Chapter Five

Nicholas POV

I wanted nothing more than to wipe off the stupid smirk on her face, but at the same time, that was sexy as hell. Nothing is more exciting than a woman catching you unawares.

But first, I have to find out what that was that threw me off. 

I came closer to her again without breaking eye contact. I backed my command with power.

"Tell me, pup!" I snarled.

I felt her fighting my command. It was the most scary thing I had ever witnessed.

Nobody could fight my alpha power, no one, or so I thought, till now.

The more I pushed her, the more she fought it.

Eventually, I heard cracking in her skin like her wolf wanted to come out, and her eyes shifted from blue to golden.

That wasn't the color I saw earlier. It made me more confused.

I felt Speed perk up, excited to see her wolf.

I knew that if I let that happen, then I wouldn't be able to stop him from marking her.

We had lost control before. I didn't want to start today's welcoming with that.

I stopped immediately.

"Josiah, come here; I need you," I commanded my guard and my beta. My voice sounded desperate even to me.

"Yes, Alpha." I felt his submission and immediately his presence.

That is how it should be. That is how it has always been.

I didn't work my ass off all this while for a tiny whatever she is to drive me crazy.

I turned, taking one last look at her, feeling her emotions of fear, confusion, and pain. I left immediately.

I needed to speak with my father, and I needed to do that fast.

First, I need to find something to eat before Speed goes crazy again. 

I entered the pack's kitchen. Normally I would have requested Diane to send some food upstairs, but I didn't want to trouble the sweet woman, who has been busy preparing food for the additional slaves we got.

She was startled; immediately she saw me.

"Nick, what are you doing in my kitchen?"

She was the only one allowed to call me that.

"Are you alright, my child?" she questioned with an inquisitive eye.

"I just need food," I gave her a lazy smile.

She took one last look at me, grabbed two plates, and piled up as much food as she could pack in it.

I took the food with a dry 'thank you.' I walked out, feeling on edge.

Once I arrived at my room, I ate as quickly as I could, hoping to calm Speed down.

After a long hour of stuffing my face.

I mind-linked Josiah to get the wolves ready for the initiation ceremony and to still keep the slaves locked up in prison.

They should have assigned them their rooms, but since I don't quite get what she is, it would be stupid for me to let my guard down.

I may be many things, but I am not stupid.

I immediately walked over to my father's quarters.

It has been so long since I visited there. Normally I would summon him to come as the alpha, but what I wanted to find out required me to go there.

I was about to knock on his door till I heard his voice.

"Come in, little devil."

He must have known it was me.

I quickly entered the room; he still looked the same.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

I took a long look at his quarters; everything was neatly placed, including their pictures.

It seems he has not taken them away, even though I ordered him to.

I shifted awkwardly on the seat I was on.

"You haven't answered me, son. To what do I owe the honor of your presence?" he asked again, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"I wanted to know more about the girl."

"Who do you mean?"

"The short one with blue eyes," I answered 

"What do you want to know?"

 Where did you find her? Have you noticed anything odd about her?"

"No, nothing odd, except watching you act like that."

"Is something wrong with her son?"

"No... I don't know," I said to him, rubbing my throat nervously.

"Father, she is immune to my powers. That is impossible. That has never happened before."

"I told you that she is a very powerful wolf. I think there is something special about her, although she doesn't have total control of her powers, and we don't know much about it. With time and enough training, she could be a great weapon to end the war."

"Why do you have so much faith in one woman?" I inquired.

"You weren't there to feel what I felt from her," he said to me.

"Should I keep only her locked up until we can verify that we can trust her?" I was confused about how to go about it.

"I don't think that is a wise move to make; we want her to trust us. As someone who has survived death, the only way we can gain her trust is if we can give her a new life." 

"We can assign someone to watch her every move and decide if we can trust her," he suggested.

I nodded to his suggestion quietly, still in deep thought.

"There is something else you are not telling me, son. You still have the worried look on your face," he asked, looking at me.

I raised my face to meet his eyes.

He gave up quickly.

"Well, whatever it is, I hope you will trust me and tell me. I won't push you to do that except when you are ready."

I stood to leave, mumbled words that even I couldn't decipher, and opened the door to leave.

"Little devil, whenever you are ready to talk about it, I will be here waiting," he said to me with a smile.

I nodded and walked out in silence.

I needed to get ready for the initiation ceremony.

As the alpha of the pack, I am needed there along with a few of my wolves and my witch, Mildred.

She told me that tonight was going to be a full moon. It is perfect for the ceremony, hence the need for it to happen tonight.

I wasn't going to do much, but my presence there was needed.

Tonight, young pups are going to transform for the first time as a wolf, and a spell will be cast on the slaves, binding them forever to me.

Whoever goes against the pack after the ceremony will suffer unimaginable pain and die.

The arena for the ceremony was already cleaned and cleared. 

The blazing bonfire sticks were placed in a circular motion circling us.

I looked around to be sure that the clothes were already packed. I told them to pack enough for the ceremony. I didn't want any wolf to be naked after the shift.

Immediately after the ceremony started, the young pups were placed in the first line while the slaves were placed behind.

Mildred started with the incantation. Her words were mostly about ancient wolves, the alpha's protection, and them overseeing that the young pup's transformation went smoothly. It was time for me to shift and help the young pups shift too.

The slaves were supposed to shift and declare their loyalty to me.

The sound of cracking and breaking filled the arena; soon the arena was filled with transformed wolves. They were all on four legs except one.

She was on the floor shaking. I could hear the sound of her bones breaking, yet nothing was happening.

"Make it stop, please," she screamed in pain.

Her eyes were flickering from green orbs to golden orbs. It was nothing like I had ever seen before.

I held her hands, taking the pain that she felt away. The full length of her pain hit me.

Speed became furious; he used his paw to raise her neck.

I knew what he wanted to do, so I fought him.

I can't allow him to do that to her, even though he thought that she would feel better if he marked her.

Mildred rushed to her; she brought something from her bag and poured it down her throat.

She started foaming and sputtering out what she poured into her mouth. 

Something exploded before she fell hard on the floor with a thud.

Then I heard a heart-wrenching scream.

A young pup was on the floor knocked out.