9. DON'T LOSE HER

The elders met again to discuss if it was really advisable to crown Helena as the Luna of the pack, considering the history her and her family had with the pack and, just as expected, they had split opinions about the issue.

“No matter how I think about it, it is just not that, because how can we let the daughter of such a brutal and heinous criminal take over an important seat in the pack? Why are we all being submitted to her beck and call?” The Elder of the seventh tribe expressed his anger and two other elders immediately agreed with him.

“It’s a very ridiculous and disrespectful move” The elder of the eighth tribe supported, but the elder of the ninth tribe rose up to counter them. “Even if it is crazy and somehow, do we have a choice? Are we doing this because we also enjoy it? No! This is just us being put in a tight corner because the people of the pack come first!” he lashed out.

“Ever since she administered whatever she did to them, they have all been calm and sleeping peacefully instead of being in so much pain from trying to shift like before. We just have to calm down and listen to her so that the treatment will be completed. After that we can discuss about what to do with her and the position she’s occupying”, the elder of the second tribe stated calmly, and that seemed to work on them a little because they admitted that all he had was true.

“It would have been nice if the son of Elder Conri hadn’t become a victim of this unfortunate incident. This is why you should train your children well”, The Elder of the first tribe remarked, before releasing a deep grunt and fire came down to their midst.

Elder Conri flared up at the remark and lashed out at the elder for not taking care of the pack enough as the first tribe. “What were you doing when this disease crawled in? You should have learnt from your ancestors how to handle crises but I guess you were busy sleeping around with women thanks to your disgusting urge that couldn’t be controlled”. He slammed him and the fire got bigger.

They began to exchange words and insults as they all fought themselves in a commotion before Elder Boris of the tenth tribe, who couldn’t stand their childishness anymore, growled at them to quit the nonsense they were displaying.

“Do you think we have the time for all these? We shouldn’t be fighting here, instead we should be looking for ways to push her out once our aim is achieved. It is not like we are all happy with her being there, so let’s turn our strength, use her for the cure we need and when all the storms have been calmed, then we can come together to send her out for good. There is no way she can be more powerful than all the elders combined, and do you think Alpha Draco likes her? He only agreed to the nonsense condition because of the situation of the pack and there is no one here who is as wronged as the poor Alpha who has to marry the daughter of his parents’ murderer. If he can keep calm to make sure this goes on smoothly, then you should all be supportive till the appropriate time comes” Elder Boris preached calmly but firmly.

It was obvious in his voice that he wanted no countering or bantering anymore after his long speech, so everyone had no choice but to agree with all he had said because it was honestly the best thing they could do in that situation.

Elder Conri’s claws sprouted out as he vibrated with anger where he was seated. He hated the fact that he was the reason why her condition had to be attended to. “I will make sure to oust her myself and tear her to shreds when the time comes” He promised and scratched the table he placed his hands on deeply, leaving behind the claw marks as a symbol.

“If we are done with this meeting, then we should start getting ready for the wedding” Elder Boris declared, and everyone dispersed to their various destinations.

***

DRACO’S POV

There was no joy compared to the fact that I wouldn’t be attending the damn wedding. I was already planning to make it her worse day ever, but the news that the day of hearing with the king of the east country was exactly on that day made me so excited because she would be getting the worst this time around.

“How dare she come here shamelessly to demand the Luna position?” I scoffed at the thought as Chief Kinn dressed me up for the outing.

We were almost done when the news was brought that the King of the east country was present in the palace. I almost cursed at the surprise and asked what he was doing here all of a sudden, only to be answered with “He’s here to attend the wedding”.

Without hesitation, Chief Kinn stripped the suit off my body and snapped her fingers for the wedding robe, which was brought in immediately.

“You seem to be enjoying this. Did you know he would be coming?” I questioned her after seeing her brief smile, but she was quick to dispose of my claim.

“I was only glad that I made preparations for both. I have no say to any of these, I am only a Chief Butler” she said, and I couldn’t counter anymore, but that didn’t stop me from releasing a pained grunt.

The dress up was completed and I marched to welcome the King into the reception room, only for me to find him giggling with Helena as they seemed to be having a serious conversation before I came in. The anger and hatred burning within me didn’t allow me to suppress how I was feeling and I didn’t hesitate to slam her.

“What do you think you are doing here? If you are the bride, then you should be at your quarters waiting to be called out”, I threw at her before welcoming the king.

I asked what he was suddenly doing at the pack when we agreed to meet that day and he expressed his disappointment coupled with anger about how I didn’t invite him for such an important ceremony.

“I might not have been able to come if you had informed me though, but I would have found a way to shift the meeting date. All the same, I am happy to be here because I would have regretted it if I knew later, that is why I am here because of her” he explained, pointing to Helena who was sitting across from him.

“You are here because of her? How come?” I questioned, glancing from him to the said Helena and vice versa.

“How come? I came because she invited me as her guest” the king replied, raising his brow to ask if there was any problem with that.

I was forced to respond “Problem? What could that be? You are welcome, of course” while trying my best not to stutter like a fool and her smirk didn’t go unnoticed.

Whatever the card she pulled, I couldn’t understand until the King told me that Helena was his savior who helped cure his son who almost died due to a chronic illness. I wasn’t fazed at the healing because she was a doctor before she left the pack and a skilled one at that. That was one of the reasons I respected her, because she was so good at her job.

I thought she had left all that behind but she must have solidified her footprint in the world while she was gone and here it was, paying off for her. Even though I was sad that the plan of disgracing her didn’t work, I couldn’t help but acknowledge her influence.

The king of the east country is a serious headache because of his ego and I need his support if I want to have a peaceful reign, but some of my pack’s wolves trespassed into his territory and even caused harm to his people. They were arrested and every attempt to get them released only proved futile.

This was the first meeting he would approve of me in the past few months that I kept sending in request and that was one of the reasons why I could forfeit the chance.

“We can discuss about the arrested wolves after the wedding, right? Since you are here”, I asked carefully and he went silent for a while before clearing his throat.

He stretched forth his hand to Helena, whom I had forgotten was there, and said “Well, it’s a good day so we shouldn’t be having any ill-fated conversation. In honor of Luna’s wedding and coronation, I will release the prisoners without negotiations”, he declared, to my surprise.

No matter how I tried, I couldn’t hide the shock on my face and I turned to look at Helena, whose smile was brighter than the midday sun. No one needed to tell me how proud she was at that moment and even though she didn’t say a thing, I could hear her screaming, “You owe this to me” and I hated it with all my life, but it was a gift I couldn’t reject.

Immediately, I rose to my feet and bowed to the king in appreciation. “Thank you for your generosity my King, I will never forget this”, I said with sincerity, but he only waved at my apology.

“You should thank your queen instead because you are enjoying her grace and this is a piece of advice from me to you. Never lose her because she’s powerful enough to protect you and the whole pack. If you ever lose her, I promise you that you won’t like the outcome. She’s a gem who is able to protect, wherever she is”, the king declared, and it sounded like both a warning and a threat at the same time.

Even though I responded with a soft “I will keep that in mind”, I only hated her the more because who is she to make me feel this ridiculed?