PROLOGUE
"Papa!" Elora screamed watching as her father flew halfway across the room, breaking the table in the living room as he landed on it with a crash.
Bernard Belany, propped himself up on one arm bleeding profusely through his nose, shattered by their Alpha Rasmus’ punch, and sent comforting looks their way even though he was obviously in pain.
He coughed. "Stay back, Baby. Stay with Mama."
"Ah! You have no idea how much I've wanted to do this, Bernard." Alpha Rasmus smiled, uttering his words slowly as if to inflict more pain with them.
"You can't do this. He's your Beta. Res…respect. Respect him." Elora's Mother stuttered, her face shining in dawn's moonlight as its rays hit the tears that were streaming down her cheeks.
"Beta?” He asked incredulously, “He lost that the moment he chose slaves over his own pack!"
With the last word, he kicked her father's belly, sending him sprawling further across the room's floor.
"What is my crime, Rasmus?" Bernard groaned, guarding his belly from another attack from his Alpha's boots. "What did I do to deserve your hate?"
Rasmus replied with the boots. Again and again and again, kicking and kicking, until his Beta began to gag and choke on his own blood, as it flooded his mouth and nostrils.
Elora and her siblings held tightly to their mother as they watched their father get beaten to a pulp in their living room crowded with people that had come to execute their Beta.
Among the crowd were many werewolves they knew, who had come to this house, at some time or the other, to visit them. They had come again tonight— but this wasn't a visit for pleasure or a courtesy call. They'd walked in with torches, asking for her dad's death. The scene filled Elora with so much pain that it felt as though the ground under her was caving in.
Some of those in the room were in chains, bleeding and badly beaten. They had supported her Father and now they would pay for it.
Elora's mother ran towards her mate, in order to shield him from getting anymore bloodied up— but Rasmus stopped her with a vicious kick that had Elora cringing. His boots caught her in the jaw, knocking her away from her mate and she fell, face down, meters away with her hair in a mangled mess coated with tears and the pool of her mate's blood that had covered the floor.
"Please, leave my family out of this," Bernard growled. His eyes flashed a golden yellow and his teeth elongated for a second.
"You'll fight me now? Huh?" Their Alpha mocked. "You fucking traitor! I'll touch your children, if I….."
His words were cut short by the sudden force that had hit him. For a second, her father had shifted into his wolf and run head on into Alpha Rasmus, knocking him down in the process. It was a daring act that had the pack members on their feet and snarling in outrage.
Her father crashed to the ground beside Rasmus breathing heavily. It had taken his last strength to do that but Elora knew he didn’t regret it. Her father wouldn't let anyone hurt his family.
He had tried to fight them off when they had arrived but surrendered when he realized that would put his family in trouble. They had held his children and threatened to kill them as he watched if he didn't.
He had fallen to his knees and had been injected with the Wolf's bane serum so he couldn't shift to his wolf for long or heal from his wounds. That's when their Alpha began to hit him.
Alpha Rasmus got up from his fall, his hand hanging limply from his side. He got up and roared glaring hotly at her father, "Restrain this man in the name of Darwin Pack!"
They grabbed him up, lifting him on to his feet. His facial features were barely recognizable after the pummeling he had received. His face was contorted in pain with bleeding cuts and was rapidly swelling. His jaw hung loosely like it was broken.
Alpha Rasmus approached him and landed a firm blow into his stomach with his other hand causing him to cough up more blood.
The Alpha leaned forward into his Beta's ear and whispered; "Your family will suffer for this, I promise you. I'll make sure you're labeled a traitor, your girls will spend their days in whorehouses, and you won't be there to save them!"
Bernard Belony shook violently, trying to move towards Rasmus with the last of his strength yet unable to break free. The mention of his children had enraged him beyond measure but he hadn't enough strength to make another attack. He relaxed, the pain in his joints worsening by the moment.
"Lead him outside with the others. Bring the children too. Let them see." Rasmus laughed, still staring deeply into his face.
The crowd marched out of the mansion belonging to the Belany's and into the courtyard, heading for the gate, excited whispers carrying into the night air. Public executions hadn’t happened for a long time at the Darwin Pack so this was a rather memorable occasion.
Just outside the gate, Alpha Rasmus orders the crowd to stop looking more menacing in the waning light of the setting sun.
He pointed at the stakes that had already been set up and ordered her father and the other five werewolves be tied up.
They were going to be burnt as a warning to any other who might dare support her Father’s cause.
"You're going to…kill him? Rasmus. R.rr.rasmus! He's your friend!" Elora's Mother's voice rang into the night, a blood curdling chill settling over the air.
Her heart was broken already from the barrage of betrayal they had experienced. The public execution was too much for her already frayed senses.
The people standing here were supposed to be friends. They had eaten many times together and laughed together. But the thought of watching her mate die was the most excruciating. Yet she knew she had to protect her children. Bernard had asked her to stay still.
As the prisoners were being attached to their execution stake, Rasmus walked up to Bernard and punched him in the gut one more time.
"Beg for your life, Beta." He smiled mockingly, then lashed out his fist again at Bernard's face.
Bernard groaned and said nothing.
His eyes moved to his family; his wife kneeling trying not to run to him, and his children cowering under her embrace finally landing on her. Suddenly, he managed a smile as if he’d accepted his fate.
"Light 'em up!!!" Rasmus roared.
The guards walked forward with the torches, dressed in the typical guard uniform of the Darwin pack, with a wide brimmed hat and sword strapped to their side. The flames glistened against the buckles of their scabbard, as they set the stand on fire.
"Papa!!!" Elora and her siblings screamed.
Their mother held tightly to her struggling children with surprising strength, mouth ajar in silent shock as tears streamed down her face.
The glow of the fire seemed to grow, by the second, against the back drop of the darkening sky until it eclipsed the setting sun and brightened everything around it.
Even as the fire reached Bernard Belany, his eyes never left his family, smilling in the beautiful way he always had for them still.
And in that moment, as the flames engulfed him and the others, Elora could almost hear him whisper something in her own mind as they locked eyes for a moment but before she could decipher it, he was gone. Swallowed up in the flames only to remain in her heart.
The words she must have heard echoed in her mind. But how had he spoken to her?
ROME
Rumours spread fast in Bale and most times, these rumours had the truth hidden deeply in them, although, it would take careful dissection to uncover these truths. This was no news to citizens of Bale, especially not to the King of the Bale, so when he heard from the footmen that there was an uproar at the southern borders, he wasted no time rushing there.
The trouble on the southern borders had taken days to deal with but unlike the rumours, it was hardly an uproar. The Blackfoot’s seemed to have honour for the King of Bale but really, this king was one who abolished the slave rule so they had no choice but to. If not for him, they would still be fighting a lost battle with the slave masters.
They thought it important to inform the king of others rumours which they swore were true; that slaves were still being kept and sold illegally.
Who dared go against the king's decree?
All these issues could be sorted out some other day. This one was special to the King. He smiled as he tapped the pouch at his side that held the gift of phantom jewels he had purchased for his beloved.
He was starting to get impatient as the carriage that transported him to his castle seemed to slow down. He urged the horse to move faster as he had a mission. A mission of the heart.
Oh, how he had missed his dear Queen.
King Rome couldn't wait to see the joy that would break out on her lovely face when she’d behold the phantom jewels he'd brought to be carved into her crown. Erika was the love of his life and nothing in the whole of Bale and the seas afar could make him shiver in delight like she did.
The horse slowed down as they approached the castle and it hardly halted before he swung off, hurrying into his section. He knew Erika would not be expecting him home so soon which made the surprise even sweeter.
As the King bolted into the grand castle, he bumped into someone. It was Teriel, his most trusted Advisor.
"Your Majesty!" Teriel bowed.
"Teriel!" Rome smiled. He was bubblier than usual but he couldn't help himself.
The king had heard Erika talk about phantom jewels and how they increased fertility because the moon goddess had blessed them when she first awoke from slumber. It was one of the most expensive and rare jewels in all the continent. Teriel had to approve.
The Lycan bowed instead showing respect but instead of his usual easy smile he looked uncomfortable, his pale face flushed.
"What's wrong, Teriel?"
"The staff have been given the day off, sir. Just a few guards around the mansion," he said, his striking brown eyes not meeting the king's.
This was not an issue. Erika would sometimes give the staff the day off to deal with their homes and come in the next day. She had said they needed time to be with their loved ones too. She was the kindest angel, Teriel knew this too.
"I've got her phantom jewels," he tapped the pouch.
"Oh, Lovely, Sir!" He said in feigned excitement. His wandering eyes avoided the king's
"What's wrong? You almost seem uninterested," he said, walking into the mansion's back door, and up the stairs.
"Apologies, Your Majesty! I'm sure the Queen is worth such priceless jewels." His smile was flat.
Teriel didn't utter another word and that was odd. He was supposed to belt into a poem that praised the phantom jewels.
As they approached his wing of the palace, Erika's voice could be heard softly. But who could she be talking to? The staff were in their quarters and others sent off to their homes.
"Oh, fuck! Just like that!"
"My Lord!" Teriel whispered, holding the king's arm lightly.. "I need to tell you something."
"Not now, Teriel."
His grip loosened and he gave a sigh. Rome's curiosity piqued. It was sounding less than a conversation.
"Yes! Oh, fuck! I want that deeper!"
He increased his pace, walking faster yet avoiding the sound of footfalls being heard. He stopped short in front of the slightly open doors to his chambers and his blood ran cold. They say the Lycans were higher beings but that point Rome felt like a little ant being brushed away.
The world seemed to spin a whole three hundred and sixty degrees. His lungs constricted and he could feel the temperature drop. He stepped back lightly unable to determine if this was a dream or he was seeing clearly.
There on the royal bed – the one who his fore father's had used, was Chester, his second in command, lying atop Erika the Queen — his cock buried deep inside her sopping wet pussy.
"Oh, Chester! You fuck me good!"
"You want me deeper, and harder?"
"Yes! Yes! Yes!"
The slapping sounds from both their bodies slamming together filled the room and poured into the corridors.
No wonder she had let all the staff go. No one could hear or bother them.
Chester was like family. They had grown up together. They shared all his new year’s together and spent their youth hunting boars in the woods of Ashkelon. If there was anything worse than betrayal, this was it. It felt like a knife had been pushed deep into his heart and twisted.
"Oh Chester! Fuck Chester!" Erika moaned and Rome's blood began to boil. Hearing her moan like that with another male's name in her mouth was the greatest pain. His hands trembled at his sides as he watched them, still in shock. The pain hurt worse because it was Chester.
Chester was higher than Teriel in court. He was the King's hand. A position Rome had denied his sister, Skye, because he trusted the traitor would do better. The knife in his chest went deeper and deeper as Erika sank deeper in their lust, unaware of their presence. She stretched out her legs as she basked in the pleasure. Her eyes glazed over and her toes almost curled.
"Give me your seed, Chester. Give me your seed! Fill me with your little pups." She cried. "Maybe the moon goddess will favour me with your seed."
His mind went wild as those words sank in. They had been trying to make pups for years now and had been failing. The world came crumbling down as he heard her utter those words. A drop of tear escaped his eyes.
The physicians had said nothing was wrong. They'd said the couple needed to try a few times more. Rome and Erika had planned to spend the coming weeks trying, as her new year was coming on.
"Oh, you want pups? Do I fuck you good?" Chester asked her. His words were slurred and his voice was filled with lust as he reached for her throat, choking her slightly.
"Yes, Daddy!"
"All the time? Huh? Do I fuck you good all the time?" He asked again, his thrusts increasing with each word.
"Yes! Yes!" Erika cried grabbing unto his bum as he fucked her faster.
"Do I fuck you better than the King?" He asked, fucking her still, maintaining the speed and rhythm. The sounds of their fucking bodies getting louder.
"Yes! Yes! You do, Daddy!" Each of Erika's replies were interjected with her hips rising to meet his thrusts.
"I fuck you better than the fucking king, Huh?" Chester moaned.
Rome had heard enough.
He reached out first for the door, pulling it clean off of its hinges and throwing it across the room. It hit Chester in the ribs and threw him off of Erika. The door and Chester flew to the other side and fell off the bed.
Chester got up in an instant, ready to fight, until his eyes raged ready to burn whoever was in his way. He froze, realizing it was his supposed family.
The king flew across the room in an instant, picking him by the throat and throwing him to the shelves in the room. He crashed to the ground and then reached for him again, pulled him up then let loose his fists upon Chester's face. He fell backwards.
For a minute he stayed down. Rome turned to the naked Queen. Her mouth ajar in shock, her mass of her in shambles from throes of their list. Looking at her turned his stomach.
"Erika," he said in the lowest tone.
She didn't utter a word. Her eyes, filled with fear and her knees raised up to cover her breasts. There was no point in covering her shame for she was shameless.
"How long?" He asked coolly. He was on the verge of puking. Did the king really want to know?
She whimpered, her body trembling with fear. She pulled the sheets to herself and fiddled on a loose thread.
"I'll tell you how fucking long." It was Chester's voice. It dripped of contempt and mockery.
Rome turned to see him standing. His bleeding lips bent in a malicious smile. There was not an ounce of remorse in his eyes.
"Every fucking week since a year now! Every fucking!" he roared.
The last of his words were lost as Rome's mind went blank for a moment. This was Chester whom he had given everything. This was Chester whom he called family. This Chester whom he had taught to hunt and fight. He felt rage boil through his skin.
"You bastard!" He reached him in an instant and sank his claws into his shoulder, ripping it open in one move. He yelled, retaliating with a blow to Rome's side. The king was unfazed. The pain of the betrayal had finally numbed him.
He picked him by the wounded shoulder and launched him towards the glass window.
Chester flew right through the window, breaking, the glass shattering from the impact of collision with his body as he fell out of the three storied mansion.
Rome walked towards the window, facing away from Erika and Teriel.
"Your Majesty, please don't," Teriel said, softly. It was the first thing he had said since.
Teriel's eyes shone. He had known about this for a while and had hinted the king on various occasions and at one time. The king was blind to these hints, as they said, love was blind.
"Make sure she doesn't leave."
And with that, Rome leapt right through the broken window, dropping the entire height of the three story mansion and landing on his feet.
Chester lay in a heap on the ground. The fall wouldn't kill a lycan, but it would injure him badly, as he hadn't envisaged it.
He tried to get up, and as he did, he spoke, "You always had the best things, Rome. This time, I had just a small bite." He had the nerve to speak.
Rome dropped to the ground, straddling Chester's chest and unleashed a fury of punches upon him. With each punch, the pictures of him atop Erika intensified, making the hit harder.
"Your Majesty!" The guards on the grounds called, rushing towards him yet afraid to touch him. After he had rained blows, he stopped. He finally stood and for the longest time and examined Chester's bloodied up body to know if he could take anymore.
"Lock him up! Send word to everyone in the royal family, there'll be a meeting tomorrow night. I am deposing the Queen."
