It's been three days since I completed that application. My mind considers it as I wipe the table, ensuring everything is clean. Alpha Draven has been visiting Alpha Ethan and his pack.
Apparently, the deal they are making is going well. Well enough for Alpha Draven to leave his own pack and travel
It's good, though; it means I haven't been touched for three days. I have barely had to kneel as Beta Luca and the others are busy doing Alpha Draven's work.
Hell, I have even managed to get out of the constant cleaning and finally had time to consider the implications of that application. I'm sure Alpha Prime Darius will punish me for lying about it. I could be killed; I lied to the king essentially.
It was an order to answer honestly, and I didn't. So will Alpha Draven have fun telling them I lied if he ever finds out the truth? Finishing cleaning, I sit on my mat, my eyes close, and I try to relax; I was told he is returning today. So I've made sure I cleaned at the hours I was required to.
That way, if he comes back, I'm right where he expects me to be based on what time it is. Most would hate this, sitting in a cell with nothing. Boredom would be a quick thing they would complain over.
I guess when you're constantly cleaning and doing things for everyone else. This is perfect. Why would I want to do anything other than relax right now? That thought quickly vanishes when I realise what day it is.
Standing, I walk through to the laundry room. The maid smiles at me, and I begin to get the correct items for Alpha Draven's bed. I still have plenty of time to get it done before he can complain.
"They are getting the women." I turn to the maid, confused. "The guards of Alpha Prime Darius began to collect the selected ladies today."
"Lucky them." I smile, and she reaches out.
"It could be lucky you." I look at her with a confused expression, and she smiles. "I saw, don't worry, no one else did."
Crap. I stand and panic. "If..."
Her hand goes up. "I won't be telling Alpha Draven, Elara, so you don't need to worry; I have everything crossed for you." She says that, yet she hasn't considered the consequences, just as I didn't.
I'm claimed; the mark is impossible to hide if he were to ask us to strip and confirm we're not claimed. I never considered the consequences of my actions, and right now, It's too damn late.
All I can do is hope I wasn't selected, and why would I be? Wolfless, packless, orphan, with no last name. I'm at the bottom of that list.
After replacing the sheets and bedding, I take the dirty ones to the maid, although they aren't dirty. They were put on two days ago. No one has even slept in it. As I leave, I hear the door. I quickly walk to my cell to avoid them. If I'm not there, I am hoping that I'm out of their minds.
"Mutt." Or not. Standing, I walk through and kneel. "What is this?" I look up.
"A cloth Master." Why is he asking me that?
"And who uses it?"
"Myself, Master, they are the ones given to me to use." No one else uses them. He has a weird habit, like everyone has their own cloths. Why? So he can see whose cloths are used the most?
"Then why was it next to the computer?"
Shit. My mind races back. I was cleaning that day and took the sheets to the maid. When I went to the computer, I had a cloth in my hand.
"I don't know, Master."
"That is a blatant lie." I hear him move. "Get it ready. Ensure the entire pack will be watching."
Wait, I stare at him.
"You went into a room that is forbidden. You used items you are not allowed to. Did you think this would go unpunished?"
I thought he wouldn't know. He wouldn't have if I didn't leave the cloth.
"Master, it was not me who put the cloth there." Maybe he won't punish me if I lie and make out that it was someone else.
"Lying is only increasing your punishment." He turns to Alpha Luca. "Drag her out." I feel my body get pulled up and pushed out. He rarely punishes me in front of the entire pack.
My body is thrown to the ground. Kneeling, I keep my head lowered. I know that I caused this. Now, I consider his plan, maybe to keep me kneeling here and battle the weather with them watching.
"If I give orders, I expect them to be followed even when I am not in sight."
I feel the cuffs wrap around my wrists. So, I’m not going to be punished by having to face the elements?
"So this is a reminder that I won't allow it to happen," I scream as my body is pulled up by the cuffs around my wrists. My toes barely touch the floor.
"Now," I scream, feeling the whip hit against my back. My head raises, and I look at Alpha Draven. He had sworn never to do this to me.
"Again." I brace myself, but it does little to help. Screaming; tears flow from my eyes.
"Again." The pain from the whip has me slump forward, the scream getting tangled in my throat with the sob.
"Again." I stare at Alpha Draven. Screaming, I dangle from the chains, my eyes seeing Alex in the crowd. My head drops, I never expected him to give me this punishment.
The pain is worse than the other night. I can feel the blood running down my back from the lacerations. I hear cars and raise my head. I watch as the crowd disappears.
"Take it inside." Alpha Draven points to me, and I feel the cuffs being removed, and I fall down. A hand grabs me and drags me through. As we get inside the door, I'm dragged forward.
"Stop!"Alpha Draven shouts. My body is dropped, and I kneel, ready for Alpha Draven to begin yelling abuse at me. "Apparently, Alpha Prime Darius has sent guards for you, Mutt!"
Shit. I raise my head slowly to see him glaring and growling at me. Is this because they know I lied? I have a feeling tonight's punishment is only the start of it.
"Why me?" I look at the guards as Beta Luca pulls me to my feet."You're to join the other candidates at the Luna Battle. Alpha Prime Darius has requested that you attend after your submission made the finals."My body stills as I’m shocked by their words. I never expected to be chosen. I feel Alpha Draven's eyes on me, and I know his anger is rising because of this. He can't refuse, he can't go against Alpha Prime Darius's orders, but he has the power to announce that I am already bitten and claimed by him.Standing, I wait for his words, and I wait for his refusal or acceptance. Surely he will speak soon?"Mutt, I suggest you pack your bag." I move quickly through the house and to my cell, packing the few items I have. Pulling off the top I am wearing, I winch and hold in the screams.Someone steps into my cell as I begin to pull on my top."He sent me to cover your lacerations." Alex smiles, and I turn. "At least you are free." His words are whispered as I bite my lip to stop the s
We stand quietly and wait. The camera pans across the women as we stand waiting for the king. I notice the camera lingers on the other contestants for a longer time than they do me.The producer smirks at me; I don't need time on screen; it isn't down to the public who is Luna. So, him purposely cutting my time down is fine with me.I watch the door open, and the king walks in with Alpha Kellan. His eyes scan the contestants as he makes his way to the stage. He barely settles on any of them for longer than a few seconds. Then he reaches me and stares; I shift uncomfortably; no doubt this is him noticing I have no wolf.He steps onto the stage and keeps his eyes on me the entire time. I try to be confident and look back. Yet, it cracks, and I fail. My eyes drop quickly. I'm so used to having to kneel to Alphas and Betas. I don't even feel like I should look at him without permission."Ladies," William calls our attention back to him. "After the rules are explained, you will face your f
I sit with the camera in my face; it's far closer than it had been for any of the other candidates, and I feel like it's a way to try and make me nervous. It's working."Elara, we don't have a last name. Why is that?" He smirks at me. I knew it."I do not have one. I was an orphan."He glances at his papers. "An orphan? It says here you were sold?"Shit. How much does he know?"I was, yes, but I was first an orphan.""Hmm." He looks at me. "Elara, is it true that you were a servant and prostitute for your past Alpha?"I freeze, and I watch his smile widen. Opening my mouth, I close it again."End it here." I watch him turn the camera off. "You're done.""Wait." He can’t cut it off already."Sorry, but you couldn't answer a simple question. Not only that, but you sound bored and highly unworthy of watching. You’re finished, I think you beat the candidates. One minute, well done." He laughs."Ahm." He raises his head, and I watch the roll of his throat as he swallows. "Delete it. All th
When I wake, I get myself ready. May had brought me some clothes this morning. All the contestants were given general clothing as they were only allowed to bring one small bag each.Breakfast was awkward. Some of the women were looking at me like I didn't belong here. I heard the whispers and complaints because Alpha Kellan had sat with me during my interview.That alone has already started to make the women complain and pinpoint me as a troublemaker. Yet, I've noticed they are more brutal to the other ladies.It appears they think I'm not a threat. Which is likely correct. They don't think I can possibly get through and become Luna, so while they are all taking bites out of each other and trying to make each other feel like crap.I'm here untouched. Sure, I get called mutt and Tramp, but it's far less than they are throwing at each other.~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~I'm sitting in the garden with Sage. It's still snowing. Something tells me this isn't going to stop any time soon. Yet the palace
After our casual chats, we all went back to our rooms to get ready for tonight's dinner. I haven't seen the producer since, but the cameras still stayed.They didn't get close enough to hear personal conversations. Still, they most certainly aimed to capture everyone's responses to what was happening in the room.I hadn't noticed that they were filming, so no doubt the footage of me and Lyra will get some views. From what I heard, the cameras picked up on our confrontation and were close enough to hear as they weren't warned to stay back at that point."Your dress for tonight." May holds it up. It's ocean blue with a sweetheart neckline. It's the most beautiful thing I own. It's simple, which is what was required for tonight's meal.Once I'm ready, I walk out, Sage meets me, and we walk down together. We walk in and see Darius and Kellan at opposite sides of the table."Okay, ladies. I will read out the name of those whom Alpha Prime Darius wishes to sit with him." William opens the p
I spent hours talking about dresses, looking at materials and colours. May has begun to work on it. I watch her from across the room. While I slept, she did some work on the dress, then got some sleep but returned to it this morning."What do you think?" She turns to me. Walking over, I pick up the fabric; it's beautiful. It's a gold fabric with black sheer fabric over the top. The two colours mix perfectly."It looks amazing, so do it." I smile and sit with her, talking about random things. She turns and smiles at me."You know, they weren't lying. Your video got the most views, comments and everything. Barely anyone mentioned Prince Kellan, just you."I highly doubt it makes a difference."I won't be winning this May. Even I know the public will change their view when it gets close to picking the final winner." I'm in no way a Luna."Oh, I don't know. People saw the showdown between you and Lyra. It made people question things. The way you spoke." She nudges me.Even so, I am far fr
I escaped to my room quickly, unwilling to give the others a chance to ask questions or assume they knew what our conversation was about. It feels like Kellan is purposely going against Darius' words when it comes to me.Why though?I spend the rest of my day with May, helping and watching her make my dress. Today is a day without an event, and that's a good thing. The ladies will need time to calm down and hate me less."I've also sorted out gloves." I look at May. "You need to wear gloves. They need to be a certain length. Gloves that are too short or not wearing gloves is against the rules. The King’s Luna needs to wear them." I nod at her words.She has made sure the dress covers my shoulders. I explained I have a scar there, one which isn't appealing, so all clothes she creates will ensure the scar is covered. I can't risk it getting seen.Later, I began walking down and saw Sage. I caught up with her, and we walked down together for dinner."So, Prince Kellan?" She looks at me.
I get woken early by knocking. Rushing to the door, I pull it open."Elara, the king has requested your attendance, please." The Beta looks at me. I look down at myself."Please give me a moment." Closing the door, I rushed and got ready; I was dressed and following him down within five minutes. He takes us through to the opposite side of the palace, the side we're not allowed in without permission.Stopping outside the door, he knocks, and I hear the king call out. The door opened, and we walked in. I stopped when I saw Aurora. Great, more drama!"Thank you, Beta Pete, you may leave." He nods and walks out. "Please, take a seat, Elara." Darius points to the seat next to Aurora.Walking over, I sit down, my head lowering."You two have made a spectacle of this competition. Your interaction last night was broadcast, and many have seen it." His words are loud."I apologise, King Darius; I never intended or wanted to make yourself or your family look bad," I speak quickly, knowing that t
Asher POVI look down at Katla. She's only a few days old. After speaking with Zyra, she decided that the space in the mountains would be a retreat—a place for us to escape to, somewhere Katla could get used to what it is like to live in the Dragon Kingdom.We have spent a few days there, but not many. Apparently, she wants to be in the palace close to the others. Part of me feels like that's because they were her support while I was hiding away.It's shown her what having a family around can do. We're close, minus Aurelia. She seems to be thriving with the Bears and keeping her distance. Other than returning that day when I was going crazy and needed help, she rarely came back. We've adjusted and got used to that, however.She wants her life away from here; she wants her own life, not one that is connected to us. She should have that if she wants it."Hey."Turning, I see Elijah walk to me.He laughs slightly and takes Katla from my arms. "You look exhausted; fun night?"It's only 4
Asher POVI walk out of the room and go to where I know they will be. As I step into the office, they turn to face me.Darius shakes his head. "You should be with Zyra.""I was, but considering this is brought on by the Dragons, I should be helping." I walk further in and look at the papers."Nothing to help with," my dad shrugs. "His son is clean, Seraphine can tell. Things were explained to him. He had no idea about the arranged marriage and, to be honest, was shocked, as he apparently had a mate."So the son won't be an issue. Is that what he's saying?"Look, both Eliphas and Durnalin are in the cells, away from each other. The son has gone. Apparently, he has a whole life with his mate. His dad told him the dragons had requested their presence at events." Darius explains.It makes no sense, though. "Why? Why would the dragons want the warlocks there?" How didn't his son question it?"Apparently, because Eliphas and his son are the strongest warlocks, they invited them to make a un
Asher POVI wait and watch."Prince Asher, soon to be King, tell me something." He walks to the bars and leans against them. "Where do Warlocks belong?"My head tilts; they belong wherever they want to. I don't understand his question."See, there is no answer as we don't belong anywhere. There is the werewolf kingdom, fae, dragons and everything else. Witches and warlocks are forced to live in one of those kingdoms, with no real power."So this was all about getting power? My body is pushed back, and my eyes widen as I see King Drakon reach through the bars—his hand clamps around Eliphas' neck.I guess he's fixed, and his curse is gone. My dad and Darius drag him away, and I watch Eliphas drop to the floor, clutching his neck. The blood runs down from where King Drakon's nails dug in."We need answers; killing him won't get them." My dad turns and faces Eliphas."Apparently, this was all for power." Which still makes no sense."It wasn't just for power. We wanted our own kingdom, our
Asher POVI'm anxious. It's been two days since the curse was lifted, and I'm glad to be back to normal. All that is at risk, though. Tonight, I have to be close to whoever is pretending to be King Drakon. That then risks it happening again, and if it does, will it start slow again or begin where it was removed?I've noticed Elijah, Storm, and Aurelia are quiet. Whatever was done has worn them out, which I didn't want."Are you ready?" Zyra hugs me, and I nod. I'm not. We need answers and to figure out who it is."Be careful, okay?" I don't like that I'm not going to be there."It's you who needs to be careful. You will be in a confined space with him. If anything goes wrong." She looks at me worriedly.Wrapping my arms around her, I smile. "I'll be fine; once he's in the cell, he can't do anything." I kissed her and gave her a final hug before walking away.Getting to the cells, I sit in one and wait. I'm hoping the plan works. If we can get him in the cell, then his magic and power
Asher POVI can see Zyra is struggling, and I don’t blame her either. She just found out her brother is missing.“Look, when Seraphine checked trying to find out the issue with him, she saw King Drakon, but it wasn’t him. Whoever it was is who we believe Cursed Asher.” My mum grasps her hands and smiles. “We’ve got people tracking down where your brother really is. There’s a reason for this, and it’s you, Zyra. Seraphine could sense the curses were put on Asher and Elijah to try and push you to return home.”Zyra looks around the room and seems increasingly worried. “What about Ryker? Is he okay? Does he know?” She waits, and I don’t know the answer to that.“I’m sorry, we don’t know. You need to stay here, Zyra. We have a plan, and we’re hoping Seraphine can uncover more when the person comes here.”She nods and sits, looking lost.“We are expecting Seraphine to return late tonight or early tomorrow. If they can’t fix the issue, then we will keep working to.” My mum smiles and hugs h
Asher POVAfter about an hour of sitting in the cell with Zyra, I ordered her to leave. I wanted to spend time with her, but she shouldn't have been sitting in the cells with me.So, I've been alone for hours, waiting to find out their plan. They hadn't thought this through. I need to leave the cell to go to the room. As soon as I step out of this cell, it will come back. Then what?I'm willing to agree to anything right now if it gets me out of this cell and back with Zyra. The footsteps have me standing, and I watch my dad and Darius walk towards me."What's your plan? How am I to do this?" They haven't thought it through."You need to shift." Darius looks at me.I laugh at him. Is that some kind of joke? "You want me to shift, so that what? I can kill people easier?"My dad sighs and steps forward. "Please do as you're told. You won't understand why we're saying you can shift, but shift. Into your wolf, not dragon."Of course, I won't understand; they haven't explained it to me. If
Elijah POVI sit in the office; Seraphine has left. She's meeting her family halfway in the hopes they have something that can help. Merfolk are powerful creatures with extraordinary abilities.Curses and such are something they specialise in."We're going to request that King Drakon attend a celebration for Zyra's pregnancy. It means we can get what we need and figure out who it is and what their aim is." My dad looks at me, and he makes it sound so simple. This isn't simple."He's going to ask why Asher isn't present, then what?" We can't lie and hide him. "It will look suspicious.""Not if Zyra invites him, she won't know, remember. She can invite him, and whoever is portraying King Drakon won't suspect anything. We're going to be honest and explain something is wrong with Asher, and he's not well."So we're not hiding the issue."He could be in the cell for weeks, so we've had things moved down there for him. The plan is later to test how he is with someone in the cell with him. T
Asher POVI watch as Elijah glares at everyone and backs up more."Elijah, we need to know." My mum steps towards him."I saw him once, just once! You all need to focus on Asher, not me! He's the one that is cursed, not me!" He shouts and steps back. He backs into my dad, and he grabs Elijah as Seraphine steps forward and grips his head.His screams echo around the cells, and it's all over just as quickly as it starts. His body falls to the floor, and he cradles his head."Well?" Darius looks at Seraphine."You're going to need a warlock, or I'll need to contact my family and see if they have something to clear the curses." Her words make me look towards Elijah. So, he is also cursed."Asher's curse is to make him push everyone out and make him think he has a mad wolf so that Zyra leaves. Elijah's was to hate Asher, likely to intensify it." Seraphine smiles slightly. "There's no mate, Elijah. The curse is what's stopping us from having a baby. There's no third mate." Her words have hi
Asher POVNo one speaks, likely because they know what I said is the truth. I need to die; there is nothing they can do to change that."Explain the process, what happened, how it started, when it happens." Darius pulls a chair over and sits outside the cell.I laugh. "Why do I need to talk? Why do I need to explain? You're proving you believe me by keeping me locked in here and being too afraid to come near your own son."Nothing I say can change that."Asher, I'm not opening the cell because I don't trust you to try and run. So explain it to me, tell me how it's progressed, and let's be sure that is what is happening." He waits, and I watch my mum, Elijah, and dad sit with him."It began with whispers. The words were barely audible, but I heard whispers in my ear. They got louder and began to sound like words. Whispers were one thing, but then I began to see people dead and my wolf above them." It was a warning to me to hide, to push them away, and not let them close to me."When do