Chapter Twenty-Three – Unfair Trade.
Chris’s POV
“Beta Gaius, I don’t really know what you want me to do this information.” I said honestly.
His shoulders slumped as he took few steps back. “As I said, my King, trade the Lycan with the silver wolf. That wolf owe my pack.”
“A Lycan is better killed than ‘petted’, if that was what you wanted. And it is an old Lycan, not worth a silver wolf?” I argued, with finality.
“But my King…”
“There’s nothing like an old Lycan, my King!” someone said, while walking into the court room.
The guards bowed at him, so I knew it was my Beta Raymond, I left my throne and walked down to him.
I saw Beta Gaius’s piercing gaze on him but when I frowned, he looked down.
“Ray! How’s your father and mother doing downriver?” I enveloped him in a hug.
He hugged me back, something he only started to do last month. A smile was on his face as well, it turned to a frown on seeing the portrait.
That was the only reaction a sane wolf would give to the presence of anything Lycan.
“Is this the Lycan you refer to? The old Lycan, Gaius?” Ray asked, with raised brows, forgetting to answer my earlier question.
Gaius scoffed, annoyed at the fact Ray called him with his first name, when he was few years older.
Ray called all Alphas, Betas and Deltas with their first name, they should get used to it already. He wasn’t a Royal Beta for nothing.
“Yes, it is. Red Moon wants to trade it with the Silver wolf, Your Silver.” Gaius said.
I looked at Ray to know whether he shared the great disappointment I felt when I was told that. It was such an unfair trade.
But viewing Ray’s expression, a hidden fear was in his eyes instead. “No!” he barked. “How can you trade a Lycan for a Silver wolf?”
He was in track but that fear in his eyes, what was he scared of? Was it for the silver wolf or the Lycan?
“And what will we do with the Lycan if he is here?” he turned to me, expecting me to disapprove.
I took his side immediately. “Yes, Beta Gaius, Lycans are powerful but this one is old, he can only be killed if brought here.”
“As Beta Ray said, no Lycan is old. They have immense strength and never age. This Lycan can help you defeat packs of your choice.”
“Like a dog?” Raya asked Gaius. “You think a Lycan will let you treat him like a dog? And do you have this Lycan?”
Gaius quickly replied. “Yes, we do. And we can wield him as we like, the King can as well, as long as we have Your Silver.”
It wasn’t a very tempting offer. I didn’t want Your Silver dead and he surely will if Red Moon has him.
Also how was I to catch him? They had been trying for three years. And he wasn’t affecting me in anyway, he was just a mid nuisance.
Ray chuckled, taking me from thinking. “It’s funny, Gaius. Your Silver stops you from hurting small packs so you want him out of the way?
Beta Gaius wanted to defend himself but Ray quickly added. “And you also want to trick the King into having a Lycan to harm other packs?”
“Very Red Moon!” a person shouted, from the door.
Ray smiled, without turning, he agreed. “Very Red Moon indeed.”
I peeked to see who was walking in, was a feast happening in my court room? Why where they all trooping in?
Then I saw it was Jake, his dark shiny hair had given him off from far but I wanted to be sure, he was with another young man.
Jake had a changed of clothes, with design from Black Rose, the signature logo of a black rose was on his regal.
This meant he had gone home, he hadn’t broken into my study, I was only seeing things. Another investigation will be made within my palace.
“Jake Justin, you return again. I feel your visits are too close, don’t you think?” I indirectly expressed my displeasure to see him.
Was he here to see Ray? Then he shouldn’t even bother me seeing him.
“I am here for serious business actually. There is a problem.” He glanced at Beta Gaius as he spoke of a problem.
The young man behind him came forward and bowed. “I am Delta Jonah of Black Rose Pack, my Alpha, sent me to deliver a message to you.”
My eyes widened, seeing the last leader of Black Rose Pack. All packs visited me with their Alpha, Beta and Delta on the day I was coronated.
Of course, except Black Rose, were Jake had only represented. I didn’t want trouble with them so avoided imposing.
Then the Alpha came himself and apologized, and now he sent his Delta, it seemed to me he was trying to correct his mistakes.
I raised the young man’s head from bowing. “Nice to meet you, Delta Jonah. Would you wait a while? I have a visitor.”
“Actually the message is related to your visitor.” Jake strolled towards Gaius and stood in front of him. “Aren’t you surprised to see Jonah alive?”
I was confused. I turned to Jonah, who was glaring at the Red Moon Beta. This case seemed serious.
A Delta, I barely knew, had an issue with Gaius, an issue of ‘being alive’? I didn’t think Red Moon and Black Rose conflict ran this deep.
“It should be settled then. After that, we’d talk about your Lycan, Gaius.” Ray said, moving to the corner of the room to stand.
I went back to my throne and limply fell on it. This issue will be a long one with arguments as the accuser and accused were here.
“Is there an issue of a Lycan being discussed, maybe we should start from there?”
“No, it’s not your business, Jake. Deliver your own message.” Gaius shut down Jake.
Delta Jonah came forward. “Then can it be my business, you tried killing me because I knew of the Lycan, didn’t you?”
Jake had a stunned expression as did Gaius.
“You knew of the Lycan?” he asked his Delta.
“I couldn’t tell you, you’d let them trade Your Silver with it, you hated him. But now, the Lycan was almost traded with my life. I almost died for knowing about him.”
Ray stepped forward. “Why hate the Silver Wolf, Jake? He’s only correcting wrongs, you should hate the one trying to kill your Delta.”
There was an evident raise of tone in Ray’s voice, like he was both displeased and angry at Jake at the same time.
In their show of friendship, I had never heard him use that tone of Jake. Surely this Silver wolf and Lycan trade affected him a lot.
“I do hate them, but their fate will be decided by the King, along with all these petitions.” Jake came forward with a scroll.
It was a small one, so I was sure no Lycan portrait was drawn on it. My eyes dimmed on the letter when I read it’s content.
It was a photocopy of everything in my records, with some manually written account of Red Moon wrong doings.
How’d he get this if he didn’t break into my study room? Pushing that aside, I smirked. “Beta Gaius, these are some serious allegations.”
Beta Gaius glanced from me to Jake and then at Ray, “What allegations? What have I been accused with?”