Rhode could not contain his anger when he woke up the next morning. He had stirred up to find himself in Brian's bed, and that was not the only unflattering thing that happened.He could still feel the bitter residue of whatever drug he had unknowingly consumed the night before, and knew, without anyone telling him, that the drug must have been potent.And what's worse? He could still feel the weakness in his bones that came from denying his body what it had been forced to desire last night. Doing that had only been through sheer force of will, as was everything he did, but oh was he pissed off.He knew the gist of what had happened by now, his own court members, or one of them at least had dared to poison him, and he knew without the doubt that if he had stayed in his room last night, he would have been violated, but the court would not have seen it that way, and would have demanded that he took responsibility for the cursed woman.He knew everything, and that was precisely why he co
Admittedly, due to his friendship with Rhode, and knowing him so well, it had been hard for Brian to transition from best friend to subordinate. In fact, he had been ready for the friendship itself to end as Rhode would undoubtedly have more influential people to mix with, but to his surprise, he was held tightly by his friend. Metaphorically speaking of course.So due to those factors as well as some important ones, he had forgotten what his friend was truly capable of, but in moments like this, he tended to remember.He had only seen Rhode use what they had come to know as the imperial sway once, and even then was nothing compared to what Brian was witnessing.The council members were now on their knees as they writhed and pleaded for mercy, but he could see from his friend's eyes that he had none to give them. To his relief however, Rhode had exempted him from the turmoil discreetly, so Brian raised a hand to his bleeding nose, as he wiped it, and gave a reassuring nod to his frie
Megan smiled at the knitting thread in her hands that had begun to form something that was a cross between a sock and a skirt? Oh well, she had not expected to be perfect anyways.She was never the knitting or crocheting type, preferring to wage wars with a pen and usurp kingdoms. Plan coups and displace rulers. But for the first time in her life, she was seated in a rocking chair with two needles in her hands as she tried to spurn the perfect dress or scarf for her precious baby.“This is quite the sight.” Rosetta laughed as she strolled in with a basket under her arm and sunflowers in her hair. And Megan lightened up instantly.“Rose, come and take a look at this!” She ordered in excitement, and Rosetta dropped the basket of laundry she was holding and hurried over.“Well?! What do you think?” She demanded, and Rose made an expression that was a cross between a wince and a grimace.“Err, it's a very nice head warmer?” Rosetta asked cautiously as she stared at the strange item and Me
Past alphas of the Jared family chose their wives from the Brighton family, where Megan was from. The case of the wife of the alpha being his mate was not a necessity for the Jared clan. Their marriages were strictly political. The former alpha, Ronald, chose Megan Brighton to be the next luna. To everyone’s surprise however, Megan turned out to be his son, Richardson’s mate. Leading everyone to believe theirs was a union of love. Richardson and Megan had been friends since they were young cubs, growing together as they were to get married in the event of the alpha’s demise. They worked together on how to rule the pack together, Megan was the perfect luna. Until this day. “I accept the divorce.” Megan said before the priest. Taking everyone in the courthouse by surprise They had heard the news of the divorce but thought Megan would put up a fight and not relinquish her role so easily. Even Richardson was surprised. Aspen tried her best to hide her smile of relief. “And I ask for
The next day came around and for the first time since she officially became Luna, she detested getting out of bed. She always looked forward to fulfilling her duties for the day as it gave her a sense of purpose but this particular day all she felt was gloom and anger.Regardless of how she was feeling, Megan got up from bed and rang for her ladies. Her duties were not going to fulfill themselves. She needed to keep busy now more than ever since Aspen was moving to the castle as Richardsons official concubine.She never thought that he would ever take a concubine.15 years ago.Megan was 12 and Richardson was 15. They were lying on the lawn after completing their lessons for the day.“Do you think you will ever take a concubine?” Megan asked, taking a bite out of her cookie. “The law allows it but what do you think?” She added.“My dad never took a concubine. The thought of that will simply break my mother’s heart.” He said.“Plus, I wouldn’t do that to you. One woman is enough for m
The meeting was adjourned in about an hour as it was only a customary visit. Rhode’s father, the former alpha and ruler of his empire, died of a disease that almost wiped out his entire family two years ago.Thankfully, Rhode was out on a mission and was not infected. Rhode assumed the role as alpha and in just a year he brought the Wales clan up the ladder and they were only second to the Jared kingdom in influence. In raw strength however, that was up for debate.Megan couldn’t shake off the feeling that she had seen Rhode before. He felt all too familiar and he looked at her often during the visit although she refused to look back at him. It was an insult to your husband as Luna to look at another male in the presence of your husband, especially one from another pack.After all the visitors had left, Megan got up to leave the courtroom.“It would do you well to have a group of reporters come see you.” Richardson said.“Why?” Megan asked. “Word has reached me that rumors have spread
“Hey!” Aspen said. Taking both the ladies attending to her and Megan’s entourage by surprise. Gasps were heard.“How dare you refer to the queen so informally!” Rosetta barked at Aspen.“I’m sorry, I’m so used to calling you informally.” Aspen said. “I haven’t seen you on castle grounds ever. It’s like you’re invisible Luna.” Aspen said with a small smile.Megan was still frozen, unsure of what to do or how to respond.“I just want to talk, Meg. Please.” Aspen pleaded.“Oh look! A little cub!” One of the women pointed. The cub ran to Megan’s feet.“Why is there a stray on castle grounds!” Brianna asked, turning around to find one of the guards.Megan was thankful for the distraction. She bent down and picked up the cub, “he’s not a stray.” She said and smiled.“You came to rescue me, didn’t you?” She whispered in the cub’s ear and it licked her hand.“Your highness! It could have some sort of disease!” Rosetta gasped.“Going to make me sick, baby?” She cooed at the cub, Aspen took the
Megan woke up earlier than usual to go to the garden. She hoped to see the little cub as she felt better whenever she held him in her arms.The sun wasn’t out yet and Megan was clear to the guards to not follow her into the garden. In a month’s time she will be divorced. She will no longer be queen or Luna and all she had lived for will be no more. She wasn’t even sure of her status in the castle after the divorce.“Do I return home?” Megan asked out loud. “The shame might be too much for my family.”“The former Luna returns home after a failed marriage due to her inability to provide an heir.” Megan laughed sadistically. If someone would have told her that her life would turn out this way at 27 she would have laughed in their face. “Where are you, cub?” She asked. “I should’ve named you.” She thought. At Least it would’ve been easier to call out to him.“Your highness!” She heard a male voice call from behind her.“I told you I want to be alone.” Megan said and turned around.“Forgi
Megan smiled at the knitting thread in her hands that had begun to form something that was a cross between a sock and a skirt? Oh well, she had not expected to be perfect anyways.She was never the knitting or crocheting type, preferring to wage wars with a pen and usurp kingdoms. Plan coups and displace rulers. But for the first time in her life, she was seated in a rocking chair with two needles in her hands as she tried to spurn the perfect dress or scarf for her precious baby.“This is quite the sight.” Rosetta laughed as she strolled in with a basket under her arm and sunflowers in her hair. And Megan lightened up instantly.“Rose, come and take a look at this!” She ordered in excitement, and Rosetta dropped the basket of laundry she was holding and hurried over.“Well?! What do you think?” She demanded, and Rose made an expression that was a cross between a wince and a grimace.“Err, it's a very nice head warmer?” Rosetta asked cautiously as she stared at the strange item and Me
Admittedly, due to his friendship with Rhode, and knowing him so well, it had been hard for Brian to transition from best friend to subordinate. In fact, he had been ready for the friendship itself to end as Rhode would undoubtedly have more influential people to mix with, but to his surprise, he was held tightly by his friend. Metaphorically speaking of course.So due to those factors as well as some important ones, he had forgotten what his friend was truly capable of, but in moments like this, he tended to remember.He had only seen Rhode use what they had come to know as the imperial sway once, and even then was nothing compared to what Brian was witnessing.The council members were now on their knees as they writhed and pleaded for mercy, but he could see from his friend's eyes that he had none to give them. To his relief however, Rhode had exempted him from the turmoil discreetly, so Brian raised a hand to his bleeding nose, as he wiped it, and gave a reassuring nod to his frie
Rhode could not contain his anger when he woke up the next morning. He had stirred up to find himself in Brian's bed, and that was not the only unflattering thing that happened.He could still feel the bitter residue of whatever drug he had unknowingly consumed the night before, and knew, without anyone telling him, that the drug must have been potent.And what's worse? He could still feel the weakness in his bones that came from denying his body what it had been forced to desire last night. Doing that had only been through sheer force of will, as was everything he did, but oh was he pissed off.He knew the gist of what had happened by now, his own court members, or one of them at least had dared to poison him, and he knew without the doubt that if he had stayed in his room last night, he would have been violated, but the court would not have seen it that way, and would have demanded that he took responsibility for the cursed woman.He knew everything, and that was precisely why he co
Aspen, although severely ungrateful with her lot in life, had never truly suffered in any way, at least not to the people around her, although that opinion would soon change when the western kingdom got wind of her less than pure movement.Richardson had been quick to dispel the rumors and dismissed everyone, but even his kingly presence, note the sarcasm, was not enough to rid the accusations from the people's minds and seal their lips.As a result, she had been extra careful not to go outside, partly because everybody seemed to look at her like a murderer, e.g the servants and ladies maids, but also because of the appearance of Duke Elric.She had seen the way Richardson went pale at the sight of him, and had begun to question if making a deal with such a man was wise at all. But it was too late now, she was already indebted to him, and he held the secrets that could bring her to ruin at the tip of his untrustworthy tongue.“Aspen!” Richardson barked as he slammed the door to her ch
Megan frowned as she stared at Rhode's face, and that was the moment something was not quite right with the Alpha. Why, sweats were dotting his forehead and he looked positively flushed, she wondered if he had too much wine.But it was more than that, wasn't it? Right from when Lord Fuhler and Aldrien seemed to want Rhode to stay back, but the friendly man she had met before had battled for the opposite.“I wonder if he is alright.” She murmured to herself, but the woman sitting beside her seemed to have no qualms for manners as she blatantly listened in, and turned to Megan.“Perhaps you should verify.” She said so softly and quickly that Megan was left to wonder if she had imagined the soft whisper.“You know something.” Megan turned to her with an accusing look, but she simply busied herself with cutleries as she ignored Megan and casted graceful smiles to everyone in the room instead, the picture perfect queen, but Megan was too in her head to put her properly in her place.Someth
Rhode sipped the wine sitting in front of him in an effort to clear the strange feeling in his throat. He had no idea what was going on, only thing he knew was that he had started to tune out the conversation slash confrontation going on around the table.Tried as hard as he might, he just could no longer pay attention to Megan, he was beginning to harbor a terrible kind of suspicion.“Alpha,” Brian concerned voice shook him a little from his stupor, but for some reason it felt like Brian was yelling at him from a place he could not quite reach, under the ocean perhaps.“Brian?” Rhode whispered, something was quite wrong, but he could not pinpoint what it was. His hands shook as he tried to pick up the knife in front of him.“I am here Alpha, what is going on?” Brian asked behind him, he could hear the muted panic in his voice. Brian was worried, and that informed the strangely inebriated Rhode that perhaps he should be worried too.“I feel drunk.” He confessed slowly to his best frie
Mirabel hurried towards the dining room, she needed to talk to her father physically, to put an end to his craziness.If Rhode finds out what she did to him then it would be well within his rights to put her to death, and no one would bat an eye, people have been condemned for less.She needed to speak sense into her dad, he was becoming too reckless with his ambition and it would result in tragedy, Mirabel was sure of it.Her dad wanted the throne, he had coveted the position of Alpha for a very long time, and Mirabel knew that from a very tender age he had viewed his daughter as a stepping stone to his great ambition, but this had gone too far.“My lady, you have not gone to the dining area since Alpha Micheal, why are you doing so now?” Rose asked with apprehension as she led the way to her father, and Mirabel grimaced.“As much as I don't want to see the People, I want to die even less.” Mirabel answered with a wry smile.She was not afraid of dying, far from it. She was afraid of
“The cheek of that woman!” Rosetta gritted angrily as she paced in Megan's suit, and Megan shrugged, biting her lips in deep thought. Mirabel Fuhler, the dethroned queen. She had the perfect motive for vengeance, didn't she? But yet, Megan could not help but feel like she was missing a very important part of the puzzle.There was a chasm when it came to Mirabel. If Rhode was to be believed, then his claim that Mirabel had been the perfect wife to his brother should be believed too, right?If she had been faithful and loving to the late Alpha, then there would be no reason for her to wish to jump the wagon so soon. Something was definitely fishy, and Megan was determined to find out what it was. The former had been silent since her arrival to the palace, she had ignored the whispers about being dethroned that floated around the court like smoke. She had been perfectly polite when they met, so why on earth would she do something like this? It just did not make any sense. Unless she wa
Mirabel had only said what she did as a joke, but seeing the stiffening figures before she could not help but wonder if she was right after all, and if so, what exactly was she right about?Megan was a very intelligent woman, she was formidable as well, with the dangerous ability to sniff out enemies from wherever they were hiding.Now while Mirabel herself might not have had anything to do with Megan's incident, thus absolving her of guilt, but she could not say the same for her ambitious father, and that made her want to creep into Megan's mind, to see if she had come to the same conclusion, and to snuff her out if she had to. It was her duty to protect the Fuhlers name, and she could not let anyone that might proof to be a danger to said name, walk around freely.But she was finally evenly matched, she could see the intelligence in Megan's eyes, and the cunning of her smile, she could not be caught off guard before such a woman, she needed her wits about her.So she had said what s