The Alpha King and His Human Queen

When We Are Stronger

Alexandra

“No!” I keep screaming, “No, get away from me!”

They are grabbing me, pulling me and hitting me. They are so many and I am alone. It's a strange time to remember this but our thoughts work in strange ways.

I keep struggling but the memory overwhelms me.

I see myself as a child, not older than ten. My father had just returned from a battle. A successful one. But he said we are most dangerous when we have advantage. When we are stronger than the one we are fighting with.

I keep struggling, the satisfaction of violence is written all over their faces.

I am powerless against. I can’t escape this. So there is only one thing I can use to my advantage to make them pause or let go of me.

“Stop! “ I should, “Stop! Or Sirius will hear about this.”

At the mention of his name they all pause. not immediately but they still do. One of the servants looks closer at me.

“She is one of the king’s slaves,” he concludes and the murmurs begin.

“This worked,” I exhale, relieved. “Temporary, but it worked. “

The holds around me relax but they remain hostile. Each one of them is ready to jump and rip me to pieces in the blink of an eye.

“Let's take her to the council and see what they say.”

One of the guards grabs me and drags me in.

“Ask Sirius,” I beg him as he is pulling me hard by the hand, forcefully. “Ask him and he will vouch for me. He knows who I am and that I have no interest in doing this. I would never hurt anyone. ”

The guard's eyes flutter in my direction.

“They said they saw you arguing with her.”

“But that means nothing!” I plead. “Besides she is… she is a wolf! Do you think I am capable of defeating her!?”

The guard produces a ‘hmph” and keeps urging me to walk.

We reach a set of stairs and the air grows colder. I take a better look around - I have never been here.

“Where are you taking me?” I protest ,”this is not where Sirius is.”

The guard laughs, his voice echoing in the closed space.

It’s dark, cold and moody. I catch the scent of something rotten and realization starts blossoming inside me.

The dungeons of the palace. This is where we are going.

“Why… why are you taking me to…”

The guard pulls me hard and laughs again.

“You are more stupid than you look.” He says, enjoying this. “Did you really think anyone would believe you? You are no one. “

Then he laughs again.

“Sirius? AHAHAHAAH. He is the king’s uncle. And you? You’re just a slave.”

“I am not!! I…”

“ If I listened to all the lies the slaves kept telling me I could save time and release them prisoners for all I know. ”

They didn’t believe me… was I that stupid to expect they would take my word for anything.

“I am telling the truth,” I continue, begging, “go to Sirius and ask him, he knows who I am. Ask… I don’t know. Ask Lave or the king’s betas. They can tell you who I am.”

The guard looks at me and shakes his head.

“Save your words, pretty bird. You’ve lost your head.“

“Please!” I cry out. Then I remember my clothes. “See? This is one of the King’s shirts! I was his gift for the night of his coronation, I was with him! Ask the guards that I spent the whole night there!”

The guard acts as if he doesn’t listen to me.

“Ask them!” I repeat when we take another row of stairs taking us to a darker part of the tunnels.

“I was there…” I begin again and he eventually snaps.

“Listen to me now carefully. Enough with this! You don’t even look like someone who could be a bed slave. Look at yourself.”

His words sting but what’s worse - he is right. Besides- he has no reason to believe me. So he doesn’t. He drags me down the stairs.

We reach a tall gate and he unlocks it. Then he pauses before a heavy, metal door.

“No, no, no!”

I keep struggling but he grabs me and thrones me in the dark cell. The man closes the door and I hear the key turning in the lock.

“Wait, no! No!” I rush after him and start slamming my fists on the metal.

“Let me out, I didn’t do anything!” I am screaming and hitting the door as if I could break it or it will eventually open.

As if the guard would change his mind and come back for me.

Sirius said I could trust him. That I could call for him anytime I needed him. But no one is listening to my calls. And I am all alone in the dark cell.

Maeve

“We have to find him, we have to find him. Hurry up...“

My wolf keeps repeating in my head. She is restless and I follow her guidance.

“What if Sirius did it,” my wolf suggests. “The dead servant was one of his pawns, what if …he staged it so we think it was Nathaniel?”

“No,” I tell her reluctantly, “I know him.”

And I do. All of his betas know this. When Nathaniel loses his composure he does things exactly like these. Why did he do it? When? Oh, no...

My heart is racing and for a moment I consider turning away and walking in th eopposite direction. But I should not. I don't know what happened. I didn't see a body but I caught the strong smell of blood.

Who cleaned everything? And it happened the night he became a king. The subjects already think Nathanile is cursed, what aboutwhat happened last night? This is getting worse the more I think about it. The questions fill my mind and I shake my head.

"Put yourself together, " my wolf reminds me and I resume my stride.

I follow his scent and find him in one of the libraries in the north wing. This was Nathaniel's father’s favorite room. It’s small and there’s plenty of light coming through the tell window. It always smells like paper and woods here, regardless of what season it is. The old king would always come here when he needed some time alone. After the queen passed away that happened more and more often until he spent days, locked in here.

I get in carefully. Nathaniel is sitting in one of the armchairs by the fireplace. And he is reading. This looks really, really bad. It means that he is angry. Or that something terrible has happened.