Chapter Five

CHRIS

I tossed and turned on the bed, I was too afraid to go back to sleep. The nightmare felt so real, I could still feel the sword pierce through my chest. 

I got up to check the door if it was locked, I wasn't going to take any chances in case my dream becomes a reality. I also needed to know if my guards were safe. I held onto the doorknob and held my breath, opening the door slowly to check, only to find them sleeping on the bare floor. They were snoring and it looked like they had too much to drink.

I was disappointed by what I saw, how could the guards be sleeping on duty? I kicked both of them and they quickly got up, they were startled by my presence. I shook my head and stormed into the room.

"I'm going to skin you two alive after my coronation!!" I yelled.

I couldn't find it in myself to go back to bed, I paced around the room as I pondered on the nightmare I had. Why would Lothar's relatives want me dead? What did she mean by what she said? I couldn't find the right answers to the questions in my head.

"Snap out of it Chris," I said aloud. "You are exaggerating, it's just a mere dream" I concluded and returned to bed. I dozed off immediately after my head touched the pillow.

"My Lord, My Lord"

I opened my eyes to see who was disturbing me from finally having a good night's rest. It was Kayla, my childhood friend. 

"Chris!! Wake up. It's morning already". She said

"No, it's not," I said, facing the other side of the bed, and drifting back to sleep. She opened the curtain and rays of the sun shone into the room and on my face. I shielded my face from the sun and quickly got up to check the time on the table clock by my bedside, it was 10 am already. I didn't know I had slept for a long time.

"Good morning Kayla," I said as I stretched out. I wasn't surprised to see her in my chambers this morning, I knew she would be here. She had always been by my side all these years and I always felt at ease whenever she was with me. My mother had always wished that she would become my mate but it was different with me, I wasn't attracted to her in any way, she was like a sister I never had and I knew she felt that way about me too.

"Good morning sleepyhead. You are going to be late for the meeting with the council elders if you keep yawning like that" she said. She was right, the council meeting was to be held before the coronation began and I was running late. 

"Your bath has been prepared, you need not worry. I'll come back to see you before your coronation begins" she said. I kissed her cheek and dashed in to have my bath.

Within minutes I was dressed and on my way to the great hall. I met Lothar on my way and immediately I remembered the nightmare I had about his relative, I recalled asking him to invite her to my coronation and almost froze.

"What if she comes? What if my dream becomes a reality?" I thought aloud.

"My Lord, are you alright? You look like you just saw a ghost" Lothar said. He rested his hand on my shoulder as we continued walking. 

"I know you are worried about your coronation and if you will be able to rule the people, but you don't have to be. I know you will do a great job" he added before turning to leave.

"Lothar, I'll like you to be reinstated back as a member of the council and as my adviser," I said. He had a surprised look on his face, he wasn't expecting it but I felt I needed him close to me. He had worked with my father in the past and my father spoke highly of him.

"My lord, I can't accept it. I stepped down from being a member because of the treacherous act by other members of the council, I can't work with such people. I'm sorry but I beg to decline" he said, bowing his head. 

I understood him perfectly. Most of the council elders were deceitful and wanted the throne for themselves, there was no one amongst them that I could trust as my cabinet member when I became the alpha king. 

"I want you to be my right-hand man and adviser. You are the only one I trust and my father also trusted you too. Please, Lothar, do this for the bond you once had with my father" I pleaded.

After much consideration, Lothar accepted and we both continued on our little journey to the great hall. Getting there, the council elders were murmuring. Some wore a frown at the sight of me, while others glared at me.

"It's wrong to keep noblemen waiting, weren't you taught that boy?" One of the elders named Orvyn said. He was the spokesman for other council members. I never liked him and we were always at loggerheads with each other. He once said I wasn't befitting to ascend the throne of my ancestors, he called me weak, incompetent, and childish. I was going to prove him otherwise when I finally became his Alpha. 

"Watch your tone, Orvyn. That's no way to speak to your next alpha," Lothar snapped at him.

"And who invited you here? This is no place for people of your class," Orvyn scowled.

"I did," I announced. "He is the head of the Beta and has a seat at the table with the rest of us, he will be reinstated as a member of this council once I'm coronated as Alpha." 

"You don't have the right until we the elders agree to it," another elder said.

"I have no intention to be here if the prince had not asked me to. I won't take such insults from treacherous people like you," Lothar snapped and stormed out of the hall.

I watched as he left, I knew it would take a lot to convince him to return after the humiliation he had received today. I was going to take him back no matter what it would cost.

"Shall we proceed? We've exhausted our time on irrelevant issues" Orvyn said. 

My mother walked in as the meeting commenced. As Luna, she was the only woman allowed to sit with members of the council. Everyone rose to bow to her as she graced us with her presence.

"May we begin?" she said, beckoning us to sit.

"Of course. As we all know, at the full moon tonight our dear prince will be coronated as our next Alpha king. For me, I don't think he is ready to be crowned king of this pack. Look at him, he's still a child and doesn't know what it takes to rule a pack as mighty as ours" Orvyn said. Few of the elders agreed with him while others simply murmured to themselves.

"My son is the heir to the throne and no one, not even you Orvyn can do anything about it. That's final" my mother said in anger.

No one dared question my mother, Maeve, the Luna of the hallowed manes. She was courageous and dauntless in the face of unbelievable struggle. She was clear about what she wanted without being aggressive. She had been the decision-maker for the pack after the death of my father two years ago.

They had no choice but to accept the fact that I'll be their new alpha. "As your lordship pleases, so shall it be," another elder spoke.

"That will be all for now. See you all at the coronation. The prince needs to get himself ready for his Coronation." She said, rising from her seat. Everyone else rose to acknowledge her before she left. I also joined her and we both exited the great hall.

"Don't listen to whatever they have to say to you. Tonight you are going to be coronated as Alpha and you'll find your mate. You need to learn to stand for rights," she said. "Go and get yourself ready, we'll be waiting at the arena for you."

I watched as my mother left, I was more nervous than I had ever been before. I was going to meet my mate today, it hadn't crossed my mind all this while. I had been so busy thinking of how to be a perfect alpha and leader of the pack that I had forgotten I would be meeting my mate for the first time. 

What if she doesn't want me? Will she accept me? I thought as I retired to my chambers. The dressmaker and Kayla were waiting in my room when I walked in. They began the job of dressing me up for my coronation.

When they were done, Kayla led me to the mirror to see the magic they had done. I was awed when I saw my reflection. I knew I had great looks and a godly physique that all the ladies would die for but right now, I looked like a heavenly being and would drool over myself if I was a lady.

"You're good to go, My Lord," Kayla said with a grin.

My mother walked right in and gasped when she saw how astonishing I looked.

"You look adorable, my love," she complimented.

"I know," I smirked. "I'm nervous mother, what if Orvyn was right? What if I'm not ready to be the new alpha?"

"You are more than ready son, you're 25 and no longer a child. You are a man now, so man up and prove those elders wrong" she said. She was more confident of me than I was of myself. 

She kissed my cheek and led me to the arena where everyone was seated and waiting for me. My transformation to being a werewolf would begin at the full moon and I wasn't the only one who was going to be transformed tonight. There were about eight of us to be transformed. 

All eight of us were led to a place where we were given something with an awful smell to drink.

"I won't lie to you by telling you it won't be painful, it will be, but it's only for a while and the pain will subside," a man said to us. 

I got acquainted with some of them and while we were still discussing, the trumpet blew. It was the full moon and the beginning of our transformation.