CHAPTER ONE (...few decades ago)

Alex's POV

“What guts have you to speak such filth in my presence, woman!?”, a murderous voice echoed across the hallway. Alex looked bemused.

“I speak no false, my Lord. Cursed be me if I tell a lie.”, a thin trembling feminine voice responded in the background.

Alex dispersed the large ocean-blue mist above him and almost burnt his finger. There was a bright colorful spark from the tip of his right hand. Thereafter, great darkness fell around him.

“Quiet!”, the thick voice echoed again.

Alex was distracted by the voices. It was impossible to continue his routine training as expected from the next heir. He knew his father to be stern and principled, but he had never witnessed such anger outburst from him—not in the Palace. He developed a pinch of uneasiness and

motioned towards the brightly lit hallway, away from the lawn, leading to the direction of the voices.

“Bring me Xander!”, Alex's eyes widened with an abrupt stop.

There was terror in his father's voice. He stood halfway from the end of the corridor that led to the scene. He couldn't avoid his father, but he also had no clue of what lay ahead. He had lived up to the standards of his father for twenty-five years and never has his father summoned him in such rage. His brows merged into a confused curve as he tried to predict the trouble that lurked ahead.

“Is there another war sizzling in town?” Alex thought.

The sight of an approaching guard distracted his thoughts. The guard bowed, but as he was about to speak, Alex raised his hand in dismissal,

“I heard. Never mind.”

He hastened his steps as the guard led the way into a large luxurious hall, brightened with golden chandeliers and light-emitting massive diamonds by the four corners of the great hall. The other guards stood heads down as Alex caught his father's gaze. The frequent red sparks in his father's eye was a giveaway sign of an impending danger. Alex swallowed hard, retaining a stern expression before speaking— he knew better than to fidget in his father's presence.

“You called for me, Father”, standing chest out with a tone of furnished dignity.

“What is this abomination I hear of You, son!?”, the Alpha turned towards him in a roar. “Have you no shame?!”

Alex grimaced in confusion as his father's words smacked his ears to deafness,

“I know nothing of such allegations, Father”, Alex paused before proceeding—in hopes of easing the tension, “Who angered the Alpha so much to speak wrongly of his beloved son?”

“Have you suddenly lost your voice? Speak!”, the Alpha thundered again, looking down, away from Alex. 

Not until then did Alex realize the presence of a lady with cherry-red hair kneeling by the side of a tall guard. Alex looked in utter bewilderment at the figure as he heard the confession of the young lady before him.

“I-I carry your child Ale…My prince”, she corrected immediately, with a fallen gaze.

The Alpha made a sharp head turn towards him as though expecting an immediate reaction.

They both lock eyes before Alex found the courage to speak, casting a firm gaze back on the lady. He walked closer to her,

“What child do you speak of? What prove have you to utter such nonsense? Need I remind you of the consequences of your words?”, Alex reprimanded in a harsh but comported tone, hiding his fidgety palms in his loose leather drape.

The lady wore a stunned expression,

“Are you denying the bond we share? Have you forgotten so soon?”, she asked in disbelief.

Alex imagined his father's eyes lasering behind him. The room was dead silent at the words of a wretched-looking lady claiming to be abhorring a possible future heir to the throne. An abomination, with unforgivable consequences for whoever is found guilty among the royal blood— a sacred heritage kept for thousands of years since the conception of the Grey-Moon Pack.

Alex was taken aback. He remembered the night vividly. He always prided on his self-discipline but a stain was about to be spilled on his crystal-clear record. 

Alex turned to his father, who frowned back at him, as though expecting a definite close of the drama.

“Father, I know nothing of this incidence. I’ve never met this woman. I would rather die than to stain the throne with an irreversible curse”, Alex spoke with convincing certainty as he approached his father. It seemed as though he was fully prepared.

The Alpha growled again,

“Such guts! Get her out of here! Out of the pack. You seize from being a member.”

“No! Please! Believe me. Alex…please…don’t do this to me”, she pleaded with intermittent sobs.

Alex, who was on the verge of leaving the scene was caught off-guard by her words. He fought the urge to respond in feigned anger, but his eyelids twitched uncontrollably, his iris had assumed a soft glow of red as he spoke —drawing closer to the lady and raising her chin upwards with a firm hold,

“Don't you dare call my name with such disdain”, he forcefully let go of his grip. His loins boiled in pain and grief as he let go of her chin. This was a woman he loved, unreasonably.

The lady trembled, as though she had seen a wild ghost. She succumbed to the pull on both sides, dragging her out of the palace. Alex watched as the back view of her red hair glowed from a distance, consumed by the darkness of the night. His sight was blocked by the Alpha's wrinkled face peering down in front of him. Alex caught a questioning look on the him, as though he was trying to detect a lie.

“Alexander Will Duke, are you sure, with utmost sincerity, that you tell the truth?”, the Alpha emphasized, without a blink. There was a quiet dread in the way he spoke.

Alex, folding his left palm and placing it firmly on his broad chest, responded as though taking a pledge,

“I, Prince Xander, the only Son of the greatest Duke of Region 22, affirm my innocence. I would never —not now — not in the future to come, dare soil our sacred name. I am aware of the deserved consequences and punishment for such act.”, Alex chanted the oath of Liberty.

The Alpha finally managed a smile and patted his shoulders with a firm grip.

“I trust You, son.

“What was the noise about?”, a British accent broke in.

Alex turned around to behold a dark-haired woman with blue iris, sleep-walking towards them— adjusting the belt of her loose pajamas around her waist. Alex squatted a little to give a warm hug.

“It's nothing, Mother. You should get back to bed”.

She turned to the Alpha with a demanding look,

“A cup of drama to end the night. Nothing overly unusual”, the Alpha responded in a monotone, giving Alex a grim glance before taking her hands as they both walked out of his sight.

***

The weight of the night laid heavily on Alex. All his attempt at wading the red-haired figure in his head seemed futile. He had told a grievous lie, painlessly. To cap it all, he caused so much pain for the only woman he ever felt a spark for. Twenty-five years of perfection, crumbling before his eyes with no remorse. His father's voice rang over and over in his mind, “consequences… irreversible curse” in loud bloody echoes.

Although their relationship ended the night Sherlyn heard of the coming marriage between him and a princess, he never thought she could be so courageous to face the Alpha, let alone break such news without his knowledge. He picked up his phone on the drawer to call, Charles, a childhood friend and head warrior.

“Shit!“ he exclaimed.

Sixteen missed calls from Sherlyn about four hours ago with messages that read;

“We need to talk?”

“please call me, it's urgent”

“Alex, I'm pregnant”

“I need your help”

Currently at Malibu's. Please call me”

“Fine. I'm coming over”

He threw the phone back on bed and stormed out of his room, picking up a car key on the drawer.

His personal guard, Harry, ran behind him as he approached the garage.

“Get back. It's a private business”, Alex yelled at him.

“But the Alpha…”

Alex interrupted him, wearing a cold look,

“Do I hear you question my orders, Harry?”

Harry bowed, taking few steps away as he drove alone, out of the Palace in a black car.

The streets were deserted. Alex drove in full speed as though he was about missing an important meeting. The thoughts of Sherlyn clouded his mind.

“How could I?”, he kept saying to himself—banging the steering wheel at intervals in a fist.

He glanced at the time. It was 10:06pm. It was over an hour since she was banished. She couldn't have gone too far. But, what if something had befallen her? What if he doesn’t find her? How would he ever forgive himself?, his thoughts haunted him. He came across few hunters, but none stopped him after recognizing his identity. He reduced the speed drastically when he drove past a large signboard that read “REGION 22” in neon letters. His headlight revealed inconsistent footprints on the wet ground ahead. He drove slowly. His eyes searching around the dark forest at both sides. It was a pitch-black darkness at the mercy of a dull crescent moon above. Suddenly, the back view of a slim figure came to light.