Chapter Five

Nicholas

I was enjoying the tranquility of my office when I was interrupted by the booming voice of my mother. “You've gotten more audacious, Nicholas,”

Her presence was the last thing I needed, and I knew she was only here to get on my nerves. She had a way of doing that, and I was sure that was her intention.

Without bothering to exchange pleasantries, I hissed, "What do you want, mother?" I didn't have time for her nonsense, and I knew she didn't have any good intentions.

She retorted, "Show some respect, you stupid brat! Shouldn't you get up and greet me before questioning me? Is this how I taught you to show manners?" I couldn't stand it when she spoke to me like a child, and I detested her for it.

With a sigh, I responded, "I have a ton of work to do, Mother, and I don't have time for this. If you've come all the way here to demand respect from me, then, I'd have to ask you to leave, so you don't waste your time. The fact that I still call you mother, instead of your first name, is already a show of respect, don't you agree?" 

I had no reason to show her any respect, and she had no reason to pretend to care for me because she wasn't my birth mother.

"It embarrasses me that a mannerless child like yourself refers to me as his mother, Nicholas. You have no idea how appalling it is for me that I have to call you my son, but as you know, tradition is tradition, and we just have to deal with it, don't we?" she snapped back unsurprisingly. 

I almost rolled my eyes at her ridiculousness.

"Sorry for you, mother. Why don't you get to the point then? Let's not waste time," I impatiently retorted, waiting for her to say whatever brought her here and get out.

 She was obviously here to cause trouble, but I was determined to ignore her. 

"Well, I certainly didn't come here to see your face, but there's a rumor going around, and it's bothering me," she stated, casually taking a seat on the single-seater sofa in my office.

"I don't know what the gossip is, but I don't think you and I are close enough to share gossip. If there's something you heard that's bothering you, feel free to handle it on your own without involving me," I hastily responded, not interested in her gossip.

"Can you be any more stupid?" she began, her voice laced with a mix of irritation and disbelief. 

"Would I take my time to come all the way here if the rumors didn't have anything to do with you?"

I frowned, trying to make sense of her words. What rumors was she referring to? And why did she feel the need to come to my office just to tell me about them?

"You know, for someone that should be trying hard to earn the love and respect of people, you have a knack for doing things the opposite way and creating problems for the royal family," she continued, her tone accusatory. 

"Do I always need to come here to remind you of your duty?" she asked. 

My brow furrowed deeper, my patience wearing thin. I already had enough of her nagging and her holier-than-thou attitude, and I didn't intend on sitting through it. 

"Before I allow you to say what it is you want to say, let me correct that thought you have in your head," I replied, my voice low and measured.

 "Earning the people's respect is not my priority as an Alpha. You and your daughter can keep up with the shitty charade of playing the role of perfect leaders, but I won't be a part of your nonsense. So next time, don't bring up such nonsense in front of me," I warned sternly. 

She let out a small chuckle, the sound grating on my nerves. "As I was saying," she continued, ignoring my warning, "there is a rumor going around that you locked up an innocent girl for no apparent reason, and I'm here to find out if that's truly the case. Did you put someone in prison unfairly?"

I glanced at her, my eyes narrowing. "Since when did you start to concern yourself with whom I put in prison? How has it ever been any of your business?" I retorted, my annoyance seeping through my words.

"It wouldn't have been any of my business if the rumor wasn't already spreading like wildfire," she shot back, her voice rising in frustration.

 "The palace is going into a frenzy because everyone thinks you've lost your mind and that you're now locking up just about anybody that crosses your path."

I almost scoffed at her lame excuse. "Oh, please spare me, mother!" I exclaimed, my voice tinged with sarcasm. 

"Don't you have some charity events to attend at the moment? Do you need to concern yourself with affairs that have nothing to do with you? Whoever the girl is and whatever I choose to do with her is completely up to me and I do not care if the entire park goes into a frenzy because it still isn't anybody's business," I retorted boredly.

My mother's sudden appearance here only confirmed my suspicions that Lydia was indeed a spy. She had her eyes and ears everywhere, so it was no surprise that one of her spies had informed her of my latest prisoner. 

She was here for one reason and one reason only - to get her spy out of prison but I wasn't going to give her that pleasure. 

“I don't know what is wrong with you,” she began, her voice laced with venom. “But you better snap out of it as soon as possible. I won't allow you to tarnish the reputation of the royal family over your stupid fits, so you better make sure nothing happens to that girl because a commotion is the last thing we need.”

I already hated Lydia for showing up in front of me and making me find out that she was my mate but the fact that she was also related to my stepmother, only gave me even more reason to despise her and nobody was going to convince me to let her go until I felt like it. 

“Mother, it seems to me like you're forgetting that I'm the Alpha King, the head of the royal family, and I can do whatever I want. If I choose to keep someone in prison, it's obviously because they're not innocent, so I don't see the need to explain my decisions to random people," I told her sharply. 

 "If you think my ways are that of a madman, you can always relinquish your title as a member of this family and walk away. I won't stop you,” I voiced out, and the frown on her face deepened.

She was about to say something else, but thankfully, a knock on the door distracts her and we both turn our attention to who it was.

“Come in,” I invited. 

 Sting, one of my trusted bodyguards, walked in with a serious look on his face.

“I have a message to deliver sir,” he informed, looking toward where my mother was seated, and I immediately realized that whatever he wanted to tell me was something my mother shouldn't find out.

I turned my attention back to my mother, who had not left yet. "Aren't you leaving, mother?" I asked, hoping she would take the hint and exit the room.

But she wasn't going to let it go that easily. "You still haven't told me who that girl is and what her offense is. I need to know so that I can stop the rumors from spreading further than it already has," she insisted.

I let out a frustrated sigh. "No offense, mother, but I won't be telling you anything concerning her. Whatever has to do with her is my business and not anyone else's. If you're so desperate to keep the rumors from spreading, go ahead and come up with a lie like you always do. I'll let you off this time," I said, taunting her with my words.

Her face turned red with anger as she rose from her seat. "You useless son of a bitch!" she cursed as she stormed out of the room.

As soon as she was out of sight, I turned to Sting, one of my trusted bodyguards. "What is it?" I asked, curious about the urgent expression on his face.

"Word just came in from the main prison concerning the young lady who was recently locked up, Sir," he informed me.

My interest was piqued. "What is it? Is there a problem?" I asked.

"The guard discovered her almost lifeless body a while ago, and as we speak, she has been taken to the infirmary. The doctor says she's in critical condition," he explained.

Hearing this news caused my heart to clench tightly in my chest. I couldn't believe that the girl, who had only recently been imprisoned, was now fighting for her life.

Without thinking, I rushed out of my seat and hurried to the infirmary, hoping to get there in time to find out what had happened to her.