XAVIER'S POV"It is a ritual that when the coronation is just around the corner, the two competitors for the throne are expected to have a suitable and proper mate. Emphasis on proper mate. " She dragged the last sentence out as she shot a smirk at me. That witch! What was she planning to do? Crystal Thorne, as far as I was concerned, was a proper mate. I chose her as my mate and I couldn't care less what anyone else says. And she remained my mate until I said otherwise. "So as we all know, Leo Fernandez and Xavier Fernandez are both competing for the throne. Tonight, the stakes will be high; we are to choose between the two of them, together with their rightful mate, who is fit to rule our revered Blood Moon Pack. " She announced and at once the crowd began to murmur among themselves. I was shocked as those words rolled out of her mouth. They tasted bitter in my mouth as if I was the one that uttered them. Now, things were beginning to get out of hand gradually. I coul
XAVIER'S POV"It seems like you didn't understand a word I said, Luna Rachael. Perhaps I should rephrase... "Luna Rachael frantically waved at Luna Aurora, stopping her mid-sentence. "I do! I understand. You don't have to repeat yourself. I'm not deaf, thank you. " She said sharply, with a frown wrinkling her brows. Luna Aurora pinched her brows together as her lips thinned into a suppressed amusement. She was enjoying it as much as I was. Now, this was perfect! Luna Aurora chuckled wryly. "I didn't say you are deaf, Luna Rachael. Why take offence? " She ribbed. Luna Rachael seethed and forced a smile. "I'm not offended, Luna Aurora. Now can we get back to business? "Luna Aurora shook her head gently and held her hand up to halt her. "You haven't answered yet, Luna Rachael and yet you claimed not to be deaf... No offence though, but my question is highly important and as one of the distinguished guests that have been invited as well as with others, " she gesture
XAVIER'S POV"Did you singlehandedly approve all these? " Luna Aurora probed with her eyebrows arched. Elder Martins and Luna Rachael both exchanged glances. He cleared his throat and leaned into the mic. "I represented the entire elders of the Blood Moon Pack and they approved. So I did not singlehandedly decide on my own. It is the will of the elders of the Blood Moon Pack. " He said. Did Uncle Ivan approve? I doubted so! This was a biased decision! It was fueled by hatred and family revenge! And worst of all, it was ignited by none other than my stepmother, Luna Rachael. She must have bribed him. That vile woman! She was capable of doing something like that. I would not be surprised if she had even slept with him to win his vote and support. How could the people not see the lies they were spewing?! It might just as well be written in huge letters across a billboard by the side of the road: They were fucking lying! My pulse leapt and jangled like a car alarm as I for
XAVIER'S POV"Ladies and gentlemen, first of all, I want to thank you all for taking the time to come to this function. And second... " he paused as he glanced at me and I nodded, urging him to continue. He cleared his throat and clutching the mic a little tightly he added: "As one of the seven esteemed elders of the revered Blood Moon Pack, I just have one thing to say to all of what has been happening so far. "Luna Rachael swallowed hard as she lowered her eyes in defeat. A smug smile bloomed on my lips. But then again what possibly could Uncle Ivan say to all of these? Just a word? Heck no! If I were him, I would have started ranting and unleashing all my frustrations as I exposed all of the skeletons in their cupboards to the people. The crowd grew silent as they waited with rapt attention. "Deceit. I was in no way consulted about any of these, and as a matter of fact, I didn't even want to be here but Xavier convinced me to come with him. " He offered me an appre
XAVIER'S POVWhat did I just witness? One of the seven elders of the revered Blood Moon Pack was just whisked away like a criminal?! Was that even acceptable?! Well, Uncle Ivan had a point though; he was not supposed to be sent to the torture chambers without any evidence. That vile witch! She was more evil than I thought! She was the real definition of "I'm not going down with you! " "Don't think that this is over yet, Luna Rachael. We will carry out the necessary investigations but as of now, we have a pressing matter concerning the throne. " Elder Ivan said firmly, earning a scornful smile from Luna Rachael. She jutted her chin and said: "You don't have to say it, Ivan. I am conversant with the laws of the Blood Moon Pack. Or have you forgotten you're speaking to a Luna?! " She said with a self-satisfied smile plastered on her face. My Uncle chuckled dryly. "You don't have to spell it out, Luna Rachael. I am very much aware. Thank you. ""Can we now address the
XAVIER'S POV"Ladies and gentlemen, I have a mate named Crystal Thorne, " I paused, sucking in a deep breath as I allowed my gaze to travel to the eager crowd, "Although she's an omega and was once a slave, I claimed her as my mate because I saw a potential in her. "Because I what? Did you see a potential? You got to be kidding me! I quickly pressed my lips together as I stifled a chuckle. That was a good joke. I wasn't exactly sure that I had claimed Crystal Thorne as my mate because I cared enough to look out for her potential. Well, aside from the video that was in my possession, she was an intriguing subject. But I was never really into her or anything. I had to do what I could for the throne. There was no way in hell I would allow my half-brother, Leo to get the upper hand here. Now that he was without a mate after rejecting Crystal, I had to swoop in and use that to my advantage. "Potential?" Luna Aurora pressed with curiosity knitting at her brows as she bored he
XAVIER'S POVMy eyes must be playing a trick on me."I'm present." She announced as she carefully made her way to the stage with the help of a maid. The crowd was mesmerised by her beauty as they gawked at her as she walked carefully to the stage.She wore a classic royal blue dress with a transparent floral design at the hem and the back of the dress that slightly exposed her back. The sassy blue shade was both traditional and Victorian-inspired, creating a perfect balance between elegance and boldness. The dress narrowed around her waist, snatching her small waist perfectly before it expanded and fell to the ground, hiding her feet.Her brown dark hair was pulled up, and some wayward strands of her hair spilled out, enhancing the mild smoky makeup she swore. The clipped silver earrings and necklace she wore accentuated her ash-coloured pupils. Her full crimson lips glistened with lip gloss. Her cheeks flushed, and her full long lashes fluttered with emabrrsmemet as she approached.
CRYSTAL'S POV"You need to look hot, Crystal. Dress to impress...make him beg for your attention. And thank me later." Emily's words rang through my head again and at once my lips quivered.After she made that suggestion, something inside of me spurred me on. And I knew that deep down I had to act fast and make use of the function as an opportunity. Phew! Trust me I was scared and shy as fuck! I wasn't exactly sure if showing up at the function unannounced was worth it or if I would likely get myself into trouble. Plus, I knew that the likes of Alicia and Luna Rachael and of course, Leo were going to be present. And yet...I had to remind myself vigorously that I needed to show up now. What was comforting me was the fact that I was going to meet Xavier and that he would, for the first time, see me thoughtfully dressed. I put in so much effort to look like this. While Emily dressed me at my inner chambers, my thoughts had been saturated by one man who had lately been my centre of
LEO'S POVOh shit! This wasn't good! Crystal was going to be kidnapped. What if I was already too late. I didn't exactly hear everything that they said. But I knew something was off, and I was already too late by the time I got to Xavier's chambers. I came just in time to see two men clad in black clothes and a mask covering their faces, carrying Crystal after drugging her. They put her in a horse-drawn carriage.I tried to follow the carriage as discreetly as I could until they stopped at a cavern beneath a high mountain.Damn it, but even if I wanted to rescue her , I was outnumbered.There was no way I could make it at this rare. I would just end up getting myself killed.Then what do I do at this rate? This was a matter of life and death. Crystal was in dire danger. My mother and crazy girlfriend had completely gone bonkers! I needed to get Crystal out of there as fast as possible before things got out of hand.I had no idea what exactly the two women wanted to do to Crystal. H
CRYSTAL'S POV It's has been a lonely evening....a lonely day, in fact. Xavier was hardly around. He had been very busy with having ceaseless meetings with his uncle, and tonight, he had mentioned earlier that he won't be available until later in the night or early in the morning so I shouldn't wait up for him.I puffed out a deep sigh. He had been very busy these past few weeks. I heard the coronation was drawing to a close. No wonder the discreet meetings with his uncle have risen. He had been working so hard with little time to rest. I hoped he was doing okay? I had insisted earlier that he took today's off, but he wouldn't listen.I slid out of bed and headed to the balcony for the view and to get some fresh air. Maybe that would help me relax and sleep better. Lately, I've been finding it somewhat hard to fall asleep easier.I also wonder if Martin was doing alright ever since he went exiled. At any rate, it was way better than remaining here. Alicia would have made life a livi
ALICIA'S POV Shit! Shit! Shit! As if things couldn't get any worse than it already was!Three days had passed, and I didn't hear a single word from Martin anymore. I had instructed Lucas to check on him in his quarters, but he was nowhere to be found. He didn't even report to work the following morning. So I had Lucas go to his bakcksmith shop discreetly to find out if he was there. But he wasn't....infact, until now we had no idea where he would have run off to.It's been a week and not a single word. What could have happened? If he had exposed my plans to Crystal or Xavier, I would have known by now. But something was strange. What did Martin do? He probably ran off somewhere. He was a spy, after all. It was easier for him to adapt.But damn it! I didn't expect my plans to be ruined. I invested so much into this, and yet I have nothing to show for it! What the hell was happening?! Did Crystal do or say to him? What really went down? I wouldn't be able to know when she tells me
CRYSTAL'S POVI was such a fool! How come I didn't realise that Alicia had been playing a trick on me all these while?! Xavier and Emily, my best friend, warned me, and yet I didn't listen because I wanted to give Alicia the benefit of the doubt for once. I had hoped that something good was going to come out of our friendship after she supposedly rescued me that day. Rescued? But come to think of it though...now that Martin had exposed the truth, what if Emily had been right that the whole idea about Alicia randomly showing up that day and most especially in the nick of time to save me, sounded so thought out and planned. What if Alicia also had a hand in that as well? She had insisted that Xavier get me a new bodyguard because she had been plotting to bring one here herself, which was Martin. How come I didn't see that coming?! I was so blinded to the fact that Alicia was turning a new leaf and wanted the best for me. What a fool I had been! Now, thanks to the moon goddess for swa
MARTIN'S POV A video?! Why does this sound so familiar. "What?! What did Leo do to you if you don't mind my asking? Did he-""No!" She blurted out before I could finish. I didn't want to complete that statement in the first place, silently hoping it wasn't true ."No, he didn't! I'm glad he didn't." She said shakily, and I couldn't help but feel the pain seared through my chest, watching how hurt she looked.She must have been through a lot. I wondered what really went down that day...Thankfully, Leo didn't rape her as I thought. She paused and sucked in several deep breaths before she continued:"He tried to have sex with me but I'm glad it didn't go through....so a video was made and I was threatened that the video would go public if I didn't do as I was told. I had no choice. Before I could gather my thoughts together, I ran out. I was mortified, broken, and scared to death. "She paused as she bit her bottom lip frantically before she continued again."I wanted to run away an
MARTIN'S POV I resumed work the following day as usual, but this time, it was different. The emotions writhing inside of me were relentless. What do I do? I was restless, and I couldn't even concentrate on my job.I think the moment of truth was finally here, and for the first time, I was going to follow my heart to hell with the consequences. I would rather voice out the truth that will set me free than bottling up all these lies and guilt nibbling at me steadily.As usual, we met for her morning run, and when we slowed down for a break, I thought this was the perfect opportunity to tell her the truth. At this rate, what was even the point of hiding the truth?! It was utterly useless because I quit! I wouldn't stand by, fold my hands, and watch as an innocent, young lady's life was torn apart, and I had a hand in her destruction. No! I wouldn't be able to live with myself after that. I would blame myself for as long as i lived! So instead, why didn't I try to make things right?G
MARTIN'S POV I sucked in a deep breath as I swallowed.She arched her brows diametrically at me as she peered up at me, eyeing me closely.I cleared my throat."What brings you to this crappy side of the royal palace. It was rare seeing you here at this hour. This place doesn't suit your fancy, my lady." I said, with a sly smile curling up at the corner of my lips with an intent to taut her.She rolled her eyes as she moaned in exasperation."Oh for fuck's sake, Xavier drop the stupid formalities and step aside!" My eyes widened slightly as curiosity creased my brows.Don't tell me she was planning to step inside my shithole of a room!"Um...what on earth are you planning to do, Alicia?" I dipped lower as I whispered fiercely, looking both ways to ensure that no one was within earshot and in sight.She waved me off and pushed past me as she entered my tiny room. But the good part was that she didn't have to duck her head like me.I puffed out a deep sigh of resignation. There was
MARTIN'S POV Days passed by like a blur and then weeks and before I realised what was happening, two months had gone by. And in all of those times, a day didn't pass without my mind being preoccupied by the thoughts of Crystal Thorne, the lady whom I served under. The lady I had sworn to protect with my life. And you know what? I would gladly lay down my life for her. No one deserved that, but Crystal Thorne! Where on earth has she been all these while?! If only I had been a little earlier, we could have ended up together. Hopefully..... Well, at least, she wouldn't have had the opportunity of even crossing paths with Alpha Xavier Fernández. If only I had come into her life earlier. Maybe she didn't have to suffer. We could have run off somewhere and started a new life as a couple who shared a somewhat similar past. But was it too late?Maybe it wasn't too late after all.... how else could the both of us have met anyway?! Crystal Thorne had been locked up within the four walls of t
MARTIN'S POV"I'm sorry once again, Crystal," I said again when we were outside alone and after we had jogged around the open fields of the royal palace.She shook her head frantically."It alright, Martin. It is fine. I understand that you're still trying to find your feet," she paused as she shot me a rueful smile."You know, I used to be like you when I first started my job. I was confused and scared. I wasn't sure about what to do. I was so clueless like a fawn parted from its mother."I smiled warmly at her as I listened to her.I couldn't help but admire her beauty. She was indeed breathtaking. On top of that, she was a strong young lady who had survived a lot. I owe her some respect for that!"Thank you for understanding, Crystal," I said gently, shooting her a wide grin.She was not only empathetic to my plight, she was gentle and nice towards me.I wish to know more about her, and it had been eating deep at me. The curiosity to know what lies in the deepest recess of her he