Dinner the previous night had been many things but eventful. Lancelot had retired to his room with his half empty bottle of vodka spirit. And he had drank all of it that night, right before falling asleep on the floor, right by his king-sized bed. The pressure was too much for him. How did everyone expect him to fit into the huge shoes they had prepared for him. While half of the Dankworth family looked up to him, it was clear from yesterday's dinner that a greater half resented him and expected nothing but failure from him. How was he to disappoint them all? He had been working, training and schooling towards this period for fourteen years of his life. Yet, it still felt as though he wasn't ready. It was one thing to be born for power, it was another thing to be forced into accepting this power. It was now going to be a part of him whether he liked it or not. He now had a responsibility to the whole of London Pride pack, he couldn't afford to make one mistake. Just like he had do
Lancelot stepped out of Doctor Flinn's office. Peter was seated in one of the chairs in the reception room, eager for his boss's arrival. When Lancelot cleared his throat and straightened his posture, Peter eyes rose up from the Macbook on his lap to his boss's tall frame. Lancelot tucked his hands into the pocket of his trousers and leaned against the wall. "Am I missing something?" Lancelot asked, taking note of the creases formed on Peter's forehead as a result of his frowning. Peter sighed, packed up his gadgets quietly and rose up. "Nothing serious. The Alpha king has just requested for your presence at the golf course." Lancelot scoffed, rolled his eyes and stood straight. "My father knows I hate golf." He stated. Lancelot had never cared for the game. Golf was simply one of those things his aristocracy demanded that he learnt. And it was very easy to, considering the eight thousand yards of expanse land that served as the Dankworth's golf course. "So do I sire. However,
She forced another handful of popcorn into her mouth as she pressed her left ear down to her shoulder to hold her phone in place. "You're sure it's okay if I stay out tonight?" Emily asked, from the other end of the phone. Roxanne, who's eyes were fixed on the television in front of her, nodded her head in affirmation. As if Emily could see her from the voice call. "Roxy! I'm serious. If it's not okay and you need me, I can come back right now and..." Roxanne tried to laugh in a way that won't require her to choke on her popcorn. "Are you watching real housewives of Atlanta again?" Emily queried. "No, no." Roxanne finally spoke, after swallowing her popcorn."I'm seeing wags. The show would be over soon and I'll just go to bed..." "Once it's done." Emily cut in. Roxanne laughed. "Once it's done." "Promise me you'll call me if you need me." Emily said again. Roxanne placed her bowl of popcorn on the center table in front of her and smiled. She removed her phone from her shoulde
Edward, after watching the dramatic display of his sons and nephew at the golf course the previous evening, decided it was best to have a word with Lancelot the next morning. There was a lot that father and son had to discuss. Since his return, Edward had tried to find a means for the both of them to discuss. But, all his efforts had proven futile ever since. So, when he found his son on the terrace of the palace, Edward knew this was an opportunity he could not miss. He took slow strides towards where his son stood. Arms spread across across the brick railings. "Son." He called out. Lancelot turned to him. "Father. Aren't you supposed to be visiting the orphanage with mother today?" Lancelot asked, a slightly suspicious gaze aimed at his father. "I should be. But I have more pressing issues to handle." Lancelot looked over his sixty five year old father one last time. Alpha of the London Pride pack and his father, Edward stood as tall as his son, even taller. Lancelot knew he h
His eyes skimmed through the name on the CV beneath the ID card, and his lips spread out so he said it aloud. "Roxanne Harvey."How? How could this even be possible? How could this be happening? He had worked - and was currently working - so hard to get her and her memories out of his mind, despite Ziko's stubborness. And here she was again! Strolling into his life as she deemed fit? He had not asked to look up from his car and see her attempting to strangle Peter, on the day they met. He had not asked to attend that wedding party where he found himself being drawn to her very essence. He had not asked to mark her in the most ceremonious way while having the best sex of his life. Maybe, just maybe he had enjoyed all of it, but he had not asked for any of them. Neither did he ask for her to appear from nowhere! And in the most conventional - or unconventional - of ways.Just who did she think she was to disappear, break him, and then reappear like his life was hers to torment? "Ma
It was 6am when the ringtone of his phone caused him to woke up from his sleep. Lancelot groaned as his eyelids parted. He had always been an early riser, but he didn't mind waking up late every now and then, especially when he had dreams like the one whoever was calling had just rudely interupted. In his dream, he had seen her, but he would not go into details about that now. Frowning, he turned to his bedside drawer where his phone lay in. When he saw the caller ID, he sprung up immediately. He clicked the answer icon and pressed the phone to his right ear. As he did, Lancelot caught sight of his chest in his mirror. The hair on his skin was beginning to overgrow, he made a mental note to get rid of the rough parts of it later. "Peter?" "Good morning sir, I take it from the sound of your voice that I have just interupted your sleep." Lancelot's brows furrowed in annoynace. What was wrong with this man?"I am hoping for your sake that you did not wake me up to talk about work.
Her gaze flickered over her image in the mirror one more time. She ran her hands over her flat tummy. In the red suit pants and jacket she was wearing, she seemed to appear fierce and confident; everything that she was currently not. She looked up at her hair. The blonde strands had been tied above her head in a stiff ponytail. Her baby hair edges were perfectly laid by Emily, who she had woken up two hours ago to get it done. Roxanne had repeated her mock interview in front of her mirror over and over, still, she was worried. Perhaps it was because of how sharp a contrast her red lipstick was from her complexion. Emily had said it would complete her "I'm the best woman for this job so don't fuck with me and pass such an opportunity" look. Roxanne didn't know if she agreed or not, what she knew now, was that she was nervous as fuck. It was funny how she had long awaited this day, the day where she would finally be allowed to take a leap back into the labour force of the United Stat
When Roxanne stepped feet into the room, one thing and one thing only continued to ring in her head. "Run, you do not belong here." Roxanne fought to steady her gaze on one thing in particular, but it was hard. This office was the definition of exquisite. High and white polished walls, a rich mahogany wooden table that curved at both ends. At the other end of the table, seven people - four men and three women - were seated, eyes fixed on her. Roxanne fought to tear her gaze away from the fine sculpture of the globe that rested at the end of the wall. She wondered what Emily would have to say about the sculpture; it was rich indeed. When she finally managed to keep her eyes on the faces of the people in front of her, she took deep breaths in before resting her gaze on an elderly man. She only wondered if he was the CEO. Alexander had been about his age. The man adjusted his spectacles and narrowed his eyes on Roxanne. She swallowed hard and looked away from him, sending her gaze
EPILOGUE FIVE YEARS LATER **************"Tehilah, get back here this instant!" Roxanne screamed at the top of her voice, whole laughter erupted from around the table. The five year old didn't mind her mother, she continued to run eagerly towards her father, who held her three year old younger brother in his arms as he stepped into the dinning room. "Daddy and Jojo!" She screamed out loud, when she griiped Lancelot's leg. Lancelot's eyes rose up from his daughter and rested on Roxanne's frowning face. "The girl is just happy to see me, which is more than she's been to see you." Lancelot teased and everyone at the table laughed, Roxanne's scowl deepened. "Ouuuuu, burner!" Hera screamed out loud, and everyone laughed again. Peter squeezed the top of her lap to show her that Roxanne wasn't smiling. Peter and Hera had been together, and were now a married couple. Peter had gotten a very big promotion; from Lancelot's personal assistant, to his beta wolf. And Hera was right by his sid
LATER THAT NIGHT was the mating ritual; the ritual of bonding. The palace was in high spirits, and the chief priest was invited to perform the ritual. Eloise and Marion, the two elderly women in the palace stayed with the priest to get things ready, while Madeline and Edward, along with the rest of the Dankworth house got themselves ready to attend. Peter was in Lancelot's chambers, putting all necessary things in order, while Emily stayed with her best friend, and finally had the guts - after her sloppy discussion with James - to take care of her "chief bridesmaid" duties. At exactly eleven PM, both bride and groom were ready for their precession. Lancelot was the first to be ushered down the stairs, out of the palace and into the courtyard, where the ritual was to take place under the full moon. The ground was set; royal woven stools placed side by side, in front of a large fire place. The members of the Dankworth family were behind him, while the musicians and dancers played and
In the middle of the heightened song and dance, James grabbed a bottle of champagne before he slipped out of the banquet hall, went up the stairs and into a dark corridor he did not recognize - at least, not in his state - without anyone noticing. No one would miss his presence after all, not after the man of the moment had just made his grand announcement. With his sloppy steps and regrettable dance moves, he was able to keep the champagne bottle under his armpit for five minutes. The man was drunk out of his mind. All he had done since the part started was down glasses of champagne without speaking to anyone. When he got to the corridor, he leaned against the wall and slid all the way to the ground, until his butt touched the hard floor, he winced in pain. "You definitely had that coming for ya." He heard a female voice say. James would have jerked up, since he didn't see anyone there before he entered, but he was way above the clouds to bother about that right now. He corked h
SIX DAYS LATER The big party Emily had spoke about was happening today, even if no one knew exactly what the party was about, Roxanne was pumped to finally celebrate with Lancelot. It had been long since she did that. So, when she woke up in the morning and found three maids staring at her, Roxanne was more than surprised. It was just a party, why did they treat her as though she were a bride getting dressed for her wedding? She asked herself. After greeting her, two of the maids offered her green tea and stood still while watching her drink the tea. When she was done, they helped her get up, undressed her, and ushered her into the bathroom, where warm rose water waited for her. She had not even been given the time to update Emily, who stayed in the next room, about what was going on. After a massage in the rose water, she was scrubbed and thoroughly cleaned. Roxanne felt like a stubborn five year old baby when one of the maids asked her to lift her foot up so she could scrub it.
Peter had barely had time to check his phone in the course of the last few days. Everything that had happened in the palace, from the poisoning attempt, to the death of the maid, Lancelot's fake Luna crowning ceremony, Ava's arrest and Garrett's banishment, to the post effects of all those events, Peter had finally found a day of rest..While Lancelot was preparing to tell his family the real truth about all that had happened to Roxanne, and what he intended to do next, Peter was given some free time to clear his head and get his issues sorted out. That was how he was able to sit on his bed in the guest chambers and go through his phone. And, that was how he was able to see the countless missed calls and messages that had been sent in by an unknown number. He was perplexed, while wondering who the person was, and what he or she wanted from him. It wasn't until he opened the first message and read the first line aloud, that he knew who the messages were from. Hera, he thought out lou
"Girl, don't tell me you're still asleep!" That was the first thing Roxanne heard, before Emily sent a pillow crashing down on her head. She groaned in pain - let it be known that she felt no pain, the pillow was filled with feathers - and sat up slowly, scrubbing her eyes with the back of her palms. Roxanne and Emily broke into laughter when they stared at each other in their pyjamas. They had missed each other an awful lot. The past three days if being together had taught both of them the true value of real friendship. With Emily around, Roxanne felt like no matter what happened, she would always have a home to run back to. Emily was everything to her; her best friend and her family, and she would not ever take that for granted. Emily, on the otherhand, felt the same way for Roxanne. They had spent so much time apart, but none of that had affected their friendship. Roxanne had been the only person Emily had ever let close to her, and she had not disappointed. Just like Roxanne, Em
The past three days had been hectic for every single member of the Dankworth house. While Lancelot was burdened with the role of acting sulky and vengeful over Roxanne's "demise", he was also saddled with the responsibility of preparing himself for his Luna picking ceremony with Ava. Whom, he now utterly despised and couldn't wait to get rid of. However, despite all that was going on, he was glad that he had finally gotten Roxanne, and that she was safe. He has sent Emily over to her and given the women his black card to do as their hearts seemed fit on this auspicious day. The day he would finally be putting an end to all their problems. He simply couldn't wait. Lancelot had noticed that his mother's mood had been better in the past few days. Now that Roxanne was out of the way, and Lancelot and Ava's ceremony around the corner, the future she had meticulously planned for her son, was finally here. The goddess had taken away all obstacles, and now, everything would be back to norma
Hera touched down at London's airport at exactly 3:00pm that day. She took a deep breath in before shading her eyes with her huge sunglasses. She was away from Greece, granted, but she didn't know how long it would be until Ahab sent spies into London to look for her. That was the same reason why she couldn't go to the palace, at least not until she was sure of what to do. She couldn't risk endangering Peter's life, or the life of anyone else in the palace. Yes, werewolves were strong, but Ahab - no matter how old he might be - was the grand master of witches. That meant, he was the most treacherous, sneaky, evil and wisest of them all - except her mother of course. Then again, even Athaliah had a lot to say about her leaving. As she pulled her luggage towards the entrance of the airport, where cabs waited for passengers, she couldn't help but replay her last conversation with her mother, before she took off. "You do not know what you're playing with. Do you think Ahab would sit s
"What?" Emily yelled out, she sprung up from her bed and rushed to meet Lancelot. Peter, who was seated beside her, rose up and rushed to his boss as well. "What's happening your grace?" He asked, scanning Lancelot's appearance. His boss was visibly shaking, while his facial features looked squeezed with rage. "The pasta, was poisoned...Roxanne." Emily's eyes widened with horror as she held on to Lancelot's shirt, tears gathered in her eyelids immediately. She did not want to believe her ears. "What do you mean by Roxanne? What's going on?"Peter sensed that something wasn't right. He drew Emily back from Lancelot's body and cuffed her in his arms. Lancelot stood straight before turning away from them, while Emily threw curses at him. If anything had happened to Roxanne, she would not hesitate to burn this entire palace to the ground, she swore it. "She's alive, come on, let's go." Lancelot said as he walked briskly out of the room. Relief washed over Peter, and Emily managed to