftly, I turned to leave, and he hurriedly caught up with me, so we could walk side by side."We'll start in the garden. All the rooms in the palace are constructed in the same style, with varying interior designs. So
~Cassandra~ ~After A Year~ “Good morning!” I heard Zoe’s loud voice from my slumber, causing me to tighten my eyes in discomfort.“Wake up! I have good news!” She continued talking in a loud voice and even jumped on my bed, forcing my eyes open. “Shhh! You’ll wake Darian up!” I mumbled, hastily throwing a glance at the baby bed that was placed not so far from my bed. He was the first person I was concerned about. “Relax, Cassie. Damian and Lucian are playing with him already. He woke up and began to cry so they took him away before he could wake you up.” Zoe further explained, and I raised my eyebrows. “Oh. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize he wasn’t here. I was up all through the night because he kept wanting to eat.” I grumbled, lifting my body off the bed and sitting up. “Well, for the tenth time in three months, welcome to motherhood,” Zoe answered, causing me to smile. Three months ago, I conceived and gave birth to Darian. Everyone in the kingdom was happy. We finally have such
~ Lucian ~ When we got closer to the palace, I realized that the people who had left before had arrived again. Bernard must have sent some of his people to summon them. Deep down, I wanted to break free and teach him a lesson, but somehow, I felt extremely weak. I was a Lycan, why wouldn’t I summon the wolf in me? While tied to the church, I tried too hard to reach that locked-up power inside of me, but it was so hard, I couldn’t even brush the surface. It wasn’t really surprising because I never really used that part of me. I never found any reason to, and now it seemed like it was gone. Like my Lycan power was dead completely. I also couldn’t believe I chose to trade my throne for Cassandra’s life. At the point of death, I realized I still loved her and saw her as my wife, regardless of everything that had happened between us. The soldiers that went with us were armed and more in number compared to the guards at the palace. I knew they had no chance right from when I set my ey
~Sara~ “I hired Sara and Agatha to act like my family so that we could execute our plans better. The fact is, I am single, but I won’t mind having your wife as my queen when I inherit the throne.” Bernard uttered with a smirk. “Go f**k yourself.” Lucian spat angrily. I couldn’t look them in the eyes because I knew they were disappointed, and they hated me already. I kept my head lowered as I let my guilt taunt me. “I think I’ve done enough talking. We need to get down to business.” Bernard uttered. “Now to you…” He added, making his way back to the bed where Cassandra lay. “Your life is tied to whatever Lucian wants.” He uttered, raising his hand to touch her hair. “Don’t you dare touch her!” Lucian growled, causing Bernard’s hand to hang in the air. “I hate you,” Cassandra mumbled, staring at him in a disgusted manner. “Well, I never liked you. So here is what we are going to do. We are going to match down to the kingdom right now, call everyone together, and then you’ll anno
~Damian~ Getting to the house where Sara told me to hide in the meantime, I wasn’t at rest. Something felt so wrong, but I found it so hard to figure it out. I couldn’t stop thinking about Cassie and the palace as a whole. What was going on? Was it a good idea to run off in such a heated moment? Shouldn’t I have taken Cassie along with me? That guilty thought and part of me kept resurfacing. And I couldn’t help but feel bad. It was like I ran away from the problem that was looming around those I love. I felt like a coward. Heaving out a deep sigh, I raised my head and stared at the ceiling, thinking about what I was going to do next. ‘If Cassie doesn’t get here in the next forty-eight hours, then I have to return to the palace. Hopefully, Lucian won’t ask for my head on a platter of gold.’ While I was lost in thoughts, trying to cook up my next big plan, a knock came on the door. Surprised and excited, I sprang to my feet and ran to the door. “Cassie?” I called, opening the d
~Cassandra~ I felt disgusted as Bernard exposed his tobacco-damaged teeth when he smiled. I should have always suspected him. I should have always known that something was so fishy about them. How they came into our lives was pretty suspicious. But who could have imagined it would turn out like this? Damian came into our lives the same way, and he’s one of the reasons I’m still fighting to stay alive. “What do you mean by that? What games are you trying to play, Uncle…” “I told you I’m not your uncle! Call me Bernard! And I’m playing no games. This is reality. The earlier you realize that the better for you.” He disrespectfully cut Lucian’s short, letting him choke on his own words. In awe, Lucian turned to look at me, and I shook my head, feeling so bad for us. “Fine. If you’re not my uncle, then can you please tell me who you are?” Lucian retorted, trying to keep on that bold, masculine look, but I could perceive that this layer was pretty thin. He was going to lose it any m
~Bernard~ I headed back to the palace after Cassandra opened her eyes. Before I fetch Lucian, I need to do one more thing. I needed to convince the people that I was the right king for them. After that, I need him to come in front of the people and renounce his throne to the people. Hopefully, he was going to cherish his life and that of his wife so that that would happen. Getting back to the palace, I saw the people were beginning to exit the building. They still murmured things to each other nonstop. When some of them saw me, they diverted their attention to me. “Where were you, Mr. Bernard? We expected you to be in the hall too so that you can support our claims. You were the one that told us everything that has been happening. Why didn’t you show up?” One of the elderly men spoke up. “Yes, that is true. You should have been there to call him a liar to his face. How do you prove to me that you’re the one we want when you were absent?” Another woman added. “Relax, everyone. I
~Sara~ After making sure we were very far from the kingdom, I stopped running. Damian also stopped and turned to look at me. “What’s wrong? Why did you stop?” He asked, our chests rising and falling due to our intense breathing. “I need to go back. No one can know I snuck out with you. But I need you to keep going. Don’t look back.” I warned him, and he nodded. “Remember your promise, Sara. You promised me you’d help Cassie too.” He retorted, and I gulped hard and nodded slowly. “Yes, I will.” I lied. How was I supposed to help her? My father got her already and there was no going back this time. Only the gods could shift the death lurking around her. “Okay. Thank you, Sara. I’ll be in the house you prepared. Bye.” He uttered as he took to his heels again. Watching him leave, a relieved sigh escaped my lips. I was so glad I could save him from my parents. He had been so nice to me and I wasn’t going to take it for granted. I had described the path to our former kingdom to him,
~Lucian~ “We want another king! Give us another king!” The persistent voices of the people pierced the door of the hall where they were, hitting my earbuds mercilessly. Shaking off the fear that began to rise in me, I occupied my mind with the words that I had planned to say to them. I kept repeating the words in my head as I walked into the hall. The voices of the people multiplied greatly when they saw me, and it seemed like if I wasn’t very careful, they were going to pounce on me. Even though guards surrounded me, it didn’t seem like enough protection. I raised my hand, hoping to see if they still had little regard for me, and I wasn’t disappointed. The roaring and murmurings stopped instantly. “Thank you,” I uttered in a loud voice before I proceeded to what exactly I wanted to say. “Good evening, people of this kingdom! Your complaints have reached my ears, and I think it’s only fair that you let me share my own side of the story too, don’t you think?” I asked, and I got a
~Cassandra~ I headed to Lucian’s chamber with so many thoughts running through my head. How were we supposed to handle the situation on ground? I knew Lucian wasn’t his best self, but I still needed to talk to him about Damian too. I hated that Damian was locked up in a cell for no reason. Getting to his chamber, I walked in and met him pacing at the cover of his study. “Lucian,” I called, but he ignored me and kept pacing. I heaved a sigh and moved closer to him. “Can you stop pacing? You’re making me dizzy.” I retorted, causing him to abruptly stop. “What do you want?” He asked in a cold manner, keeping his gaze off me. “What are we going to do now? I don’t understand what has come over these people anymore. Are we not going to do something?” I asked worriedly, and he scoffed, finally looking at me. “What do you want me to do, huh? I know you all are happy with how everything is going. You don’t have to pretend like you are worried.” He responded and continued his pacing aga