Chapter Seven: The Parcel

MONTANNE'S POV

I came from nothing.

No wealth, no power, no throne.

I was the princess of the WhiteCrescent Pack and we were once feared by all the packs across the seven seas. 

Our name was spoken with great honor by our allies and sent chills down the spines of our enemies.

But that was a long time ago, I wasn't even born yet.

Our forces slowly began weakening and rogues started infiltrating and plundering our resources.

Unfortunately, the very day I was brought into the world, there was a massive rogue attack on our Pack and they took all we had.

They raped the women and killed many of the wolf warriors. My mother died protecting me. It was almost as if the moon goddess had turned her back on us.

My father mated a Luna from a strong Pack who became my stepmother, but even that couldn't save us from the mess we were in. 

For me, it only made matters worse. I became a princess who lived as a slave.

My stepmother had always seized the opportunity to remind me of how worthless I was and how the curse I carried was the reason why the rogues attacked that day.

I was given little food, barely enough to keep me looking healthy.

"You can't sit here and eat a feast while the other wolves of your pack are starving because of your curse" she would always say.

But everything ended when my father went to his old friend, the former King of BloodHowl, and requested that I be mated to his son, Damien.

I wasn't sure if my father did it out of love, or if he did it just to get rid of me, but either ways, I was glad to turn my back on WhiteCrescent Pack forever.

I did whatever it took to secure my place in BloodHowl, and in the heart of their King, Damien. 

I used my voice, my touch, my body to make sure he was head over heels for me and remained that way forever. 

But every now and then, he seemed unsure that I was the right one for him, that I was his mate.

It began to feel that the only reason why he hadn't thrown me out of BloodHowl or rejected me as his mate was because it was one of his father's last wishes that he married me. 

But that can't be enough to keep me here and in control. I needed him to love me, and no one else but me.

Tap Tap Tap

A knock on the door sent my mind racing back to the present.

"Who dares interrupt my bath" I yelled, raising the upper half of my body from the water.

"Your highness, it's Sheba, your maid" a frail voice came through.

Sheba was the only person I trusted in BloodHowl, aside Hares, my personal servant who I brought with me from WhiteCrescent. 

"Come in" I said as I fell back into the water, letting it soothe my skin.

She walked up to me and bowed so endlessly that I rolled my eyes.

"Just speak" I said, getting tired of the charade.

"Your highness, the package you sent for has finally arrived" she said, her head still bowed.

I sat up immediately, my eyes widened with excitement.

"I hope he wasn't followed, did you ask him if anyone saw him?" I asked 

"Yes your majesty, nobody saw him" she replied.

"Tell him to give you the package and bring it to me immediately. Do not act suspicious, do you understand?" 

"Yes your Majesty" she bowed and walked out of the room. 

I soaked myself into the bath as my thoughts trailed to that slave girl, Elda.

I couldn't place my finger on any particular reason why I disliked her so much, but I just did.

There was something about her that put me off. 

I wondered if it was her white hair or her skin which looked too smooth for a servant girl. 

Maybe it was her innocent beauty or her piercing blue eyes I feared would draw Damien in and away from me.

Or was it her locket?

That shiny thing on her neck, it was pure gold, I could tell. How could it have been on someone so unimportant?

Unless she was in fact, important. Unless she was a spy. 

I was going to dig deeper into where she came from, and I knew exactly where I was going to start.

By stealing that stupid locket from her.

Another knock came on the door, and I called for the person to come in, knowing it was Sheba.

She walked in, holding a tiny parcel, wrapped with black cloth. 

She held it so carefully, and tiptoed towards me, one would have thought she was carrying an egg.

"Your Highness" she said stretching the parcel towards me. 

I took it from her and unwrapped it.

"What are the instructions?" I asked staring at the small crystal bottle in my hand. It reflected the light from the window and scattered it in different colors on my face.

"He said you should add three drops only to your bath water, not more, not less" she said.

"Is that all?" I asked growing impatient, I couldn't wait to harness the powers within the bottle in my hands.

"Um...No, your majesty" she stammered

"Well speak then! Are you numb?"

"I'm sorry your Highness" she bowed again and I rolled my eyes "he also said that once you are done bathing, you should go in to meet the King or request for him, but the King should be the first person you see after you use it"

She paused and swallowed before she continued. "It will only work on the first person that sees you"

"Is that all?" I asked, hoping there were no more absurd instructions attached.

"Yes your highness" she bowed.

"You have done well, now leave" I said dismissing her.

I ran my fingertips over the bottle cover. In this bottle was what would secure my future. In it was Damien's heart which I would make mine. In it was control and power. He was all mine now.

I carefully poured the liquid into my bath tub.

drop drop drop

Three. Nothing more. Nothing less. Just as she said.

If Damien couldn't see how much I loved him, I was just going to have to make him see it. 

And the love potion in this tiny bottle would help me do just that.

I soaked myself in the water for a while and came out. 

I let my hair fall and put on my robe, leaving it open, just enough for Damien to see the parts that would make him go wild. 

It was time now.

I was ready to see the King.