Helena
I swallowed hard to get rid of the enormous knot that had formed in my throat. I had to be strong now. I had to be strong for him, for our pup and for our people. I didn’t want him to go. I didn’t know if I would ever see him again, but I couldn’t give into those fears.
All around us, people were saying goodbye to family. They were saying goodbye to warriors who were going to fight to protect us. I couldn’t be the one to break down. I had to be strong for all of them. I caught sight of Liam kissing Louisa and their son and I looked into Bennie’s eyes.
“You come back, do you hear me? You come back, and you bring my brother with you. Alive.” We all knew nobody could make any kind of promises, but I needed him to. I needed him to fight the way he did the last time. I needed him to do everything he could to keep that promise. “All of you! You come back alive.
HelenaIt didn’t take long for the wounded to start pouring in. I hated having to stay in bed while I could hear everyone rushing about just outside my room. It took my entire family to keep me right where I was supposed to be. I was healing fast after the birth, but I still had some healing to do.The war didn’t take as long as any of us thought it would and the stories the guys told us had us horrified. It made me very glad that I missed out. Fighting was something I had to learn. I just never liked all that growling and hissing and blood everywhere.“I must be the only werewolf in the entire world that doesn’t like fighting!” I exclaimed and they all laughed out loud. But it was the truth. I really hated fighting. My mother was a warrior queen. I didn’t intend or actually have the need to be a warrior princess. Being a part of the small council never required one to fight.A COUPLE OF MONTHS later, summer was in full swing and the war was almost forgotten. The injured had healed an
NoahI had always loved to read about the history of our people and how our incredible kingdom came together. My favourite part of history was when my father showed mercy to the northerners after they declared war. He accepted them even after their loved ones fought to overthrow us.I loved history so much because I was brought up with the knowledge that one day I would be king. I didn’t want us to make any of the mistakes of the past. I couldn’t imagine doing what the crazy old king did. I wanted my grandmother’s principles to live on.She fought such an incredible battle against the old beliefs that I wanted them to stand strong when I became king. The only thing I wasn’t looking forward to was this tournament against my father. I didn’t want to see my hero going down just so I could rule.My father and I had been practicing, not that he was planning on faking it, but he wanted me to be prepared to take him down. Thankfully, I didn’t have to kill him. I was sure my father was strong
EmilyI could see Noah was looking for me, but I didn’t want to be a typical fan and wave at him. I just smiled and found my spot in the lineup. I had to focus on whether I was going to prove myself. I couldn’t think about Noah at the moment.His parents started the ceremony and as soon as all the royal protocols were taken care of, Noah fought his father and won. Everyone knew he would win, of course. He was declared king, but his official coronation would only be in a couple of weeks.However, once he was named king after the tournament, he could announce the winners of each division, which meant, if I won, he would be the one giving me my new rank. I felt nervous when my division started.I was going to fight way above my rank. I was trying out for beta. Nobody thought I would be able to do it, and I knew I was taking a huge risk, but since we weren’t fighting to the death, I couldn’t see why not. I didn’t see the use in trying out for a lower rank when I wanted to be Noah’s beta.
LouisaOur children had grown up way too fast for my liking and, by the looks of things, Helena felt the very same way. We were both feeling the incredibly overwhelming sensation of empty nest and the funny thing was they weren’t going anywhere.Unlike Liam and Helena’s parents, we weren’t moving out of the castle now that our son was going to be the king. Our family liked the fact that we were all living together. We loved each other very much and were incredibly close. When the time came to make the decisions on whether we were moving, it was a unanimous decision for all of us to stay.Our children didn’t grow up like cousins. They were more like siblings, and we were these very odd parents who co-parent all of them together, but it worked, and it made all of us happy to be that close. Which made me wonder how our dynamics were going to change if our children met their mates.My parents lived with us right up to their last days and only Liam’s parents were still alive. When they got
HelenaNoah wasn’t my son, but it sure felt like it the moment he growled to let the world know he had found his mate. I looked at Louisa and noted the happy tears in her eyes and then at Liam, whose chest suddenly grew two sizes with pride.Their beautiful boy had found a mate. The shock came the moment we all saw who it was.EmilyNoah pushed through the crowd as everyone searched for the person he was looking for. My heart was racing. My heart could full the pull of the mate bond, but my mind just wouldn’t accept it. I had always thought my crush was just that. A silly crush that turned into the best of friendships I could ever have asked for.I never imagined …“Emily …” His voice was hoarse with hunger as he pulled me into his arms and I looked into his eyes. My throat was so thick with emotion that I couldn’t say anything and when his lips touched mine, I responded. It felt as if my body came to life for the first time in my life as his hands slipped down my back and cupped my b
NoahThere was no mistaking it. Emily was one of the hottest girls in our age group, but I never had the desire to act on it because she was my friend. My parents also taught me not to go around acting on every urge like my male friends. My mom and aunt were very big on males having to respect females and I believed what they taught me.I wasn’t a virgin or anything, but I always made sure that I treated women with respect. I watched Emily as she spoke to her parents, and it reminded me of the story my mom told me about the night she and my dad met. Mom was also the daughter of omegas. Just like Emily.I remember days when I had to reprimand my male friends when they got out of hand regarding females, and I had a bit of a reputation for being very strict about how females were treated. It was because of the way I was brought up. From the stories I remember from my childhood, it all started with my grandmother.She was the most incredible female in our history. She was a warrior queen,
HelenaI was having tea in the garden when I noted the leaves were changing colour. Winter would be there rearing its head soon, and I wouldn’t be able to sit outside and just enjoy the warmth of the sunlight.“I thought I would find you here.” Louisa joined me and I smiled, pouring her a cup of tea.“You know me. I prefer summer.” I winked.“Oh, no, give me winter any day.” Louisa’s cheeks turned red as she smiled, and I just knew where this was going. “I love sledding and cuddling in front of the fires.” She smiled, sipping her tea and I burst out laughing.“Do you remember that first winter when we found out you were pregnant after you came flying down the mountain!” Tears formed in my eyes as we laughed and Louisa nodded.“I think my favourite memory will always be the first time the children could go down the mountain alone. Noah was so excited he nearly peed his pants!” She squealed with laughter and I nearly choked on my tea at the memory.“We’ve had incredible memories with th
EmilyIt was the saddest time in the kingdom, and our news took a back seat, but I didn’t mind. It gave me the time I needed to get used to the idea that Noah was more than just my best friend now. He was my mate. The news of his grandmother broke the next day, which immediately focused all attention elsewhere, but as soon as the mourning period was over, it was right back where it used to be.On us as the new royal couple. His mother made everyone go out as soon as the snow stopped, and I watched as people laughed and played again like children. Small ones were building snow men while the bigger children and a lot of the adults came flying down the mountain.“Shall we?” Noah held out his hand to me and in his other hand he had a beautifully carved wooden sled. I grinned as I took his hand, and we made our way up the mountain. Our cheeks were bright red from the cold by the time we reached the top and I waited for him to get on, but he smiled at me.“You first.” He pointed at the sled
EmilyI pushed to break through a mind link and I finally felt it releasing. He was one of us.“My apologies, your majesty. I have been gone for so long, it is difficult to open my pack link.” He finally answered through the link and I studied him carefully before ordering the guards to stand down.“Who are you and why have you been gone for so long?” I frowned. I couldn’t remember any of our spies being out in the world. Everyone had returned home for the celebration.“I’m Ares, your majesty. I was sent out by your father three years ago to try and find you a mate.” His cheeks turned red and I rolled my eyes. “I guess I know now why I couldn’t find one.”AroraThe news about Emily’s mate spread like wildfire through the kingdom, and before she even walked through the doors with Ares, we knew she had met him. Ares was one of Bernard’s young recruits that should have formed part of the queen’s guard, but Bernard sent him out to try and find a mate for our daughter.We hadn’t heard from
AroraI kept my promise. The day that Bernard and I retired from royal life and handed over the reigns to our daughter Emily was the proudest day of our lives. She had grown into one of the kindest people I had ever known, while at the same time standing her ground when it was needed.She was strong and brave even though she had not faced a war. She was ready to rule, and the people were ready for her to take over. Emily was much loved by our people as she had grown up in the streets of the city and knew most of them by name.She took all the lessons I taught her over the years to heart and made sure that the people were taken care of long before she became queen. I could hear the rumours again of how much she reminded the people of the old rogue queen, and it made me feel proud that the pack loved her that much.Sadly, new rumours were starting to flare up all over the city, and they unsettled us a little. Emily was old enough now to mate, but unlike most of the royals, she didn’t fi
AroraForgiving the royal family a second time was probably one of the toughest things I ever had to do, but I knew that if I didn’t, there would be no end to the cruelty that would definitely follow. I had preached forgiveness before everything happened, and this gave me the opportunity to again remind people how to forgive.I made sure they saw me happily interacting with the royal family at each event and I made sure the royals that remained spent time with the people. The kingdom grew prosperous again under Bernard’s rule, and with my help, the people became happy again. We announced my pregnancy soon after I passed the second month mark, and very soon after that, I began to show.The royal baby grew fast in my belly as time slowly ticked by. I spent my days in the old queen’s vegetable gardens and tending to the flower gardens as much as my body would allow. I joined the omegas to do the shopping for the castle and made sure I knew what every one of our supplier’s problems were,
AroraMy omegas helped me to get dressed early the next morning. Having a warm and comfortable bed to sleep in and proper food to fill my belly, helped me to at least get some sleep. I was sure that the news about my release had already spread through the kingdom and was surprised when I walked into the dining room and saw the faces of the royals.Most of them were covered in shame as they should be, but I held my head high and took my seat beside Bernard. After the omega left the night before, Bernard told me everything that happened. He told me how he tried to find evidence against Irina and that he only believed her for a short while. It hurt to think that he had so little trust in me, but I pushed it to the back of my mind.None of them were to blame for any of this. Irina was the one who was to blame. She was the one who was going to face trial now and, thanks to Bernard’s genius plan, they had more than enough evidence to sentence Irina without spending much time on a trial.“Ar
AroraBernard took his time. He even postponed the trial for two days so they could find a witch to explain what each item in their mound of evidence was used for. My only glimmer of light was seeing Irina losing her patience the longer Bernard postponed the inevitable. It was clear as day from the looks I was getting in court. All the nobles believed that I was guilty.Bernard was digging deeper into the hole with each move. I didn’t have any hope that they were going to save me. Even with the visits from Bernard and his mother. I don’t trust them anymore. My fate was sealed. Now he just had to make the final decision. He had to judge me. He had to decide how and when I would be killed.IrinaThe glass flew through the air and shattered against the wall as I screamed out in frustration. My cousin was just postponing the inevitable in the hopes that I would slip up. I noticed he now had four guards following my every move. I couldn’t even use the secret passages without having them po
AroraPrincess Helena snuck into the dungeons to see me, and she brought me some food, but I was still so cold that I was having trouble moving. I also wasn’t sure if I could trust the food they were giving me. If they saw me as a traitor, they could very well try to poison me. My trust in all of them had been shattered, and I wasn’t sure if it would ever be possible to repair it.I had been waiting for this shoe to drop since the very moment I found out Bernard was my mate. Almost as though I knew they would just turn around and betray me, but I started to trust them and believe that they would trust me. I couldn’t help the way I was feeling. They all turned on me so fast after seeing all those things in Irina’s little secret room.Nobody believed me. It was as though none of them really knew me at all. Why would I ever trust any of them again? Bernard’s face came to mind and I felt my heartache. He should have believed me right from the start. He should have trusted me. He should ha
AroraIt wasn’t as cold on the cot as it was on the floor, but the night was long, and it still felt like the cold had found its way into my bones. I had no idea what was going on upstairs and, if I was honest, I didn’t care. They were so eager to believe Irina that they didn’t see how cruel she was.They all deserved whatever she had planned for them. I knew she made sure the proof pointed to me, but I couldn’t help myself. They should all have known by now that I wouldn’t have done that. Yet, even Bernard believed I was the traitor. I wasn’t sure if we would ever be able to find our way back to each other after all of this.The memory of Bernard visiting me and whispering came to mind and I pushed it to the back of my mind. I didn’t dare hope that things would work out in the end. Irina had been far too clever so far. She was going to make sure Bernard wouldn’t be able to prove my innocence. She was going to make sure the entire family believed her lies.The cold pushed through my t
BernardNone of this made any sense. Unless I didn’t know Arora as well as I thought I did, but I couldn’t imagine her doing the kinds of things Irina had accused her of. We found notes in the room that referred to even worse actions and I didn’t want to even think about it.I was torn between what I thought I knew and what possibilities there were. Was Arora a cruel and evil person who took revenge on our family or was she the kind heart that helped us to save our family from total ruin? Not that I thought the pack would ever revolt against us.I sat back in my office chair, not wanting to go to our room and not wanting to face my family. There were still far too many unanswered questions and I wanted to be able to answer at least some of them when I faced them again. The most prominent would probably be if I was going to put Arora on trial.“What are you doing here alone, cousin?” Irina wondered in my office and I sighed deeply. She was the last person I wanted to deal with right no
Arora“She planned this.” My voice was soft, but one of two of them heard me. “Irina planned this!” I shouted. “My omega followed her today and found the room. Irina wants all of you to think that I’m the traitor so she can get rid of me. Bernard, you have to believe me.”“His Majesty, don’t have to believe one word that comes out of your traitorous mouth!” Irina shouted from the back. “Your father was a traitor, and so are you!” She hissed and I could feel the atmosphere turning.“We need to hear from the omega, Bernard.” Princess Helena spoke up, and I breathed a sigh of relief. The omega was dragged up the stairs and I could see in her eyes that this wasn’t going to go my way. She kept looking at Irina and I wondered what happened in the short time we were apart. What could Irina have done? She was right there with me the entire time.“Please tell us what happened this morning.” Princess Helena took the lead.“I … Please, don’t make me do this.” The omegas eyes filled with tears as