HENRY'S POV
My uncle Ray hated that my father signed a peace treaty with the human werewolf hunters who we have been at war with since time immemorial.
As a kid, I liked Uncle Ray, he would let me fight with him, hunt with him. But my mom never liked him much, or rather she was very wary of his reckless lifestyle. I heard my mom and dad argue about Uncle Ray's position and power in the pack a few times. But my dad refused to make him any less than Beta, he was his older brother, if situations were reversed, he should be king.
My dad told me many times how hard Uncle Ray trained to become king. It was all he ever did with his life, but when that didn't happen and the throne was passed to him instead, Uncle Ray turned to alcohol and the lifestyle my mom so hated.
Even with the subtle tension here and there, I had no reason to see that he could be capable of hurting me or my family. But evil takes root in ones heart deeper than anybody can imagine. I was ten, I could barely understand politics, but I knew things were changing.
Werewolf hunters were a constant problem since before I was born and dad had been working on stopping them for a two years. It was damaging the pack, continuing the war was useless. People were loosing loved ones, families were broken, thus the peace treaty was signed much to the dismay of Uncle Ray.
Somehow, he managed to instigate them to attack once again to take the throne. Gathered an army of people who believed in his methods and he killed my parents during the attack. I remember that night like it was yesterday. Watching as my father surrendered himself to Ray so he could spare my mother who was pregnant at the time.
But he didn't. He slit both their throats and reveled in it. Cedric saved me just in time and took me far to some of his human friends.
I was left with the humans for 6 years, moving from house to house all over the world. I enrolled in the army at 14. It was easy to forge my Identity as I was taller and looked older for my age, wolf genes. I received no news from home till on the night I turned 16.
I was lying in the small single bed in my tiny room in Vienna when I saw a reflection of red striking eyes from my window. Cedric. I knew my time was up with the humans. The Council of elders had managed to banish Ray from the pack after 6 gruesome years because the throne, refused to let Ray be king, but he took his followers with him, More than 100 people to form his own pack - Black Lotus. Even if he wasn't king, he had become Alpha by killing my dad.
Black Lotus attacked within a few days of me being king but with Red fire now split in half, we needed allies, I was a child becoming king, there was no way I could protect the pack on my own, so I created an alliance with other packs that had also been victims of Ray's attacks while I was away.
My intel in the Military supplied us with ammunitions and raw materials and every year, men from the alliance volunteered to be front line warriors, trained personally by me with my years of experience in the army.
Eli's raps of knocks came to my ears, but I had I picked up his scent since he turned into the hallway.
"Come in."
The door swings open a second later, his head snaps to the mess I made.
"Is every thing okay?." He asks and I grunt a 'yes'.
A file lands on my table as well as pictures of the rouge that just attacked, I notice Eli's busted knuckles, I know the guy is dead.
"He was just a rouge, no relation to Ray and his troops, he was banished from his pack around six years ago and had been on the run since, he raped a twelve year old." Eli summarizes. I pick up the file and flip through the pages quickly, everything is exactly as he said. I throw the book down and groan, not really interested in the story of a rapist.
He takes that as the invitation to sit down.
"Cedric is at my throat again, I would have ended him ages ago but I know he means well." I tell him without a filter, knowing fully well that the old man was on the other side of the door listening in.
"The Prophesy?." He asks. Eli and I grew up together, his father being my father's second Beta, we were best friends till I went to military school.
The 'Prophesy' is an age long legend that we were told as kids. About the impending doom of our kind and the mysterious wolf, who is rumored to be the gift to the world from the Moon goddess herself.
I personally think its Bull, but Cedric and his entire family worships the legend and never cease to remind me. This 'gift' is supposed to be a fated mate to the king and will help save our kind.
They think I'm that king, and that she's my mate. To save us from what I don't know. But if a need does arise that I, The King of Alphas, am incapable of saving my own people, we are indeed done for.
That's why I can't find her. According to him, she will only manifest when its her time, and the odds have been telling him its time, or so he has been saying since I turned 18.
He's a cryptic old man. But that king in the Prophesy wasn't my father, or his father or his father's father or any before and is certainly not me.
"He thinks she's in Blue Ivy." I mutter with a curse. 'The eldest daughter of the Beta to be precise.' Cedric voice booms in my head and I repeat it to Eli.
"I went to the Pedestal today." Eli starts and I throw my head back, Cedric's silent laugh fills my ears. Of course the sly old man spoke to Eli.
"Yeah?, I was there all night!." I bite at him even though he's not the root of my problems.
"Any luck Fire man?." He asks me with a smirk and I shake my head.
"Another reason why Cedric is being a prick, my mate will strengthen me so I can power the shield's engine again." I say in Cedric's voice and Eli laughs.
"He's not wrong." Eli murmurs after a his laugh recedes, I throw him a glare.
"And why do you think I'm such a pissy mood." I grit, I have a foul mouth, I can't help it. "And why I agreed to going to Blue Ivy."
AZALEA'S POVThe whole pack school was in uproar as I arrived, chaos and excitement, over the news of our pack hosting the next mating moon ceremony for the alliance. I graduated Highschool a year early and decided to take a gap year till I got my wolf instead of going to college right away. I took a job as a Teaching assistant to Grade 7 and 8 of the school.It was a great job, but it attracted a lot of weird looks and attention when people my age were still in grade 11 or 12 freaking out over prom, or in this case, the dangerous Alpha of Red Fire pack of the North coming to visit for the mating moon ceremonies which is simply a modern werewolf version of debuting to the ton. Ladies get all dolled up for hours to attend an exclusive party in the hopes of finding a man. You only qualified to attend if you have shifted, the rest of the children stay away from the actual mating process.Eloise always goes, and returns with the same surly expression on her face and irritable mood.Mum wh
HENRY'S POV"My king, I'm not sure this is entirely advised." The whinny old man shudders and I smirk."You wanted me to go to Blue Ivy, we're going to Blue fucking Ivy." I tell him."But I didn't say in the middle of the night with no guards or soldiers."I snort. "Cedric, I trained those soldiers, who would be protecting whom?."Every soldier has fought me one on one before they are sworn in. I usually do it just for the sake of it, and because my wolf enjoys beating people to a pulp but if they pass or tap out before thirty minutes of sparing, they are cut. They need to be able to withstand pain, no one of Black Lotus is less of a fighter than I am. Ray was my first combat teacher, he is a brutal fighter and has taught all his soldiers same."So are you coming or not?." I ask him with a grin, without thinking about it, his eyes glaze over and he smiles. I nod and turn away for a bit of privacy as he links his mate and family about our trip.My wolf is restless, happens a lot, I was
AZALEA'S POV“Why don’t you pick on somebody your own size.” I hear a deep voice that causes my stomach to summersault a couple times. Almost immediately, a pleasant smell fills my nose and I shiver.I try to look at him, but the jock he’s holding up is obstructing as if he heard my thoughts, he turned and planted the jock, dangling on a locker. With the obstruction gone, I finally see him. “Then again, I’m not really your size.” He says with mockery deep in his voice but non of it on his face.He’s older, like 5 years older kind of older, he’s definitely not a high school student. I’ve never seen him before, not that I know a lot of people, but his aura is strong, very strong and dark to forget.His hair is long, longer than I’ve seem most men’s, he seems to be having a black thing going on cos, his hair is jet black, and so are all of his clothes down to his shoes, except an orange ID rope is handing out of his back pocket, the only thing of color on his body.I can only see his sid
HENRY'S POV"Then again, I'm not really your size." I don't go around bragging, but I've only met a few people that I don't tower over. I slam his back to a locker, holding him there, with one hand.He kicks and puffs, trying to free himself, after a few seconds, he stops, finally realizing that he can't do anything."Hey!, I'm just a kid, man!, you can't hurt me." He shouts on top of his voice like a pussy."Kid?." I almost laugh, but I had to keep up my big bad wolf thing going on. We had an audience that dropped her tongue when I picked the guy up. I'm used to the reaction."You're like 20?.""What do you want?!." He whimpers."Apologize to the lady." I tip my head at her."Yeah right!." He scoffs and I almost end him, he seems to be one of those stupid people that don't think women and men are equal, he's a piece of shit. I knee him in the groin, almost breaking the little thing."I didn't give you a choice, apologize to the lady and you may still be able to continue your cursed li
AZALEA'S POVI was adopted, found, really, by a bush of Azaleas, hence my name. My adoptive parents had 2 children before me, a boy and a girl, and a set of twins after me, also a boy and a girl, making 5 kids in all. They love us equally but leave us to ourselves most of the time, busy with pack duties and also personal, duties - they're so into each other, it's gross. Dad could never, even if he tried, keep his hands off mom. Kai, our eldest brother says that’s how it has always been. I dream of a love like that, a man who would love me flaws and all, obsessed with me even when all the hairs on my head turn grey, and me, him, even when he can’t walk straight from arthritis.Kai and Eloise, my older siblings don't like me much, I guess they feel like I intruded, on their perfect little family. They have never really come out to say out rightly, but they do these subtle things like, make me do all their share of chores, and just stay away form me until absolutely necessary.My younge
AZALEA'S POV"Kai what are you doing!, get out!." I manage to order, but it did nothing to help."Why, I've not had my fun yet." I walk backwards, putting distance between us. "You know, I've always thought of what your skin would feel like in my arms, those perky breasts in my mouth…….." He laughs in a diabolical way, I've never heard before, pushing his brown hair out of the way, I walk away with each step he takes towards me."Kai, you're drunk and in my room! Get out, before you do something stupid." I shout, by now, all sense being quiet and respectful out the window. But he doesn't listen."Kai, stop right there, I'm going to shout!.""Of course you are, when I show you all the pleasures of the world." In a swift movement, he is right in front of me, his hands on my neck, I try to run, but he's fast, I reach for something to hit him with, my eyes dilating as he restricts my air flow. His hands begin to rake my body in a very, very disgusting way, I manage to pick a pen holder a
AZALEA'S POVWeeks LaterI stand in front of my mirror, a deep scowl etched to my face, taking off my hat. I wouldn’t generally say I hate myself, but I'm so different and its not even the cute kind.I dyed my hair yesterday but somehow, overnight, the ends had grown an inch and a half longer. I used to be pretty bald as a kid, my hair was so short that I could only put them in little pig tails, but age 13 or 14, my hair started growing like some sort of lab freak.Mom had been excited, she said it only meant I would have a pretty wolf, my hair was supposed to be the color of my wolf. I didn’t believe her, not more than do I now. It has been years and said pretty wolf is yet to show up.It wouldn’t be that big a deal if the inch I grew over night wasn’t bright silver in color. I drop my face into my palm, biting my lip for a minute to mute out the scream of curses I was going to let out, I didn’t want to call any attention to myself. Unlike Kai, all pressure has been on my older sis
AZALEA'S POV“No she doesn't.” She defends immediately. I arch an eyebrow at her, she smiles.“I had a lot of sisters growing up too, and we never really saw eye to eye, even though we were almost the same ages,” I interrupt her and she let me.“You and all your sisters are from the same parents, Eloise sees me as a pest.” I tell her truthfully and she gasps, I guess I'm breaking her heart with my words, she probably doesn’t think it's as bad as it is.“If you think like that of your sister, then how are you any better Azalea?.” She tells me firmly, I want to argue, but I decide against it, it's no use."Have you ever tried to mend things with your sister other than concluding based on your prejudice?. If not, then the fault also lies with you." I want to tell her all how Eloise and her friends use to mock me in school. How she would let them laugh at me. How would I endure that and try to "mend things" when I have done nothing wrong but being adopted. “I’ll talk to Eloise so you gu