The whole idea of the selection festival never did sit well with Baka. It required the female werewolves to compete amongst themselves for the male gaze. Whoever had the highest approval got to be the first to spend the day with the Alpha King.It was a patriarchal conquest. A fight for the King’s hand. For status and power. ]This time, the man was the prize.Some werewolf girls were trained from birth to be Luna Queens. She suspected the chosen candidates had gone through rigorous training, night and day on the hour. And now they were about to show their community what they’ve got and why it made them worthy of the title. Baka had never witnessed a Selection Festival, but she had no doubt it would be intense, if not utterly ludicrous .Preparations were already underway as the three Luna candidates went through a purification ceremony. Baka had no idea what that meant. She had heard Emily and Aja talking about it late last night while she had been trying to sleep.Emily had said th
It took them eight rounds to finish fetching enough water. Despite being a scandalous distraction, Eugene had been a great help, carrying the buckets to and fro. She had only had to carry one bucket during the entire ordeal.Carlton had finished cooking and had left her to tidy up the place. Aja and Emily were currently attending to their mistresses. Since Tatum wasn’t around, Baka focused on cleaning the kitchen.Eugene had offered to help her with the dishes and fetch more water for the rest of the residents at the palace to bathe. At first she had declined, thinking it would be abominable for him to be doing their chores for them.But he had threatened to annoy her endlessly if she didn’t let him help and in the end, she had reluctantly agreed. If she was being perfectly honest, she didn’t mind his company. Apart from what she would describe as their mild chemistry, they had great banter. And things like that seldom ever happened.“Why are you here with me and not outside with your
From the bantaba, Tatum could see quite a lot. While it was obscured by trees, nothing obscured the rest of the world from it.He had seen Eugene and Baka fetching water from the well in a manner that can only be described as too friendly. Jealousy had crawled up his gut and now resided in his chest in a simmering anger. There was nothing to be angry at, he knew. Yet Baka had never been so friendly with him. In fact, she had been rather cold the past couple of days.Why was it Eugene who got her to giggle and laugh like a lovestruck school girl?She had never once laughed in front of him, he realized. She wasn’t comfortable around him enough to let all her defenses fall. Her hackles shot up around him as tall as the sky. She may have let them down a little, but never all the way.Why was it Eugene she got to do that for? Did she like him? He knew he liked her, anyone with half a brain could see that. But was it reciprocal? He needed to know.“You look a world away, Brother,” came Tak
Tatum was irritated. He had been sitting under the white canopy for hours in ridiculous attire, waiting for news to come from the tent about each Luna candidate’s purity when he couldn’t care less about it.The sun was hot, his clothes had begun to itch, and worst of all, he had seen no sign of Baka. Shouldn’t she be here, attending to him?Aja and Emily were both here attending to their mistresses. So why was Baka nowhere to be found? Eugene wasn’t here either. The thought enraged him as he wondered if they were still hanging out together.Annoyed, he turned to Emily. “Where is Baka?”From her position beside Tania, she straightened. “I don’t know, my lord.”“Maybe her little feet are up to some more mischief, Tatum,” Tania piped in, smiling slyly as she did so. “Why are we talking about a slave when there is a purification ceremony going on?” Mother Tina chimed in as she glared at Tatum. “Shouldn’t you be focusing on the Luna candidates?”“Beats me,” Tania clucked.Tatum realised t
“You’re quite the celebrity, Stephan,” Baka marveled as she sat down beside him in Healer Freya’s shop. “I hear you have about six wives already.”“And counting,” he bragged with a charming smile. He looked so much better than when she had last seen him. His wounds were healing nicely and color had returned to his face. He was even sitting! Something he was barely able to do before.“They’re all lovely. Especially Yandeh.”“Yandeh?” Baka asked in bewilderment.“Yes. Tall, black beauty—““I know who she is. Why her?”He smiled. “Honestly? Her height. Never been with a girl as tall as me. I’m excited to see how it turns out.”Baka couldn’t help but giggle. “Well, best of luck.”“Thanks, Sweets. And you?”“What about me?”“No man has caught your fancy?”Oh, dear. What was it about men asking her personal details about her life these days? She mused, remembering a similar question from Eugene.“Who has the time? Too busy being a slave to tyrants.” She had whispered the last bit. The walls
Baka knocked softly at the door to the Alpha King’s room and waited for the confirmation to enter. When she heard nothing, she knocked again.“Enter,” came his coarse response.That didn’t sound promising. Swallowing hard, she entered the room. He was sitting on his bed reading a book she couldn’t decipher from so far away. He didn’t look up at her as she walked the rest of the distance between her and the desk and placed the tray on top of it.Clearing her throat, she turned towards him. “Your dinner, my lord.”Nodding, he asked, “What is it?”He still wasn’t looking at her. “Rice and stew with fried chicken.”“That’s generous.” He glanced at his wrist watch. “And late.”She bit down on her lower lip as she’d seen Emily do only a few minutes ago. “I’m sorry, my lord. I went to see Stephan and didn’t pay close attention to the time.”“Indeed.” He flipped a page. Was he really reading? His monosyllabic responses and unbothered facade were beginning to gnaw at her. Hadn’t Aja said he had
Early the next morning, Baka woke up to loud screams. Alarmed, she scrambled out of her bed, all sleep flying out the window as Emily and Aja pointed frantically at a rat scurrying away to hide in a dark corner. They stood in their see-through nightgowns, utterly hysterical. “Look! A rat!” Aja was visibly shivering as she recoiled in disgust. “It ran over me. Oh my God! I can still feel it’s disgusting little feet on my bare skin.”“It’s gone under those tables!” Emily cried.Baka stared at them as though they had sprouted horns on their pretty little heads. They couldn’t be serious. “Really? You’re afraid of a little rat.”“Little?” Aja echoed in wonder.“That thing was not little!” Emily defended, pointing harshly at where the rat had scurried off to. “It was a giant rat. I’ve never seen anything like it.”Baka rubbed at her eyes and glared at them. Mosann was a better roommate than these two. “That giant rat is afraid of you but clearly it shouldn’t bother. I know a little girl w
When the games were over and the people began to disperse, Tatum couldn’t help but train his eyes at Baka. He had sensed her presence the moment she joined the scene, just in time to see the ruby necklace. He felt the weight of her emotions upon discovering it was his favourite.Her look told him she suspected why. He could sense it the moment her eyes landed on him. Yes, he wanted to say through their untested bond. It’s my favourite because it bears your name.She didn’t know what she meant to him. Not yet. But she will.He caught Eugene waving frantically at her. Either she hadn’t seen him or she pretended not to, because she turned away quickly. But Eugene only followed after her, running in front of her and she came to a halt. Then he embraced her. In front of everyone who cared to watch.Tatum couldn’t control the reverberating rage that soared through him as his wolf growled deeply within his cage. It was livid with rage and jealousy, threatening to burst through him at any sec