Ayla’s words caused a stir. Some of the werewolves present immediately turned pale, trembling with the natural fear that arose. Meanwhile, Usher and Mireya were furious.
“I know you hate me, Ayla, but not like this! How dare you speak ill of my son? You really are a heartless old woman!”
Ayla turned to Mireya. If Mireya had not just gone through the exhausting and painful process of childbirth, she would undoubtedly have jumped out of bed and slapped Ayla.
“I’m not making this up. This is reality,” Ayla said.
Usher was furious. “This is reality? You’re out of your mind, Ayla. My son has just been born and he knows nothing, yet you accuse him without compassion!”
“Alpha, I’m not accusing him. I’m simply sharing the vision I saw with my mind’s eye,” Ayla replied, gasping for breath. She tried to calm herself, but what she saw shook her. “The happiness you feel now will lead to unparalleled sorrow in the future. Your son is a disaster for the Frostholm Pack.”
Usher’s anger erupted. He roared, causing the servants present to scatter.
“What are you saying, Ayla? How dare you call my son a disaster to the Frostholm Pack?! Do you no longer see me as your Alpha?” Usher took Philip from Ayla’s arms and tried to soothe him, as if the baby sensed he had just been foretold by Ayla.
“Forgive me, but I am not lying, Alpha. I see it in his eyes. H-he will-”
“Enough!” Usher cut her off with a stern face. He glared at Ayla. “I am sure you have a duty to pray for and bless every werewolf birth, especially the birth of my son.”
For a moment Ayla was silent. She just looked at Philip with a helpless expression before she shifted her gaze to Usher. “Forgive me, Alpha. Even if I pray and bless him, it won’t change anything.”
“What do you mean?”
“Destiny is written. The past shapes the future. He…” Ayla’s voice trembled. “… is destined to destroy the Frostholm Pack.”
*
“Really, Usher. Even if what I did was a mistake, Ayla should not have targeted my son. Oh, my God. Philip was just born. How could she be so heartless to an innocent baby?”
Usher understood Mireya’s feelings. He felt the same way. Ayla’s behavior was incomprehensible. She had never done anything like this before.
Mireya, still frustrated and finding Usher’s silence irritating, snapped, “Usher!”
Usher blinked, then saw Mireya fuming. He sighed and approached Mireya, who had hardly left her bed all day.
Mireya was still exhausted; her body weary from the life-threatening struggle of giving birth to Philip. Unfortunately, the unexpected apology from Ayla was what she received when she should have been resting comfortably.
“Forgive me, Mireya,” Usher said.
Mireya furrowed her brow. “Forgive me?”
“I shouldn’t have invited Ayla to The Palace,” Usher regretted, although he was not sure what he regretted. After all, Ayla would attend any new werewolf birth even without an invitation. “I didn’t know she really despised you enough to say such things about Philip.”
“That’s what I mean, Usher.” Mireya shifted a little, pushing away the pain to approach Usher, who was sitting at the edge of the bed. She took Usher’s hand and held it. “I am aware. I know a lot of people don’t like my presence here. Besides, I have stopped caring about that. But this is different. This is Philip. This is our son. He has just been born and Ayla should accuse him like that?” She growled, shaking her head repeatedly. “I can’t believe she’s so heartless. Especially since she’s a woman, too.”
Usher listened to Mireya’s words without saying anything. To be honest, he was still shocked by Ayla’s statement, but there was something more important than that. He did not express it to anyone; after his earlier anger had subsided, a bit of his reason tried to make sense of the situation.
Ayla was the Sacred Elder revered by the entire Frostholm Pack. She had devoted her entire life to the interests of the pack and had never shown any signs of disloyalty. So, after the recent incident, Usher was left with a lingering worry.
What if Ayla was right? What if Philip was destined to bring disaster upon the Frostholm pack?
Usher found himself in a difficult position. Logic and his feelings were at war. Yet he couldn’t possibly tell Mireya, even if she sensed something was wrong.
“Usher?” Mireya narrowed her eyes, studied Usher’s expression carefully and noticed something different. “What’s wrong? Something on your mind?”
Usher shook his head and smiled. “Nothing. I’m not thinking about anything. The only thing on my mind right now is your recovery.”
Usher’s demeanor was as sweet as ever. He even held Mireya’s fingers and kissed them repeatedly.
Mireya furrowed her brow. Unfortunately, Usher’s sweet gestures gave her a different feeling. Usher did not seem like his usual self. Her instincts told her so.
“Usher.”
Usher stroked Mireya’s cheek with his thumb. “Yes?”
“You can’t possibly believe Ayla’s prophecy, can you?”
Usher’s caress stopped for a moment and Mireya’s eyes widened. She promptly slapped his hand away from her cheek.
“How could you, Usher?”
Usher quickly reassured Mireya. “No, Mireya. Not at all.”
“Then what?”
“I don’t believe Ayla’s prophecy, but…” Usher looked as if he closed his eyes in helplessness. “… she never lied before. She always…”
“She may have never lied, but that doesn’t mean all her prophecies are true,” Mireya quickly cut Usher off. She glared at Usher, then growled. “You want proof? Look at you and Vione.”
Usher could not say anything.
“Ayla said you both were destined to be true mates. You would fight together until death do you part, but what happened? It’s not Vione in your life and heart, but me.”
“You’re right, Mireya.”
“So, listen to me, Usher.” Mireya cupped Usher’s face, locked eyes with him intensely and without blinking. “Never trust Ayla’s words. Whatever she says has only one purpose, to destroy our relationship.”
Usher remained silent, continuing to meet Mireya’s gaze. Then he nodded. “Yes, she wants to destroy our relationship.”
“Whatever happens, we must stay together. Ayla, Jemma or anyone else can’t keep us apart.”
“Yes, Mireya.”
The tension in Mireya’s face vanished. Her beautiful smile slowly returned. “If they still try to separate us, then you must do whatever it takes to stop them, including getting rid of them.”
*