Edwina's POV...Sonia walked into the courtroom. She looked pale and heavy. Well, her being heavy was understandable, but I thought she would have a little bit of glow since she was finally getting what she wanted. A chance at a fair trial, but I understood that she would be not just lonely but anxious, she had been so used to taking control of her life and right now it feels strange to her not being able to control it.I could see her struggling to take the steps she needed to move further.The hall wasn't crowded. It was filled with people from different clans in the night howlers pack. As she walked past them, they muttered unkind words to her, and I could see her trying to shut them out so she wouldn't get affected by them. It would have been easier for me to shut out words from them because I have been used to mockery all my life, but it would be harder for her because she has been used to people singing her praise and bowing down to her feet.I wonder the kind of struggles she w
Edwina's POV...Maybe she was looking at Alpha Alex or at me, but I am sure she was wondering who was behind the veil. This would have come as a shock to her when she finds out that the Alpha has another Luna, had she figured it out to be me."I plead guilty," she muttered, and another uproar inundated the hall like it was the first time they were hearing about it.Bunch of hypocrites, we all knew she was guilty; why act surprised, I muttered, and I could see Alex, who sat close to me, smile.She continued"And for the charge on crime against throne as an act of treason," she paused, and I could see her making a last-minute decision, "I plead not guilty,"More noise saturated the hall.I nodded my head gently. Even if guilty, one was never to plead guilty to treason, for there would be no use for a trial anymore. They would just pass out a judgment, which we all know the penalty to be death, and that would be it. She knew better."Okay, with that being said, we can proceed with the tr
Author's POV...At this point, Sonia had done a single act that was going to help her case and to prove herself not to be a traitor to the crown. When she saw the guard, he introduced himself to her. She saw an avenue to prove which side she was on. He wasn't an escape plan for her. She was lonely and hopeless, and she saw in the man's eyes a route to vindicate herself. If she was loyal to Benedict, she wouldn't have done that.Sonia glared at Alpha Alex, hoping to see some kind of pleasing smile, but he still looked as indifferent as he did when the case started. She knew it would take more than just whistleblowing to get him to know she was on his side and on the side of the throne, and whoever is the Luna sitting beside him must be feeding him with lies about her."She must be a new bride," she thought to herself."So may we continue," Caleb announced. At this point, he prides himself on knowing all the faces of the omega wolves and their names. When he had made it a mandate for hi
Author's POV..."No, she is not lying. How could I have been this stupid?" Edwina cried out, and Becca approached her."Ma'am, maybe you should leave because I don't think you can handle any more of this trial," Becca begged her."I think Becca is right, this would be detrimental to your mental health,""I used to see him leave her room on different nights, and I would think that maybe he went to check up on her because she was his beloved daughter. I didn't know there was more, she had more scars than usual, and I would think they were training scars because she spent all her time training to be the best. How come I never saw things for what they truly were?" Edwina mumbled in tears as the realization hit her. She had always thought of herself to be the victim, but in actual fact, she was the fortunate one, and the real victim was Sonia. No wonder she turned out to be this way when she had to withstand abuse from her father; that was the height of it. Edwina endured verbal abuse whil
Edwina's POV...As soon as I stood up, I could feel Alex's hands on my wrist. I glanced at him, and it was one of those moments when you don't communicate with your mouth or your lips, but your mind, body, heart, and soul does all the communication.I could see him asking me."Are you sure about this?" When he held my wrist, I could feel our soul connect to the inner part of our being. I wasn't sure about this but hearing my sister speak for the first time, I saw her for who she truly was. She is a fighter just like me, who had learned to hide in the shell of self-denial and perfectionism.She had been abused by her own father, my father. The man I assumed to be biased toward me and had loved her more. But that wasn't love, and if it was so, I am glad he didn't get to show me that kind of love.My mind went back to some awkward moments I had witnessed growing up and had thought it was an exceptional love and bond that existed between them, but it was not so. It wasn't a forbidden act
Author's POV..."I swear to tell the truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God," were the words of Edwina before revealing herself to Sonia.Sonia's world fell apart into a thousand little pieces as she knew she had been betrayed by her sister.She was dumbfounded, and even if she wasn't confined to the small space of her little box of through, she would have had the exact words to express how she was feeling at the moment.How she was feeling wasn't quantified in words because she, in all the moment, was angry but felt like she didn't have the right to be angry because she had brought it upon herself by cheating on her husband. Giving her sister room to marry him.Then she still felt bad because she had told Edwina not to get married to him, and she thought Edwina agreed, but now she was acting like an imposter and Savior at the same time.She had just broken down in front of the whole pack about her past and the deep truth she had tried not to admit sometimes, even before hers
Edwina's POV...I glared at the exiting crowd as they had adjourned the hearing for tomorrow. I am not sure if that's what I wanted because I would have rather preferred we get this all over with today so that we can face other things.Other things like the war that threatened in the pack or the fact that Sonia stood there motionless and indifferent throughout my testimony, I get to wonder what is on her head when she is thinking about it. I get to wonder about the battles she would also be fighting in her head to make sense of all these.I get to wonder what she would be thinking, am I now the bad person in her head? It is so easy for people to paint you as the bad person and forget all the roles they contributed to actualize that reaction from you. We are all self-righteous beings. We are always so consumed by people's actions and inaction and, occasionally, their responses to your action. Yet we tend to forget or lose in communication our actions that pushed them to that reaction.
Edwina’s POV…I returned home after the altercation with my sister. I walked through the door and straight to my room; as I descended the grand stairs, I took a moment to pause and admire my favorite painting, reminiscing about simpler times. I sighed and went to my room. I don’t know why I love that painting, but there has been something familiar about its feel and the way it speaks to me.When I walked in, I noticed Alexander on the bed. He was reading a book. The light from the bedside lamp, the room’s sole source of light, gave him a dark, mysterious feeling. He looked up from his book and smiled at me, and I returned a tired smile before walking into the closet to change my clothes, wondering if there was a better way I could have handled this situation with my sister. He closed his book and looked at me as I came out of the closet. “From the look on your face, it appears that things did not go well with your sister,” he said to me. He could tell things didn’t go as planned, s
Authors POV...Becca searched around the kitchen uncomfortably, trying not to meet Caleb's eyes. It was just as Ramona had said; he looked terrible. His eyes obviously were sleep deprived. She had been trying her best to avoid him all week, and it worked. Becca didn't get to see him, just as she had wished.Watching her every move, Caleb walked towards the kitchen island, taking Ramona's seat. He sighed in exhaustion."Until when would you keep doing this?" He asked, holding his head together with his hands.She gulped hard, toying with her fingers. "did you know about Ramona coming?""How was I supposed to know? I haven't spoken to her in weeks. I was surprised myself to see her here."Searching his eyes for any form of lie or pretence, Becca saw the naivety in his eyes. It was obvious Caleb had no idea of Ramona's coming. She inhaled and exhaled at the same time, trying to steady her breath.It wasn't worth brooding on too much; Becca herself was tired of being so far away from him.
Authors POV...Ramona searched around the crowd, trying to see if she would get a hold of Becca, but she seemed to disappear at every chance she got to approach her. One thing about the gathering of night howlers is how merry they all become and how they know how to party till the day ends. Especially since the alpha had finally gotten back to his feet. Annoyed at how hard it was becoming, Ramona made her way towards the podium area to ask a guard where Becca was. The guard directed her to the kitchen.Her heels clattered against the hallways as she manoeuvred her way around the pack house. Getting into the kitchen, Becca was there as she had been told. Standing at the edge of the kitchen was Becca, who seemed so lost in her thoughts. Ramona bit her lip really hard; she felt so guilty.For the past three weeks, Ramona had forced her way into Caleb's home to have him bend to her wheel. Unfortunately, Caleb seems to be much more determined than she was to not give in to her advances.Ev
Edwina's POV...For what seemed like a lifetime, he didn't say a word. I was getting bothered, and my standing didn't feel good, considering my position. I would like to think that Xander reads my mind. Almost in a split second, he had dusted a chair that sprouted out from among the piles of antiques in the space and had me seated on it.I gulped nervously, feeling bad for thinking ill of him. "Xander..."He held a hand up, "please let me finish." He pleaded."Okay." I let out in a whisper.Still standing, Xander had his back turned to me, obviously trying to hide the tears in his eyes. "over the years, as I grew, I leaned on Ben as he was the only person really close to me. I felt safe trusting him with all of me. Also, the idea of family grew within me so much. I couldn't wait to have a Luna. When I did come of age, I pleaded hard with the moon goddess to show me my desired mate. When she showed you to me, I was too greedy and thought I was doing it for the sake of the pack. Eventua
Edwina's POV...I stomped my foot through the hallway in annoyance, indecisive as to why my emotions were spluttering all over the place. I could blame it on pregnancy, knowing quite well it wasn't just about that.Tears laced my eyes as I bounced off the walls. Seeing him stand in all of his glory, like the Greek god most books describe, was overwhelming. In all truth, Xander is a good-looking man. Every of his body structure, from the chiselled jawline to his legs, made my clit ache.I was wet beyond measure, and if he slipped right inside me this minute, I was sure to orgasm right on the spot. I feel angry at myself for having such thoughts, considering how much he had disregarded me. But what to do when I miss him so much? I ache for his touch every night, and my urges had mounted since I got pregnant.Probably, just maybe, I would have held back on my sexually consumed thoughts if he wasn't looking so much like a snack. It's been a month, and I must say every day is more than ten
Alexander's POV...I shifted uncomfortably in the wheelchair, eager to stand up and not have to deal with the facade I had been living in anymore. Glancing to my side, I tried to keep eye contact with Edwina. It was obvious she was doing everything she could to avoid my ears. A week after she found out about my true disabled state, I tried to get on her good book, but she never paid me any mind.I had thought coming out to the pack members would be easy, as I had informed Caleb to arrange the process after a week when I might have gotten back with Edwina. To my disappointment, three weeks went by with myself and Caleb wallowing in self-pity and none of our women paying us any mind. For myself and Edwina, we have been going back and forth on her forgiving me.But she had been really adamant about not wanting to talk to me. The last time I tried to reach out to her, she had told me it would take her a very long time to accept the new me, as she had put it. Sounds frustrating, right? I m
Edwina's POV...I rolled to the side of the bed, trying to find a comfortable side of the bed to rest in, but I couldn't. I had been awake since about seven am, but I couldn't find myself standing up from the bed. I just wanted to remain there, most especially to avoid seeing Xander. At the same time, I was aching badly for food and a nice cup of tea. My baby and I had awoken with a craving for food.Turning around to get a hold of my phone, I attempted to dial Becca when there came a knock on the door. As I got off the bed reluctantly to open it, I hoped it wouldn't be Xander. Nothing has prepared me for such a discussion this morning.Opening it, I found Becca by the door with a platter of food. "Oh my goodness, Becca! You are godsent." I muttered, opening the door widely.My eyes glazed at the sumptuous sight of the breakfast of bacon, toast, scrambled egg, sausage, some freshly made juice, and a cup of tea to cap it all."How in the world did you do this? Do you live in my mind?"
Authors POV...Caleb scoffed in irritation as he threw daggers at Ramona with his eyes. It had been hard for him to get over how low she had stooped to get back at him. Having her appear in his home looking all relaxed made him boil terribly. He had just taken a pill to suppress the headache threatening to split his head. The moment his eyes landed on Ramona, it seemed to be coming back with full force."Answer the fucking question. Why are you here?" Caleb blurted again, his eyes catching sight of Xander wheeling himself towards his room.Ramona sat with gait, staring at Caleb with a straight face. She had no intention of backing away from fighting for his attention. She had known the kind of ruckus the video and document she had sent to Becca would cause. However, she was less bothered about it and couldn't care less about what anyone thought of her. She wants a home with Caleb and being Ramona, there is no way she would let it go that easily without a fight.Becca was way older tha
Alexander's POV...Eyeballing his ass out, I turned my back to him, trying to wash up the used cups. One thing I loved to do was handle my chores. Before I got confined to the wheelchair, I used to swing by Ben's place to crash after a long day at work. We end up cooking and washing up ourselves. They were sweet memorable moments. I wanted to distract myself from responding to Caleb, or should I say, I was trying to gather my thoughts."Why aren't you saying anything?" He pressed on, raising his head fully now."Can you not." I inhaled deeply, scratching the back of my head. "I hope you haven't taken my advice of keeping something from your woman because I think that has cost me my small family."Caleb snorted, mumbling under his breath. "guess that's too late. But tell me, what happened?""Edwina saw me on my feet," I told him.He started with a perplexed look on his face, "Saw you on your feet? How did that happen?"I rolled my eyes, sitting my butt on a stool. I sighed, "so, yester
Alexander's POV...Woke up to a cold side of the bed. The bags underneath my eyes were enough to act as an airbag during an accident. They were so heavy it felt like my eyes were under pressure.I had waited up for Edwina to return to the room, but it was obvious that wouldn't be happening. I was surprised to find out when I drifted off to sleep, though.My mind wobbled, and all I wanted was to stick to the bed and never have to come out of the room. Different emotions flowed through me. Now that Edwina knows my truth, I feel compelled to let the pack members know too. Truth is, judging by Edwina's reaction, I'm really scared the pack members, too, would be disappointed.I groaned inwardly while pulling at my hair. I can't believe this shit is happening right now; I thought everything was falling into place, and I would show myself to my woman at the right time. I can tell she hates me now and compares me to that fucking Ben. Now I have stooped so low to cursing the dead. I might go b