*****CHAPTER 22

ALCOT'S POV
 
"They claimed it has been over three centuries since our pack took over the Lycan reign." They keep proposing to have the title passed down to them next. Sia, my zeta briefed me as we walked down the hallway of the castle, a few guards escorting us behind. She was the head of our military and had been the strongest force behind our unbeatable military force.
 
We were on our way to attend the emergency meeting called for all Alphas in Wolfville. This was the third time since I claimed the throne after my father that they had called for an emergency meeting like this over the Red Wolf pack's persistence in overtaking my throne. They had been on this ever since my father's reign, and I would never forget that their greed and thirst for power were what ended my father and my brother's lives. It was the same emergency meeting that had caused us to be on our way, only to get involved in an accident. And yet, these arrogant fellows wouldn't stop pestering us to hand over power to them. I would only hand my throne to them over my dead body.
 
"They mean war, Sia." "And if they keep insisting, I am afraid we would have to give them what they want." I deadpanned, and we continued to march outside the castle.
 
"The new Alpha is just as insolent and rude as his father." He wouldn't back down for anything in the world. Whenever you decide on a war, I will pledge my loyalty and lead our army to victory. most especially now that we have gained the support and trust of the smaller packs. "Our force is unbeatable, my Lord." She continued to assure me, but this time I was not paying full attention to her. Instead, my eyes landed and focused on the small frame of Mae, plucking fruits with other servants at the orchard farm. She had her hair packed out of her face and held in place with a clip, just like yesterday, and even though she was in a servant's uniform, she looked so perfect, like a character from a fairytale book. I almost laughed at myself as I recalled when I had asked her what she looked like in one of my letters to her and she had replied:
 
I am not all that, Mr. Stranger. Don't be disappointed when you see me. Keep your expectations to a minimum.
 
And that was exactly what I had done. I had kept my expectations as low as possible. But she had taken me off guard, and in place of the average-looking girl that I had envisioned in my head was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.
 
"That's a new one." Sia's voice jerked me back to reality again, and I turned my head to look at her but was surprised to see that she had her eyes on Mae as well. "She should be participating in a beauty pageant, not working in the orchard."
 
Fuck.  Don't tell me she caught me staring too.
 
"Oh."  I cleared my throat and simply replied, slipping on my cold, heartless demeanor to cover up whatever fragility Sia must have seen in me.
 
But before I finally took my eyes away again, I cast one last glance at Mae's hand this time. It was still wrapped in the bandage I had dressed her wound with. I worried if she was doing well and if she was being treated well too.
 
"Come on, Alcot." Sia shoved me playfully on the arm with her elbow, pulling off her zeta's aura and returning to the childhood best friend I had grown up with.
 
"You think she is beautiful too, don't you?" "I saw you stare."
 
Oh.  Shoot.  She really did catch me staring at Mae.
 
"Quit talking nonsense, Sia." I lied again, but Sia laughed at my lie, and she pinched me on the arm again. I threw her a warning glare that didn't affect her like it would affect others who weren't Sia.
 
"I have never seen you look at a woman that way for a really long time, Alcot." "Do you intend on making your moves on her?"
 
I laugh ridiculously at her suggestion now. "Stop fooling around."
 
"Why?"  "Because she's a servant?" Sia searched my face for answers. "According to a reliable source, I heard you invited the girl to work in the castle yourself, which means you've known her before." "Do you have a personal relationship with her?"
 
"Stop talking and save your strength just in case you need it to chop off the head of anyone who tries to talk too much at the gathering."
 
Sia laughed again and looked again, her shoulder and chin lifted up like the true soldier that she was.
 
"Your wish is my command, my Lord." But she didn't let things slide without adding one last time. "Although I think it would be wonderful to take her on if you find her attractive," she said, "I wouldn't let such beauty slide."
 
"Sia!"   I growled at her and sent her a warning glare that caused her to laugh again.
 
"Fine.   Fine.  " I'll shut you up."
 
I hardened my features to hold back the laugh that threatened to break from my face. Just the idea of making Mae mine was crazy and hilarious enough. What would that make me? An Alpha who goes around sleeping with his servants?
 
I would never let my image get tarnished that way. I was the most powerful Alpha in the whole of Wolfville, and I would never let a woman cause me to waver the slightest bit.
 
How less of a dummy could I have been to be so quick to jump to conclusions?

...............

DRAVEN'S POV
 
I watched my scars reflect in the mirror before me, and my fingers traced along the rough cuts and lines the scars had left on my body. I did not know how to feel about these scars. I never knew the story behind them. All I knew was that they were scars I had as a child and that they remained glued to my skin even after I had grown up. But it was crazy how I never believed that story my father told me. The cuts were too deep and the scars too harsh to be basic childhood scars.
 
There was more to the story. But once again, I was afraid of whatever it was that I could find out and decided to let things lie instead of going about digging for skeletons in old cupboards.
 
Either way, I didn't need to be told twice that I had a pretty rough childhood. The kind of rough childhood that had caused me my memory loss too
 
I heard my door pushed open without a knock, and I was fast to grab my regalia and have it over me in a second to hide the scars on my body before I turned around to see my older brother, Calvin, dragging his feet arrogantly into my room. He had that annoying, sarcastic look on his face that he always gave me, and I wouldn't be surprised if he only came to see me because he wanted to cause trouble.
 
"My Lord."  Calvin faked a curtsy, and I ignored him and focused on fixing my regalia. With a psychotic chuckle, he straightened his posture again and stood before me.
 
"You could've at least been nice enough to accept my show of respect to you, my dear Alpha." His tone still had that sarcasm whenever he acknowledged me with faux respect. I wondered what he was doing here, bothering me even though he most likely knew that there was an emergency meeting that we must handle.
 
"What do you want?" I asked him instead, getting tired of him already.
 
"Nothing."  He shrugged nonchalantly. "I just wanted to see my dear brother off." "Is that a bad thing to do?"
 
"No, Calvin.  It is not a bad thing to do. But I'll pass. Thank you."  I replied and turned my back against him and proceeded to pick up my gold wristwatch and slide it into my wrist.
 
At first, Calvin kept quiet, and just when I was about to thank the gods for keeping his mouth shut, he made a statement that stopped me from doing my act.
 
"You must think that you are superior to everybody else because you are the Alpha." I cannot wait to see the look on your face when you finally find out that all of this—all of the power and glory you possess—is fake and you are just temporary.

"You are nothing but an object used to pass time."