Power driven….
**Veronica’s POV**
Months passed in the mansion, and of course, a lot had changed during the time we spent there after Ashley was sent away. Given the fact that I was the one who provided the information to Fabian, I had to be extremely careful not to get caught.
“Listen up. I don’t want you to ever call my line again. Do you understand? I have given you everything you needed, so I need you to leave my life, please,” I begged, fed up with the constant phone calls Fabian kept making to me.
“You know, you really shouldn’t be flaring up so much, princess-or should I say Queen!”
“Wait, how did you?…”
“Come on now, are you seriously going to ask me how I know the things that I know?”
“Well, whatever. But you are the reason why I am flaring up. Yes, it is you, because I really do not understand why you keep calling me when you know very well that I am now the Queen of the Kingdom. Do you actually want me to be exposed?”
“Wow, congratulations, Your Highness. By the way, you didn’t even share your wedding experience with me. No one knows about this; I mean, it wasn’t something that people were even able to attend. So tell me, I am actually very much interested in hearing…” I paused, pursing my lips in embarrassment as I contemplated what to say to him. How could I possibly tell him that it wasn’t even a proper wedding? I had always dreamed of the day I would finally get to marry Simon and Lucas, but the wedding we eventually had was far from the dreams I had.
Before the wedding day, I had been pitching the idea to both Simon and Lucas, but they would often turn me down, stating that the kingdom was still in too much chaos that needed to be sorted out. But how could I keep waiting when I had already started telling everyone in my hometown to get ready for the wedding of the century?
“Please, Simon, you and Lucas can’t do this to me. What am I supposed to tell the people in my hometown?”
“I don’t know, and I don’t care. That is your business, Vee. Right now, we are on the verge of losing about five packs under the lycanthrope, and all you can think about is some stupid wedding?” He asked, angrily turning to face me with a questioning look on his face.
“Oh come on, Simon, it’s not like I’m asking for much. My parents are seriously not happy about this. Do you know how much pressure they have been putting on me since I got here? Come on, we could just have the wedding with not so many people. It doesn’t even have to be too big, okay?”
“Oh really? Pressure? You are under pressure?” I nodded in response, and he slammed both his hands on the table.
“Do you know how much pressure Lucas and I are currently under, or is it that you do not understand the gravity of the situation going on?”
“I mean, I do understand, but don’t I matter as well? I should be a priority of yours, but it looks like you don’t care. All I ask for is a wedding, and you both can’t even give me that, really?” I questioned, crying out as I ran out of the room.
Obviously, I had cried only for him to agree since that seemed to be the only way I could actually get to him. Funny enough, it actually ended up working, and I was beyond elated when Simon came to inform me that he and Lucas had both spoken together and agreed to go on with the wedding.
This happiness hit me so hard that I just couldn’t keep it to myself. I went home to tell my parents, my friends, and all the social elites that I interacted with. Although many of them expressed their concern about the wedding happening during such a time of crisis, I couldn’t care less. All I wanted was to have my big moment. I wanted the wedding to literally be the talk of the town, and that could only happen if it obviously went the way I wanted it to.
However, I was completely disappointed the day both Simon and Lucas told me that there would be no wedding celebration. Rather, it was going to be an ordinary ritual with no partying or anything of that sort.
“What? What do you mean we are not going to have a wedding celebration? What exactly is a wedding without having the whole thing be grand?”
“Veronica, this is all we can offer right now, so you either take it or leave it. How do you expect the people to feel when they are currently going through so much, and we are over here celebrating and having a party? That’s absurd, don’t you think? Have some compassion, will you?” Lucas responded, and I rolled my eyes in disappointment. How could we possibly have a wedding and not let everybody attend it? A royal wedding at that.
“But at least I can invite my friends and family, right?”
“You can just bring along your mom and dad; no one else is needed, please. We seriously don’t need all of this.”
“You guys are joking with me, right? Please tell me this is all just a harmless prank,” I asked, looking at both of them with a bewildered expression on my face.
“What are my friends going to think? I already told everybody that there was going to be a wedding celebration, a grand one in fact.”
“Well, I guess you’ll just have to tell them that plans have changed.” I rushed towards them and tried holding their hands as I pleaded.
“Please try to reconsider. I mean, what are the people going to think when they find out that we had a wedding without letting them know or be a part of the celebration? This is obviously a royal wedding we are talking about.”
“And who said we were not going to let the people know about the wedding? Just the same way you already informed your friends and family about the wedding, we would also inform everyone about it. But of course, we would also state that it would not be a celebration per se. Everyone is entitled to know because you will be their Queen, and so we won’t keep it from them. But obviously, it wouldn’t be so much of a celebration, but more of a duty and formality being done.”
Just like that, they both returned to what they were doing, and I was left to properly process this crazy news that they had both delivered to me. It also didn’t help that they had both mutually agreed on this because if one had at least been on my side, I could have considered using it to my advantage to get the other to agree. Unfortunately for me, it was both of them against me this time. In the end, I had one of the most depressing weddings of my entire life.
As expected, both my parents were there, and it was just the maids and domestic workers in the mansion who witnessed this wedding, alongside a few very important personalities to Simon and Lucas. People like King Bryan, priests, and a few Alphas of some of the most respected packs in the entire lycanthrope.
I had tried so hard to conceal the disappointment I felt, but it was just too much for me to cover up. My mom even had to remind me to smile a couple of times throughout the wedding ritual until we were finally done. Everything was finished with no loud music, no dancing, nor exquisite picture-taking. To make matters worse, not even a cake was used to celebrate it; everything was just gloomy and bland.
Now, with this annoying Fabian asking me about the wedding and reminding me of that depressing day, I couldn’t help but be filled with so much embarrassment.
“Don’t ask me silly questions. If you weren’t meant to know about our wedding, then shouldn’t that make you realize we have our reasons? All you need to know is that I am your Queen, and I will not tolerate you calling me any longer. Don’t call me again because I will not be taking any of your calls anymore.”
“Oh nice, all right then. You can do whatever you choose, Your Highness. But if I call your number a couple of times and you do not answer me, then I will just come over and deliver my message to you, no matter where you are or who you might be with at that moment.” My eyes widened in shock as he laughed out loud on the other end.
“What exactly do you want from me? You keep making my life so difficult, and I’m sick of it.”
“Oh no, please don’t be, Your Highness. I really don’t mean to be a burden to you; we both know that.”
“So what else do you want? I have given you so much information regarding the secrets and dynamics of the Kingdom, done everything you wanted, and still, you won’t let me be.”
“Now you’re talking. What do I want?”
“Yes! Just say it and leave my life, please. Haven’t I given you more than enough?”
“Well, Your Highness, I’m sorry, but you haven’t. I want more; more information, more access, more of it all.”
“More? Can you even hear yourself? Are you trying to tell me that what I’ve given you isn’t enough?”
“Of course not! Because if it were, I wouldn’t be sitting here talking to you while those twin brothers are still standing as the kings of the lycanthrope.”
“Oh wow, what do you take me for? Do you seriously think I’m going to let you have your way when I know it would knock me out as well?”
“You’re a woman, so I am not too surprised by this foolishness that constantly comes out of your mouth.”
“Hey, don’t you dare….”
“No, don’t you dare raise your voice at me, Veronica! If you think I’m just going to let you speak to me however you please, then you are highly mistaken, my dear. Don’t even think about it. Don’t forget that we both have a history together, and if I so much as lose my cool, your entire charade would be exposed.” I gulped nervously, coming to the realization of the trap I had managed to get myself into.
I stood there, paralyzed by the weight of Fabian’s threat. The air around me seemed to grow colder, and a heavy silence settled in the room. I had always known I was walking a fine line, but hearing Fabian spell out the consequences so clearly made it all too real. My mind raced, searching for a way out, some loophole that I could exploit to regain control. But nothing came to mind.
“Fabian…” I began, trying to steady my voice, “I have done everything you’ve asked. I’ve put my life, my position, everything on the line. Why isn’t it enough? What more could you possibly want?”
He chuckled darkly on the other end of the line. “Oh, Veronica, you’ve done well, I’ll give you that. But power is a hungry beast, and I’m afraid what you’ve fed me so far has only whetted my appetite.”
I felt a shiver run down my spine. Fabian was playing a game I wasn’t sure I could win. Yet, I knew I had to keep up the charade, at least until I figured out a way to protect myself-and the kingdom-from whatever he was planning.
“What do you want?” I asked again, my voice firmer this time. “You say you want more. More what?”
“Information, access… leverage,” he said, his voice low and menacing. “I want to know everything about the kingdom’s defenses, its weaknesses, and the true loyalties of those in power. I want to be in a position where I can topple the twins if necessary-and you’re going to help me do it.”