Blossom POV.
"You will marry Alpha Dean! Do you understand?!"
Uncle Alejandro's voice was deep and firm, enough to stop me from opening the door. Probably my sister Diana pleaded again.
Its been two days since our uncle announced the wedding of my sister to Alpha Dean, the alpha who lost his wife a few days ago, and until now, I still can't believe our uncle's decision! Alpha Dean is a death sentence! He is known as the most cruel alpha in the entire continent! Yet, I can't do anything to help my sister.
"Make sure you look good tomorrow! I don't want any unnecessary problems!"
After does remark, I heard footsteps, a signal for me to turn the doorknob. "Uncle Alejandro..." I greeted with a smile on my face. I make sure that he won't notice the annoyance and anger that I hide. If he finds out that I don't agree with the marriage, surely he will lock me to my room until my sister is taken away by the bastard Alpha Dean.
"Blossom," Uncle Alejandro uttered with his usual strict face. He looked at the tray I was holding.
"Diana did not eat her dinner since she is busy preparing for tomorrow's event." I uttered before uncle asked anything. Perhaps he also knows my sister has lost her appetite after his announcement. He just walked and passed, without any warning as he usually does.
"Sis..." After Uncle Alejandro was gone, I quickly approached Diana, placed the tray on the side table and sat next to her on the bed.
"Blossom... what should I do? You know I don't want to marry Alpha Dean. I can't marry him...but Uncle Alejandro—"
"Uncle don't own you! Diana, its your life and if you don't want to marry that bastard then don't! You have the right to choose to marry the one you love." I cut her words. Although my advice is far from the truth because we both know our uncle, the alpha of our pack can make all the decisions for the two of us.
"Blossom, you are right... In fact I really do believe that our lives are in our hands," Diana responded. Her eyes are clouded by the suppressed tears "... However, there are times when you have to forget this belief–because in reality, our life is destined to this pack and our fate is held by the superiors... So –"
"Run away! Go with him and leave this place!" the word just came out of my mouth. Although our life in the pack is restrained, it cannot be said to be bad. We have everything we needed, that's why running away never crossed my mind. And as long as we are unharmed, we can wait for our mates to get us out here.
Diana was surprised, her eyes widened and remained speechless. "Blossom..."
"I have an idea... This is what we gonna do." And it seems, Diana accepted my suggestion because he immediately nodded and sincerely listened to my 'idea'.
The idea I'm talking about is simple... Diana will pretend to be a maid to leave the mansion while me–I will prepare all her needs... A few clothes and huge amount of jewelry and cash. Then, I will also make sure that no one will notice Diana is no longer in her room and to insure that, I will stay behind and make some commotion to divert everyone's attention to me.
......... Two o'clock in the morning"Blossom, are you sure you want to stay? You know uncle Alejandro's attitude... I'm afraid he will—"
"Shh... uncle Alejandro can't do anything to me that he hasn't already done," I uttered with confidence while opening the back door. "Stop worrying me and focus on what you need to do..."
Diana hugged me tightly before taking a step. "Once we settle down we will contact you," she muttered before walking away.
When Diana was out of my sight, only then did I return to my room. I knew for myself, I needed a rest because the next day—I was going to face a terrifying alpha. Certainly, uncle Alejandro will not believe that I know nothing about Diana's escape. But I'm ready... No matter what he does, I won't betray my sister.
.....
A loud thump echoed in my sleep, along with a hard shaking of my shoulder. 'Damn it! I didn't expect uncle Alejandro to go to this room so early!' I couldn't help wincing because of the pain of my hip hitting the floor.
"Blossom! How dare you scheme behind my back!" uncle Alejandro roared as my body fell to the floor.
"Ouch! Uncle Alejandro, what are you talking about? Will you please calm down and tell me what is going on? What did I—"
"Where is your sister! You talked to her last night! I know you know something, so tell me everything!"
"I won't say anything because I don't know anything!" I responded firmly while staring straight at uncle Alejandro. At that moment I didn't feel scared, maybe my brain was still asleep.
"No one can defy me and everyone knows that! You and your sister are ungrateful! I make it lear that this marriage is for the good of the pack and your sister still chooses to run away!" Uncle Alejandro's voice is cold but calm and this kind of voice is more terrifying for me.
"Listen to my command! From now on, I denounce Diana to the pack and now she is a fugitive!! Uncle Alejandro's voice echoed throughout my room "And you, Blossom— you will take her place! You will marry Alpha Dean!"
"What?! But uncle! You can't do this to me! I cant marry Alpha Dean! Uncle please, take back your command..." I uttered as my hands quickly moved to Uncle Alejandro's arm.
That plea of mine just flew in the air, my hands that were holding uncle Alejandro were pulled away by him forcefully. My pleading gaze was only met with a cold gaze.
"Stop resisting and get ready! I want you to be perfect in everyone's eyes!" After this remark, uncle Alejandro turned around and left the room.
As soon as the door was closed, I quickly ran and made sure the door was locked. 'Finally! This is my long awaited opportunity...'
Blossom POVI shivered slightly as my uncle tightened his grip on my arm and pushed me forward to stand at the center of the Royal Werewolf Court. I could feel the steely-eyed gaze of the court's high leadership piercing me, but I dared not look up. There was no way I was going to let them see how frightened and alone I felt.I was there as a substitute for my sister Diana, who had escaped the grip of our uncle before landing in the very position I now found myself in. Even when I had helped my sister to get away, I never expected that I would be the one selected as the mate for the alpha. It was Diana whom our royal family had offered to the courts as a substitute mate for the newly widowed Dean, the alpha leader of New Orleans' largest werewolf race. I had never actually laid my eyes on him before, but I had heard plenty about him. He was said to be one of the strongest leaders ever known, a fierce warrior who ascended to his position as alpha at a very young age. But that wasn't al
Blossom POV It was with that strength that I was determined not to show any outward weakness. I would concentrate on the one bright spot in all of this shameful mess—I was about to be out of my uncle's house and away from my cruel family. I had often vowed to myself that I would seize any opportunity to be out from under my uncle's fist once I came of age. This was my chance. While I knew little of what might lie ahead, there were few scenarios I could imagine that would be worse than the life I had known under my uncle's roof.I am suddenly aware that someone is speaking. It is the head of the Royal Elders, and he is acknowledging my uncle, much to Alejandro's delight. The senior elder is now formally asking the court to vote on accepting me as the substitute mate for Dean. After some mumbling and a voting process that was far more formal than necessary, their recommendation is unanimously approved. It is now up to Dean to confirm that he accepts the court's decision so that I can b
Blossom POV.My uncle is quite possibly the most controlling man I have ever known. I remember looking around my bedroom this morning. It is the drabbest place in his entire home, by far. Sure, it had a bed and a place for what few clothes he allowed us to have. The rest of his home is full of sparkle and glamor, almost gaudy because Uncle Alejandro is nothing if he isn't a showman for all his wealth—and all the wealth he wants people to think that he has, on top of that.I remember the day Diana and I came to our uncle's home. We had just lost Mom and Dad and were in such a state of utter despair, we didn't know what was happening. Of course, we were just little kids; we didn't know what was going on anyway. Diana seemed relieved that our uncle had summoned us. We had barely seen him up to that point in our lives. I have no idea why he never came around. Father used to refer to him as the black sheep. I am not sure if they grew up together. I know he and Father were half-siblings.We
Blossom POV.Even with Diana's sharing of knowledge about what it means to be a she-werewolf, I am petrified of becoming the alpha's mate. I don't know the first thing about being anyone's mate, let alone the alpha. The crowd is probably right; I am nothing but a substitute for a substitute. I hope I can at least make Dean believe that I know what I'm doing. Oh, my God...Dean. He is so incredibly handsome; no wonder others envy me for this position.I had been told he was incredibly good-looking, confident yet not boastful. That combination made she-werewolves swoon. Now that I've laid eyes on him, I see what they mean. I am not sure whether I should be more frightened and nervous, wondering if I measure up, or feel overjoyed that I am lucky enough to have Dean as my mate.But now—now, he isn't saying anything! I don't understand why his father interjected himself into the situation anyway, but I have heard that the alpha's father is "in bed with the court." I'm not even sure what tha
Blossom POVA hush fell over the group once again. The elders are just as taken aback by Dean's response as I, Alejandro, and Aries are, and like them, they are not quite sure how to react. Clearly, as the court leadership, they had made the authoritative decision. Whatever they say becomes the law of the land. At least it always had.The court is not known for its appreciation of surprises like the one the alpha has just delivered. I had been found sound and worthy as a substitute mate for the alpha. They had made this clear in reading their decision aloud before all those present, including Dean.Now, at the surprise statement made by Dean, the elders were left pondering exactly what to do next. In their memory, there had never been a situation quite like this where someone—in this case, an alpha—contradicted what was already dictated by the court. Questioning the authority of the court can lead to punishment, as it has in other situations. Imprisonment is not out of the question wh
Looking back, Dean may have rushed her just a bit. She freely professed her love for him, even earlier than he expected her to. But when he suggested she be his mate, she suddenly became withdrawn. She wouldn't even speak to him or see him for about a week after he first made the suggestion.Over time, he persuaded her to his way of thinking, culminating in her agreeing to leave her home and come with him to become his mate. As alpha, he could have forced her to become his mate, but he wanted Eliza to choose him of her own free will.He still remembered the day he first brought her to his villa. He thought the grandness and beauty of it all would make her happy and that she would forget all of her past reservations, but that wasn't to be. When she first settled in, she busied herself decorating their living quarters, and he admitted, she did a wonderful job. He hadn't touched a thing that she did to this day.But after this initial project was complete, she seemed to grow sad again. S
Blossom POV.But while he could admire the girl for her boldness, he was at the same time frustrated and angry that she would speak out of turn. He was a staunch supporter of the Royal Court and the elders. It's why he was so taken aback just now at his son's words. He felt that Dean was needlessly pushing the envelope. He was probably right, in that the court would have a hard time doling out any punishment to the most powerful alpha werewolf in all of New Orleans. At the same time, Aries was angry and disappointed in what he saw as complete and utter disrespect on Dean's part.Blossom stood her ground, keeping her eyes on the elders, willing them to acknowledge her. Several of the elders simply scoffed and went back to their side conversations. Others tried to stare her down to force her to look away. But she refused to do so. Finally, the leader among the elders addressed her.His voice was loud and harsh. It was clear he was not about to let this young she-werewolf call the shots,
Blossom POV.As the new escape date neared, another unforeseen complication arose. One morning during breakfast, our uncle announced that a handyman would need entry to our suite the next morning to install bars on our windows, along with the other rear windows of the house. Our uncle claimed he had been hearing noises in the night coming from the rear of the house and he did not want to risk a break-in.Diana and I hid our panic as we choked down some of our breakfast, then asked to be excused. We would need to plan Diana's escape for that night. There was no more time to waste.That night, we waited 30 minutes after our uncle came by to check on us and lock our door. I helped my sister to slip out of the far corner window of our bedroom, then held my breath as Diana lithely descended the trellis to the ground, two stories below. I dared not call out, though my heart was breaking. Instead, I waved spiritedly as my sister set foot on the lawn and turned to look up at the window before