NINE
I couldn’t figure out why Kelly was being so nice to me. It was so unusual of her. Kelly had never hugged me before, not even when I’d gotten her Christmas presents hoping to make her like me.
I had given up trying to create the love between us when she had crushed the chocolates and tore out the fur of a pretty pink teddy bear I had gotten her 3 years ago. She had said to my face that my gifts were fake and useless and it should be the last time I ever got her any gifts.
I had spent the whole evening crying in my room and feeling sorry for myself. Why did I desperately want my stepsister to like me? Maybe because I missed my mom so much and i just needed to fill the void that she had left when she died. But I had to learn the hard way that I couldn’t make anybody like me. I just had to be myself and whoever wanted to like me will do so without being forced.
My gaze trailed over to Addy. As if she sensed me looking, she also turned to me at that moment. We shared a knowing smile. Maybe Addy liked me genuinely. I wasn’t so sure. I had my guards up and I wasn’t ready to bring it down just yet.
“Good morning Ladies,” Aramatha greeted as she walked into to the room, followed by Connor who winked right at me, making my eyes widen in surprise. I glanced around, hoping no one had saw the exchange between us before smiling shyly at him.
Even more shocking, he began to walk towards where I was sitting, at the end of the seat row, beside Aurora. He casually sat on the other side, directly facing me. He looked so handsome and gentle with his dark curly hair framing his face. I blushed as he grinned at me.
“May i comment on how radiant you are looking this morning, Freya. I knew you were fit for this. It’s a good thing the king noticed you.” Connor said in a voice low enough for only me to hear.
“I haven’t forgiven you for sabotaging my escape. You tricked me into staying and now I have found myself in the midst of women I can not compete with.” I complained, trying to keep a frown on my face but failing woefully. He just looked too sweet and kind that I couldn’t be mad at him.
“Oh please, I can confidently say that you are already a huge competition for the other girls here. The fact that Rafe picked you first even though you looked like you were not qualified, it made you steal everyone’s attention. Your name is in the news Freya and I’m quite sure your family will be excited to learn that you actually have a shot at being the Alpha’s Luna and Queen.. all you need to do is open yourself up to the possibility..”
“I wouldn’t be so sure..” I sighed. I knew my family and if anything, Elaine and my father would be fuming with anger the moment they realized that I had joined the auditions with my sister. Elaine especially.
“I am sure, Freya. I’ll leave you now. You have a great day beautiful,” Connor winked at me one more time before rising up and walking over to where Aramatha was standing.
After a few moments, the Alpha king walked in. The silence was almost too loud as he walked in, every single person including me bowing down as he made his way to his seat. Golden seat.
I raised my head up as others did. I studied his face. Alpha Rafe. What an intimidating man. He looked like he was always angry about something. But then again, this whole charade would definitely bore him but it was like a tradition he couldn’t get rid off. Our kingdom’s pack was a special one because we couldn’t have true mates. No one knew why but that was how it was for years now.
In our pack, we only had partners, not soul bonds. That was why my father could easily remarry. If anyone had a true mate, they were tied to that person for all eternity, even through death. But the Crimson pack was different. There was nothing like a soul bond here, there were no true mates. This made it hard for the Alphas to find their true Luna. So they resorted to making it a competition. It seemed pathetic to me, but the kingdom loved it. I had no idea why.
I had never imagined that I would care to be in a competition such as this. But now, look at me.
I stared at the towering stone walls of the palace as the king stared at each one us, my heart racing as he got to me. I couldn’t believe I was actually here. Me, little Freya who spent all her time painting, competing for the hand of the Alpha King. Part of me was secretly thrilled by the adventure, but another part was terrified. What if I do something wrong and anger the Alpha? Or what if my sister who is always up to no good, does something terrible to me? I needed to be on my best behavior. No sneaking around, no breaking rules. As long as I was obedient and dutiful, hopefully I would avoid any trouble.
“Now that the Alpha is here, we can begin.” Aramatha said. She moved to stand right in front of us.
“Listen closely, ladies. You have been granted the highest honor a chance to become Queen. Over the next few moons, you will each take turns serving the Alpha King, being his guest and try your possible best to bear him an heir. Please do bear in mind that our royal healer will test your health and fertility by simply touching your forehead, if he senses that any one of you is not fertile, you will be excused out of the competition, except the Alpha himself wishes you stay behind as a normal guest. Is this understood please?”
“Yes ma’am!” Kelly and Jessica chorused in a loud tone, making the king turn to them awkwardly. The rest of us just nodded silently.
My palms grew sweaty as the royal healer came forward a placed her hand on our foreheads one by one. How were we supposed to serve him? Bear him a child? Which means we all had to sleep with him? What if he decided that he didn’t want to sleep with one of us? This was all so ridiculous!
“Every candidate is healthy and fertile” The woman commented with a smile and then walked away.
The other girls whispered eagerly to each other, more worldly than I.
Aramatha continued, “While we wish you luck, you must remember that only one shall prevail. Do not let jealousy or deceit corrupt you. If you are caught trying to deliberately sabotage your fellow competitors, you will be sent away. And try not to trust anyone. Trust only yourself” Her eyes lingered on me a moment, as if she sensed my naivety. I swallowed hard, determined to heed her warning. I had to mind my own path, avoid the scheming of the others. If I could remain true to myself, perhaps I would have a chance of being Luna.
I spared a glance at king and gasped when I realized that his gaze was on me. I froze, unable to look away from him. Why was he looking at me like that? I couldn’t explain it. It was like he could see everything in my head. I felt so bare and opened.
That was when I noticed it. As we both stared at each other, the tension in our gazes so palpable, i noted the tiny flecks of red in his eyes. The more I looked into them, the more the red in his eyes became brighter. It couldn’t be.
His eyes were so red. So was the wolf I saw in the halls by the kitchen last night. The same feeling I felt swarmed me. I felt like I was a prey he was waiting to pounce on, just like last night.
It was him. He was the wolf that had caught me snooping around last night.
The king had caught me outside my room when I shouldn’t have been. Oh God.
*****