ETHAN'S POV
"A wolfless girl cannot have been destined to be the Queen of this Kingdom. I don't mean to demean your mate, but I think it's obvious that she was fated to die in your place and save us the pain of losing a great King. Tracy will make a perfect wife once you make her your queen. I don't know why that is hard for you to see." Mother confidently says like she is speaking of a sheep that has no right to keep living.
I knew bringing my mate here was a huge mistake. The pressure to sacrifice her life in place of mine has mounted just because she is no longer an unknown person living far away. I have a feeling that she is more than what she seems to be. But that's just me. Her looking weak has lead my family to think that she was meant to die on my behalf and lift the curse.
Not having a wolf now could mean that she could one be like me. But everyone seems to assume that she seems weak because she is not meant to be missed after her death. They all regarded me the same way before I got my powers. Everyone was just waiting for me to be old enough to willingly accept to give up my life. When I got the powers and took over the throne they immediately had a change of mind. No one talked to me about the importance of giving up my life again. They instead wanted me to find my mate as soon as possible and have her sacrificed in my place.
I should have sent her back to where she came from instead of bringing her here. I knew she would never be welcome unless she was willing to die in my place. But she was unconscious when I found her and a part of me was curious to know her more.
Maybe it was her heavenly scent and angelic face that enticed me to carry her home. But once we arrived I was reminded of what a huge mistake that was. Everyone now hopes that I will sacrifice her life so I can keep being their King and make Tracy my chosen mate.
I was always going to make Tracy my chosen mate and Queen of the Kingdom before sacrificing my own life. My mate would live her own life without ever knowing that she had a mate like me. If she had stayed away no one would hate her for not giving up her life to lift the curse.
I plan on sending her back to her home as soon as she is well enough. There is a chance that she may phase into a powerful being like me since she does not have a werewolf like everyone else. But waiting for that to happen is impossible under all the pressure that people are putting on me to sacrifice her life.
If she stays they will make her life here miserable. Nothing would hurt someone's feelings worse than being pressured to give up your life for others to live. Whether or not her life looks valuable to them she deserves being alive like everyone else. Not die to give them the better life they want.
"She is a stranger that has not benefitted in any way from the raids that caused this curse. Only a very selfish person would ask her to give up her life so that we all can keep enjoying the fruits of our evil deeds without feeling the pain." I say and see my mother purse her lips in disapproval.
It would have been better if I had chosen to take my dinner in my room rather than sitting here with them. I gave them the opportunity to air their self-centered thoughts and annoy me more than they have already done.
"Not many wolfless people get the opportunity to save thousands of lives and be called a heroine. What other valuable thing can she do with her distasteful life?" She asks and makes me feel disgusted.
"You're the one that thinks that her life is distasteful. So far she has shown a lot of desire to live. It is not up to you to decide whose life is important." I retort.
She shakes her head and shrugs her shoulders in a silent show of contempt. Today they seem quite determined to push me into giving in to their demands.
"I think it's obvious that your life is more important than hers. Stop acting like only gods can figure that out." My younger, irresponsible brother, Jason, mutters angrily.
He rarely participates in any discussion that pertains the running of the Kingdom. Mother says he feels too young to leave alone the fun of seducing girls and involve himself in matters of state. But it seems he isn't planning on being the quiet guy tonight. I didn't know he cared for me this much, because he definitely doesn't care much about the Kingdom or it's people.
"I think your mother is right. There is nothing special about the girl. Goddess Israel must have thought of what is best for this Kingdom and guided her here at the right time. At least she showed up before you sacrificed yourself. Now you can always be King and have Tracy as your beautiful, smart and loyal wife." Father speaks in a hesitant voice.
Tracy would never push for anyone to be killed, she puts other people's concerns before her own. I wonder why they can't see that the Kingdom would be totally safe in her hands.
"My innocent mate will not die to save my life. She has suffered enough already to be burdened with your selfish demands." I say in a tone of finality.
Father and my younger brother now shakes their heads.
"You're assuming that she is completely innocent. I think she is faulty like all of us." My baby brother snorts.
"Would you want to die because of your faults?" I challenge.
"My death wouldn't lift the curse. But yes, I would die for the suffering to end."
I am astounded enough to stay silent for a while. No one would think that my baby brother would speak so selflessly.
"At least you would die having enjoyed living in this palace and your family would still have the wealth earned from the raids. You wouldn't be dying for a Kingdom you have never lived." I point. "And she has done no evils that deserve to be paid for by death." I add.
They all fall quiet, but I know that this isn't over. Hopefully my mate isn't the liar she almost made me think she is. Because then she will give them another reason to pressure me to sacrifice life on behalf of mine.
I understand that one can be hesitant to speak about their real life problems especially when others already think that you're weak. People only travel at night when they are running away from something. I wonder what she was running away from.
Tracy is the only person I can trust with finding out the exact truth. Unlike everyone else she would never push for my mate's death. She always puts others pains and dreams first before her own. As long as she gets me the information, I will know that's the truth.
EMMA'S POVI move my thick hair sideways as Ethan places the most stunning of necklaces around my neck and clasps it at the back. The mirror in front of us reflects my adorned neck and the shimmering necklace makes me look like a refined, noble woman.I have never worn jewelry before. I don't plan on adding more as that would make me look overly spangled like many royal women. The necklace has a unique design, three diamonds shaped like three stars and a crescent moon hang at the front while the rest of the beads are made of silver and are quite tinny. I think I can always wear it, with any dress. "You look stunning." My mate compliments as I turn around to face him. I believe his words, but guess who always looks more breathtaking . . . him. He never needs to wear anything or style his hair in a certain way to look like beauty personified. "Thank you for this. I am not a fan of jewelry, but I like this one." I say with a genuine smile. He has given me more gifts since I arrived h
ETHAN'S POV I feel strangely more refreshed than usual after spending the night sleeping beside my mate. Her heavenly scent was so lulling that I couldn't resist the urge to pull her closer and bury my nose into her neck. She was fretful at first, but she slowly relaxed and slipped back to sleep. She seemed grateful that I was there despite our infelicitous past. I imagine the nightmare had left her shaken, her body was quivering as I settled in the bed beside her. I was relieved when she managed to fall back asleep on her own. I watched her beautiful face for half an hour after waking up earlier than usual to make sure she has a personal servant that we can trust to prepare her breakfast. We will soon be parting ways because I need her to be somewhere safe before the day of atonement. And I want her to have someone truly loyal and caring by her side. The woman I chose used to be my nanny when I was a child, I felt closer to her than to my parents. I am sure she will care for Emma
EMMA'S POVI wake up huffing and puffing, my body sweating from the terror of the appalling nightmare. Turns out laying on a King size bed and being surrounded by gold isn't a guarantee to peaceful sleep. I have had terrifying nightmares before, but none was as chilling as the scene that jolted me awake from my sleep. My heart is still pounding hard from the frightening dream. It felt so real. I can't help worrying that it may be a warning of what I will happen to me in future. I know it was just a dream, but I saw my life being taken to lift the curse. My arms and legs were bound to the wooden table I was laying on so that I wouldn't escape. Ethan's parents and my sister stood aside watching. They all grinned deviously as a soldier with a ruthless look stepped forward, a sharp, shimmering blade in his muscular hands. I let out a scream as he raised it high up in the air then brought it down on my chest. I am quite relieved to see that it was a dream, but I may have actually scream
EMMA'S POVI may still have little love for my family, but I never wanted to see any of them again. Joanne looked like a shadow of the lady she once was. It took me several seconds to recognise her face without makeup. Unlike me she was loved by our parents and her mate, why would she run from all the sweet attention and show up here looking like the old me? I had enough troubles to deal with before, but she had to show up here pretending she is sorry. I know better than to believe her pretences, because Joanne can never regret anything she did to benefit herself. Did she find out that I am here and thought that she can come live in a bigger palace? King Ethan didn't look like he wanted her and neither do I. I wonder if she saw the sick people on her way here and still thought that this is the kind of heaven she seeks to live in. Has she also heard that I am likely to die to lift the curse? She should take her greed back to Silver moon, because she won't find the extravagant life s
ETHAN'S POV"You got banished by your husband?" I question and the Luna shakes her head. If she wasn't banished then she run away. "Did he harm you?" I ask even though I don't feel that concerned."Not physically. But he broke my heart in the worst way possible. I can never go back to him." She answers, her eyes filling up with tears. "Does this have anything to do with finding your sister?" I ask and she shakes her head once more."No. I stopped searching for my sister because he was extremely angry after that time I spoke about her in presence of our wedding guests." She responds and I feel disgusted by her selfish thinking. How could she stop searching for her sister simply because her stupid husband doesn't like it? "So what went wrong then?" "I found out that he has been having fun with other women. He didn't deny it when I confronted him. Instead he brought one of his mistresses home and introduced her like it was the most normal thing to do. When I complained he got furious
EMMA'S POVThis ornate royal structure was definitely built to convey wealth and grandeur. I imagine there is no other palace of any pack that has pieces of precious stones hammered into the wall surrounding it's massive guest hall. I am awed by the plush decor, but it's still hard to happily smile like I am home.It's true that no one seems thrilled to see me. The groups of servants we have bypassed stared and whispered amongst themselves, but their faces bore no sign of friendliness. They in fact look displeased to see me.I don't mind as long as no one is yelling out insults at me like the time I was getting dragged to the courthouse and everyone was confidently calling me names. "Don't mind their stares, they are just astounded to see you survived all the anguish and still look healthy." Lilian comforts. I nod even though I know they are staring for a different reason. They are wondering why my mate has chosen not to sacrifice me instead of his own life. He is obviously the most