“If you badly want the crown that badly, stop involving anyone,” I muttered. “Do it yourself.”“The Council wanted me to bring a wife and a child. It’s also what my people clamor for,” His Majesty informed directly.Wife.That was the origin of the rumors I heard from Inez. But where did they hear that? Elio was not the type to talk to someone or share his opinions with anyone. At all. Except for his trusted beta.Maybe Beta Darius accidentally told someone about it?But then again, why would I be bothering myself on things like that? It was no longer my problem. His Majesty needed a wife and the only one that the Council would accept was his mate and that was me. Even if I became pregnant and I would give him a child, if I did not marry him, Elio’s efforts would be in vain. The throne will be seized away from him.A smile made its way to my lips.Interesting.Now, the table had been turned."Accept that you will be kissing your crown goodbye, Your Majesty.""You don't have to be tha
FLORA “LORA” HERNANDEZI did not know what I was doing. I did not understand why I was doing this. He was my enemy, right? It was not proper to console an enemy.His Majesty’s shoulder shook. He drew me closer to his body and I let him. Oh, boy, I let him while patting his back.I did not hear him sniff. Nor sobbed. The only thing that told me that he was crying was the trembling of his broad shoulders.My wolf howled inside and wept with His Majesty.Why did he suddenly show his weakness to me? Was this a trap? If it was, I stepped right into it. I opened and closed my mouth, not knowing what I would say. I never know how I would console anyone. Especially men. Will I tell him consoling words? Then, what will I tell him?Damn.I should have never walked with him. Was he scared that if I heard him cry, I would mock him? Will I?I had no idea.After a couple of minutes of hugging, His Majesty stepped aside, unable to meet my eyes. But I was able to catch his puffy and red eyes. He
FLORA “LORA” HERNANDEZ“What did he want?” I asked Beta Darius when he suddenly fetched me into my quarters. I was busy thinking about how I would transfer Sabrina's remains without getting undetected when he suddenly knocked on my door a few times saying Elio wanted my presence in his chamber. If the beta did not reassure me that he would be there inside the Lycan King's chamber, I would never go with him.I did not want to be with Elio in the same room. It made me remember the shared kiss we did. "You will know when we get there." He was surprisingly excited today which he never did. Hmmm.Something was off. "Spit it out, Darius. Tell me what he wants. Let's cut to the chase, will you?""You will know it. Once we get there," he insisted, not wiping the smile from his face. "You will like what he will say, Lora. This is the start of everything."Start of what?"I don't get you.""Just follow me."I rolled my eyes as I stared at his broad back. His steps were lighter than usual. M
My little presence was asked by Miss Dacianna. I was suddenly surprised when Inez came running towards me while I was in the process of meeting the beta.Elio said the beta will be the total overseer of the wedding preparations though I did not have any idea if he will do a great job or not.Some men were really good at stage decorations and others, but I still have to check if Beta Darius was one of them.However, regardless of what kind of ability he had with managing the event, what mattered most was that we would be married tomorrow. Without any delay.“I-I think we need to walk faster, Lora. Miss Dacianna’s mood is not that good,” Inez informed, her voice shaking in the end.“Let her be. Let her wait.”Inez gasped. “You just did not…”“Whatever you are thinking, yes I did.”“She is His Majesty’s sibling. We must respect her.”If she earned it. But so far, Miss Dacianna has not earned it yet. So she can get angry for as long as she wants, but I will be taking my strolls like any
There could be a possibility that I might be barren. What if that was the case? I was not sure if I could give him a child and right now, I could feel that my monthly period is coming. A certain part of my mind did not want it to happen. But another part was also relieved that it would. I was not prepared to give the Lycan King a child. Not when my emotions were a mess. Not when there was still hatred in my heart. “Not having a child is not part of our agreement, woman. I am giving up my love for Eva and the least you could do is honor our promise.”I gave him a pointed look. “It’s a medical condition, Lennox. Something I could not handle. Not even my Father who is a pack doctor. So, will you accept a barren queen?”He was in deep thought for a moment, before he muttered saying, “I want a child. Not because the Council wanted it, but because I want it myself. A child might give me the light I need.”I sucked in a breath at his brutal honesty.He did not awaken at the other side of
There was something in Elio's father that I couldn't quite explain.Seeing the King was like seeing the kinder version of Elio and the calmer side of him. His presence felt like I could trust him. That he could protect me at all times.I always had high regard for all the Lycan Kings in the kingdom except Elio.And the old man facing me proved it all. His chocolate brown eyes looked at me wisely as if he knew the deepest secrets of my soul. I heard stories about the King. Of how he should be kind to our pack, especially to our alpha. Remembering I had to pay for my respect, I gave him my courtesy bow. "A pleasant morning, Your Majesty. I never thought this day would come when I finally met you."'You never bowed at me,' Elio said through our mind link. 'That was a fresh sight. You should do it more, especially to your king.'I momentarily gasped, not expecting what he had done. He did not use our mind link when he talked to me. Nor even tried it. Rumors had it that it was specially
I heard Elio chuckle in my head. ‘Love? That’s the best thing you could think, Lora?’ he taunted. ‘Father knows there is only one woman I will love for eternity. That is my first mate. Eva.’‘Sorry, but that will stop from now on. Besides. What else do you want me to say to the King? That I am pregnant? That’s the last thing that would happen, Elio.’Playing with his wine glass, he asked, ‘Are you sure? For all I know, you may be hiding my child from me. Something had already happened between us. I already planted my seed inside your womb.’I felt my cheeks flush as the memories resurfaced. ‘The question is, did it grow, Elio?’‘Not yet.’‘It will never be because you called the wrong woman. You are an embarrassment. You cannot even memorize the name of your sexual partner? You are a major turn-off.’The Lycan King suddenly fell silent. ‘I will make sure to utter your name.’I snorted. ‘There will be no next time. I am done.’‘We need a child.’‘For your political ambitions? Let me
The wedding was an intimate one with a few guests. I did not know which of them came from Elio’s side. I would like to reiterate I did not care about it. What was the point in knowing their names when I did not have a family on my own to witness this marriage?Even if this was fake, perhaps it would be lovely if Dad was here, witnessing how his remaining daughter had finally married which he had been dreaming of for quite some time.Would Dad be crying out of pure joy? Or will he scold me for deciding quickly? Will he hate me for failing to protect Sabrina?I closed my eyes as different emotions hit me all at once.If only our pack was allowed to go whenever we please, I would definitely ask him to come. And together, we would pay our respects to Sabrina.‘Pull yourself together, Lora. You must not cry unless it is from out of your intense happiness in finally marrying our dearest Eli.’‘Eli? When did Elio become Eli?’ Eli, huh? Cute.Iris gave me a toothy grin. ‘Since the moment y
One year later…Something was wrong with me.I had been noticing the changes in my behavior and I did not like it all. I was suddenly grumpy and sick at the same time. Something which made me panic. Elio was attending some business and I could not call him and tell him to come to me.“Your Grace. The sun is already out. You need to move your butt.”I glared at the woman in front of my bed. Candice. One year ago, the Lycan King had assigned Candice as my personal attendant. At first, I rejected the idea, but Elio kept on forcing me to have one. He was always saying that he did not want anything to happen to me again.If that would happen, he was afraid he could not control himself from killing anyone. Another bloodbath will take place, something I did not want to happen.“I’m not feeling well, okay?”“You haven’t eaten your breakfasts.”“Oh, please. I will eat anything if I am feeling well, but I am not.”“Did you eat something yesterday?”“That’s the problem, Candice. I haven’t eaten
Howling PackEli and I finally visited my pack. They prepared a lot and were excited to see us. It was Dad who welcomed us and the alpha beside him.They prepared signs welcoming us.I cannot help but feel giddy at their warm welcome.“We are grateful for your presence, Your Majesty,” the alpha exclaimed while his gaze darted in my direction. We shared a look, and his eyes were back to the Lycan King. I would never go back to the path I had chosen a couple of years ago. That was already a closed chapter of my life. I was no longer an assassin and a killer used by someone else.Later, I will ask for a private talk to the alpha. I want to tell him that I will be the one to tell the Lycan King about my past. I wanted it to tell him directly.“The pleasure is all mine.”Eli’s eyes scanned the surroundings and his eyes darted at the remnants of his fury. Burned buildings. Statues. Withered black trees. The alpha could tear down the burned buildings and replace them with something new, bu
One week had passed after that incident. I could say that I was healed already. Iris was making the best of her ability to heal my wounds and broken bones. After a week of bed rest, my body was brand new. “Stay still, Lora,” Eli ordered. He was reading some documents while guarding me. I tried to sneak and go outside, but he caught me and gave me a proper scolding telling me that I nearly died. This was my second life. I should have taken care of this one. No matter how many times I told him that I was already healed from my injuries, he wouldn't believe me. He refused to believe me. Eli filled me out with the details of what happened to Ayla. She was imprisoned behind bars. Rooting in the cold prison. Day and night, she was requesting His Majesty’s presence, asking for his kindness. I felt sorry for Ayla. Sometimes. But when I remembered my sister. Of how she was killed, my hatred changed my pity. Ayla already confessed to all the crimes she had committed and that his accom
85FLORA “LORA” HERNANDEZ Ayla? The fucking bitch was the culprit. Was she the one who also killed the others? Especially my beloved sister?She perfectly blended herself with the other servants. And the innocent she-wolves had no idea that a snake was with them.She smirked when I realized it was none other than her.Ayla clapped her hands like a kid. “Yes. You finally recognized me. I thought we would kill you without you recognizing your killer. Something I don’t want to happen, darling.”Damn.My hair hurts so much. She was pulling it forcefully.“Why are you doing this?” My voice sounded weak. My body felt like it was burning so much.“Simple. I don’t want His Majesty to be happy. He doesn’t deserve to be the king. I realized he valued his servants so much. But I did not understand why. Especially that Sabrina. Oh. I forgot. She was your sister.”I spat in her face.Her angelic smile was replaced with something demonic. “Shit!” She slapped my cheeks continuously until I could
Damn.That statement made sense. I had not made sure that Eli wanted to go there. What if he was indeed forcing himself? To my excitement, I never considered that thing. I was focused on bringing him to the pack without even thinking if he was okay with his decision or not.Still.I should gave Eli the benefit of the doubt. “I-I’m sure…it’s not the case. Eli had already forgiven the pack, wholeheartedly and wanted to give us a chance to show him how much we were sorry for what happened to Eva. He no longer hated us.”Because who in their right mind would visit a place in which he did not want to step foot?‘You better ask Eli about that. To make it clear, Lora.’‘You think I did not think about that? Will you stop bossing me around? It’s irritating, okay?’Besides, it was not only him who was hurting. We also had our own fair share of wounds. But the most important thing of all, we were starting to heal from the past. Noticing the hesitance on my face, Miss Dacianna smiled and decl
“You two are leaving?” I jumped, surprised to see Prince Albert suddenly popping out of nowhere. I was about to see Miss Dacianna to do an errand courtesy of His Majesty. Eli wanted me to talk to Dacianna about our plans of going back to Howling Pack so that the woman will be the one to inform the King.I just hoped he would give us his blessings. If not, I did not know anymore. I like that king and it would be better if he gave us his approval.Without thinking about the damage he did to my heart, Prince Albert continued, “Your Grace. I came here right away when I found out about it.”Indeed? But why did Beta Darius tell us that the one who informed him of us stepping down was the Council and this man? Who among them was telling the truth?‘Does it matter?’ Iris asked in my mind. ‘The mere fact that you and His Majesty will be returning to our pack mattered the most.’She was busy licking her paws while watching me.‘Do you think he still remembers?’‘Lora. When will you use your
Eli and I spent the next few hours preparing our things for our departure.Sighing, I gave our chamber a final look. This place had so many memories and I could not help but feel lonely at the thought of me and him leaving.“Wife. Are you done?”I blinked a couple of times and faced him.Grumbling, I muttered, “I don’t understand why we have to pack ourselves. We have servants, Eli.”It was not like I was lazy. It was only because I had no strength to do anything after the thought that we would be leaving the palace had finally sunk into my mind.“They will know I am leaving. It should be a surprise. Finally, I would be leaving them. They will rejoice, you will see.”Pouting I answered, “You sounded sure about it.”“I am certain. They are waiting for another king.” I taste the bitterness in his words. “Why? That bad? Perhaps you are wrong, Eli. Not all of them wanted to leave you. Take Candice for example. That woman is loyal to you.”“Except for her. I am talking about the others.”
My heart forgot how to breathe.This was what I was scared about. That Prince Albert will finally realize that we two had met before. What to do?I’m afraid I will be the reason why Eli would be ousted from his position as the king.Be calm. You can find a way to get out of the situation, okay?This fool had not realized anything. I must continue pretending that I did not know him.I chuckled. “Why would I be familiar to you? As far as I remember, we never had the chance to have a proper conversation before. Perhaps you are already mistaken, Prince Albert. We did not meet before.”His brows formed a straight line.“Indeed? But I cannot shake off the feeling that you are truly familiar.”I paled. Dammit. His eyes continued to question my statement. "I don't think—"“Nonsense. My wolf had an excellent memory. She will tell me if we meet or not. But right now, all she was saying is that we never encountered each other before.”“Oh, I see.” He bowed at me. “My apologies, Your Grace. I
It finally dawned on me that Inez died in my arms. However, I could no longer grieve about it since nothing could be done. My mind was already tired. Going back to our chamber, with the warriors on my back, my mind wandered to what had happened. I failed her. A couple of times. I closed my eyes as memories of her eyes continued to haunt me. No matter where I look, I always see the expression in her eyes. Her fear. Her shock. "Lora."I froze on the spot and sniffed the Lycan King's scent as it hit me hard. The warriors disperse upon seeing him. Maybe he ordered them to leave me. After one year, he finally showed up. After someone had already died? What a great timing. If he was not the king, I would think that he was the killer. I'm too tired to get angry at him. It was not worth it. I went past Elio and stepped inside our chamber, with him hot on my tail. "What happened?" he asked. I smelt no alcohol. He did not drink. Was true to his promise. But the mere fact that he did