EVERETT The question and answer question session went wonderfully well, all thanks to Claudia. I never knew she was that nice. She answered most of the questions calmly and wisely. She saved me from the people’s crucification but, I refuse to show this to her. “I don’t want her to start feeling pompous.” I had just finished a very long meeting with the elders, and I shuffled down the passage tiredly. I needed to rest badly. As I moved to my chamber, I saw Annette standing next to my door. Her head was bowed, so she didn’t see me approaching. I got very close to her and then she raised her head, and when she saw me, a smile crept up her face. “Great King Everett.” She teased, bowing her head. I heaved a sigh and folded my arms as I stared at her. “Are you here to mock me? If that is it, I’m in no mood for that.” I moved to my door and opened it. I walked into my chamber, and she followed behind me. “Why are you in a bad mood? You did very well out there this morning. You should be ha
CLAUDIA I trailed my hand down his back, kissing ever part of his upper body. I pushed him back slightly, and he fell to the bed. The look on his face told me he was surprised I could do what I was doing. “You aren’t in this alone. I don’t know why or what I’m doing too,” I thought as I lowered my head to his chest again. He had broad shoulders and very well built torso. I ran my finger down his chest to the tip of his pants. Trust me when I say it wasn’t a smooth run. His belly was so rigid and tight. I began to wonder if he ate at all. I raised my head to look at him, and I saw him open his eyes. For the every first time his eyes communicated something different. It wasn’t that harsh, fierce look anymore. He looked tired but very much ready for whatever I wanted to do to him. “Where else do you want me to massage?” I asked and watched his Adam’s apple raise and fall as he swallowed. “Err… my back, I guess.” He narrowed his gaze at me, and I bounced my head. “Turn around,” I said,
Claudia “You have ripped my garment apart, now I have to go back to my chamber naked,” I mumbled as I picked up my torn garment. “You don’t have to go out naked. You can call on Nellie to get you a new one,” He responded with his eyes still closed. “I can’t scream her name from here. I would have to step out to call her. Can you please help me call on her? Or anyone you find? I need to go to my chamber as soon as possible,” I said, brushing my hair backward with my palms. “As soon as possible? Why are you in a hurry?” He questioned, and I heaved a sigh. “I need to sleep. I’m tired, and I’m yet to get over this morning’s question and answer.” I stood up from the bed and moved to the door. “Let me call Nellie for you! You can’t go out like that.” He sprang to his feet and hurried to the door. He got there before me, and I stopped walking. He opened the door and peeped out, keeping his lower body behind the door. “Hey, you… tell Nellie to bring a garment for the Luna,” he said to someo
CLAUDIA AFTER TWO WEEKS I stormed out of my chamber and headed to Alpha Everett’s private chamber after Nellie came to report to me the order he had given to some youths of the Kingdom. Two days after our night together, Alpha Everett was crowned king by the elders, and the consent of the people. Since that time, he had barely had time to stay in the packhouse. He kept going from one meeting to another, and I didn’t care. I had more time to talk to Clarence. Nellie broke the news while I was laying on my bed not quite long, that he had ordered some youth to start building a new house for him in the Kingdom, but some refused because they didn’t like him. Then, he had to force them and put them under pressure. “Why would he have to force them to do anything? He could easily pay some workers to do it. Did he have to force them?” Luckily for me, he was around the time Nellie broke the news to me, so I was prepared to face him and talk some sense into him. Before I got to his priv
CLAUDIA I was fast asleep when I heard Alpha Everett’s excited voice. “She is pregnant?! Yes!” I opened my eyes slowly, my vision was blurry, so I closed them again. I opened them the second time, and I saw Alpha Everett standing very close to him. Next to him were an elderly woman and Nellie. They all had bright smiles. When they saw I was awake, they chorused, “Congratulations, Luna. You are with a baby,” Nellie said excitedly, and I looked at Alpha Everett. He had a joyful grin on his face. It was my first time seeing him so joyful. “I can’t wait for you to put to bed! My first heir has arrived! We should celebrate!” He raised his hands in the air, and the others nodded in consent. I heaved a sigh and kept mute, I watched them rejoice, but not even a faint smile crossed my face. I kept my face plain. “I’ll announce the party! I need everyone to get to work! My wife is with a baby!” Alpha Everett hurried out of my chamber, jumping and laughing. ‘Why is he so happy about it? Is it
I gulped the last wine in my cup and slammed the cup on the table. I looked around me, and I saw more people from outside the packhouse. It’s unbelievable how news spreads. All my Betas and a few of the elders were seated around the table where I sat. Volker leaned closer to me and said, “Alpha Everett, you should give us a speech, don’t you think? I bet some people are yet to know why you called for this party.” I looked around and smiled. “That is true,” I responded and stood up. Volker raised his brass cup and hit it with a spoon to create awareness that I was about to speak. This call the attention of everyone, and they all went silent. I smiled and gave Volker a slight nod, telling him to stop hitting the cup. I started my speech afterward. “Good day, People of Jamba Kingdom! I’m so happy that some of you honored this impromptu celebration. Some of you may know why we are here, and some may not know. I’m here to tell you why I had called for this celebration.” I took a pause, ex
CLAUDIA I gazed at him in great hatred as he walked away. I regretted everything, the day I was told that Thorsten wasn’t my mate, the day I got married to him, the day I was born! I never saw any good thing for myself in his packhouse. I was there just to fulfill his desires, no one cared about my feelings. “Claudia!” I heard Clarence’s voice fill my ears. I looked up, and I saw him running toward me. “Clarence,” I mumbled. He got to where I stood and embraced me. “Are you okay? Did he hurt you?” He asked, looking at my face, and I shook my head. “I’m okay, Clarence. What are you doing out here?” I asked, cleaning the tears on my face with my palm. “I suspected something could go wrong when he walked out of the hall with you. I had to follow behind you to make sure you are okay,” He responded, and I heaved a sigh. “You heard everything, right?” I lowered my head, and he placed his hand under my jaw and lifted my head to meet his face. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Claudia. I hear
CLAUDIA “Shhh!” He placed his finger on his lips, and I bounced my head and clasped my lips. My heart kept racing as I stared at him in disbelief. ‘How am I able to see ghosts?’ “I need you to come with me. We have things to talk about.” He stretched his hand to me and my eyes widened. I wasn’t sure it was a good idea to take his hand. “Ermmm, I don’t think I want to go anywhere with you alone. I’m scared,” I mumbled, taking a step backward again. He heaved a sigh and bounced his head. “I understand you think I’m dead, but I’m not.” He bent down and picked up a stone. I expected it to fall off his hand but it didn’t. “Can you see now? I’m not dead. If you want to know about your father’s death. You’ll come with me,” He said, and I gulped hard. “Claudia!” I heard Clarence call from behind me. I looked back and saw him carrying a cup in his hand. His eyes were on Alpha Joachim. He had the same confused look I had on my face. I turned to look at Alpha Joachim again. “Can I go with him
~After eighteen years~Maximillian I gazed at the archery targets carefully, my left hand slowly lifted up, holding the heavy recurved bow firmly. My right hand reached for my quiver, and I pulled out one arrow. I positioned it in the bow and pointed it at the targets. I closed my left eye so that I could get the appropriate angle and degree to release my arrow. After being satisfied with my positioning, I dragged the bowstring and arrow real quick and let go of the arrow. The arrow travelled from where I stood to the archery target, and I nervously watched it move. The King, my father, was at the other end, and as soon as the arrow pierced the target, he ran to it to check. “Yes! You did it!” He yelled, and I jumped up and punched the air in excitement. “I told you I’d be able to do it!” I yelled back boastfully. *Since I turned ten, I grew a great passion for shooting arrows. No one in Jamba Kingdom was an arrow shooter, and I wanted to break that record. My mother, Que
CLAUDIA Everett and I sat in the living room with an awkward silence in the air. My head was full of many things. After witnessing Annette’s death, I wished I was never pushed to request her death. ‘What will my don think of me now?’ “Claudia, can you please tell me what is going on in your mind?” Everett asked, and I adjusted my eyes to look at him. “What will our son think of me now, Everett? I’m a murderer.” He shook his head and reached for my hand. He lifted my hand to his lips and planted a soft kiss on it. “You are no murderer, okay? I was the one that killed her, not you. She deserved to die, okay? Don’t feel so bad. You are a good person, Claudia, but sometimes, the good people are always pushed to the wall.” “About our son…” “Our son will be fine, Claudia. This would be written down, but you should know he would understand that she needed to be killed. She messed with the king, and the king killed her. You won’t be painted as evil because you aren’t. So be calm, okay
CLAUDIAI got to the front of the palace and threw Annette forward, making her fall to the ground. I could feel how fragile she had become because of the torture she went through in the dungeon, but she wasn’t ready to change, and I was done giving her chances to be a better person. “You are still alive till now, thanks to me!” I poked my chest and moved closer to her slowly. “It was so easy to tell Everett to get rid of you when you were in that dungeon, but I felt it would be so wicked of me, and I didn’t want anyone’s blood on my hands. But now, I don’t care if your filthy blood stains my hand.” “You think you can do whatever pleases you now, hun? You can order others around, but I’ll never let you order me around! I rather die than accept you as my queen!” She yelled back, and I scoffed. I wasn’t surprised she could still talk back at me like that. Everett had always said she is a fierce woman and won’t give up easily. “You rather die? Well, I’ll help you die.” I got to her
ANNETTE I stood in front of my full mirror and stared at myself. I looked so ugly and sick, and I hated everyone for that. No one cared when I was in that dungeon, and this made me see no reason why I should care for anyone too. If someone told me Everett would change drastically to the extent of throwing me into the dungeon, I’d argue with that person. This time, it was worse. He locked me in there for about nine months, and he didn’t bother to check up on me for once. He was busy with his wife. I rolled my eyes and tears dropped from them. I lowered my head and began to play with my finger. “Annette, you are not a woman they accept defeats. You can’t let this pass as if nothing happened. You are more powerful than that, baby girl.” I said to myself and looked in the mirror again. “Annette.” I heard Volker’s voice in front of my door. I looked at the door and saw him open it. He walked in with a tray in his hands. “There you are. I brought you some food.” He walked to the tab
~The next day~ CLAUDIA I woke up feeling much better, I slept all through the night, so I didn’t expect less. I dragged my body up and sat on the bed. My eyes ran through the chamber real quick and fell on my baby’s cradle. Beside the cradle was Nellie. She had her hand in the cradle, and she was smiling widely. “Nellie,” I called calmly, and she raised her head and looked at me. “My Queen, you are up.” Sue stood up and walked up to me. “Yes, I am,” I responded with a bright face. “I’m happy you look better, my queen. How are you feeling? Do you have aches?” She asked, and I shook my head. “I’m not feeling anyone. Am I supposed to feel any pain?” I asked, and she chuckled. “I have no idea. I haven’t given birth before,” She responded, and I giggled. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have asked that kind of question,” I said, and she shook her head. “It is fine, my queen. Your baby is still sleeping soundly. Have you found a name for him?” I shook my head and looked at the cradle again. “I
CLARENCE I sat amidst the pack members as they chatted and cheered. The other day, I wasn’t feeling so good. I couldn’t stop overthinking. Now that Claudia has given birth to the heir, what would happen to us? What if she is now in love with him too and wouldn’t want to leave? This has always been my fear, but what can I do when it happens that way? I would have to accept my fate and move on. She is a wife and a queen, I can’t ruin their marriage because of what I feel for her. I grabbed the jar of wine that was on the table and poured myself another cup. Jan looked at me and knitted his brows. “Hey, are you good? That is the seventh cup you are drinking. Do you want to talk?” He asked worriedly, and I shook my head and smiled. “I’m fine, Jan. The wine is just so good to put down,” I responded, making him chuckle. “It’s the best wine in the Jamba Kingdom, what do you expect? The king is in a very good mood and that makes us happy. You can drink up all you want. But if you want t
~After seven months~ EVERETT I covered my mouth with my hands and began to pace in front of Claudia’s chamber. It was her delivery day. I was with her when she started feeling weird, so I had to call the best midwife in the kingdom to take care of her. “Push!!!” I heard the midwife scream, and after her voice, a roar followed. It was Claudia’s. My pack members, the elders were all waiting in the living room, but I was too anxious to wait there with them. I wished I was in the chamber with her. “Push!!!” I heard the midwife scream again, and I heaved a loud sigh. I hit the door and yelled, “Can you please take it easy with her?” “I’m sorry, my king but I just need one more push from her and the baby will be out. One more hard push,” She responded In a loud tone, and I lowered my head. “Claudia baby, you can do it, okay? Just one push. I hate the way she keeps yelling at you,” I said and moved slightly away from the door. “Arrrrggghhhh!!” An extreme roar filled the air and my eyes
CLAUDIA “Are you going to do whatever I ask of you?” Alpha Joachim asked Everett, who sat next to me on the couch and never let go of my hand. “You are leaving me no choice. What do you want?” Everett kept his eyes on my hand as he spoke. “I want you to invite Thorsten back to the Jamba Kingdom.” Alpha Joachim smiled after talking, and Everett raised his head to look at him. “Why would I want to do that?” Everett asked, making Alpha Joachim shrug. “Because Thorsten is my friend, and I care about him. If you want to get your wife back, without me telling everyone the evil you have done, then you’ll do this little favor.” Everett gulped and heaved a loud sigh. He lifted his eyes and looked at Thorsten who stood behind Alpha Joachim. “I’ll let him into my kingdom on one condition. I must not see hun anywhere close to the palace. The day I see him anywhere around the gates, I’ll kill him.” I watched Thorsten’s face as Everett spoke, and I could see anger register on his face. He clen
EVERETTAfter Two Weeks I walked into a familiar building. I tried to remember where I had seen the building, but nothing was coming. My head was blank at the moment. I boldly opened the main door and walked into the living room. I had one thing in mind. I needed to find my wife. I looked around the living room and my eyes fell on someone. He sat on a chair but I couldn’t see his face because his back was turned to me. I started approaching hun and wanted to speak when all of a sudden, I heard footsteps approaching. I looked up, and I saw Claudia walking down the corridor. She heard where we were standing. “Claudia! My wife!” I called and began to approach her. She opened her arms with a large smile, but before I could get to her, a man stood in front of her, making me stop abruptly. I looked at this man, and I saw someone I wasn’t expecting. “Alpha Horst?” I called in surprise. I looked at the chair, and I saw that the man that was seated on it was gone. He could guess the man