Chapter Seventy Seven
CHRIS
“Who are you?” I asked, panting as the strange figure drew close to me.
The stranger’s face was too blurry for me to see, he held a sword in his hand as he continued to chase me. I ran as fast as I could but he was faster. His posture was tall and imposing with red glowing eyes that pierced through the darkness.
“You have nowhere to hide now, young alpha. I warned you but you refused to listen,” the strange man said, his voice husky and dreadful.
“What do you want from me?” I felt fear grip me as the strange figure drew closer, raising its sword over me to strike.
“Chris,” the strange figure hissed, “Your death is at hand.”
I jolted from the bed, panting and sweating profusely. It was a dream, similar to the ones I had in the past but this time it felt too real. I could still feel the presence of the strange being hovering around my chambers. It was still late at night but I couldn’t bring myself to go back to sleep.
Why was all of this happening to me? First, it was the mage’s awful words, now these dreams haunted me every night. I had Cade locked up in the cell, the man who had been a menace to my family and the pack for years, who else was after my life?
A sudden tap on my shoulder made me jump in fright. I turned only to find my mother standing behind me, her face filled with fear and distress.
“Mother, what are you doing here? You should be resting considering your health,” I asked.
“How can I sleep when there are so many people plotting against you, my son? I have had trouble sleeping since I heard the elders plot against you,” my mother said, her voice shivering with fear.
Her countenance showed how distressed and worried she was. “What are you talking about?” I enquired.
“The elders are planning to dethrone you, I overheard them make these plans,” she said.
My eyes widened in disbelief. “Why would they do such a thing?”
“They blame your reign for the misfortunes that have befallen the pack,” my mother explained, her voice filled with sadness. “They said it’s time for a change in leadership.”
They wouldn’t dare, I thought. Fury simmered within me as I pondered on my mother’s words. “Return to your chambers, Mother, I’ll handle the situation once the sun rises,” I said.
At first, she refused but after much conviction, she agreed. I led her to her chambers before heading to find my beta.
“Alpha Chris, what troubles you? It’s too late to be philandering around the palace quarters,” Glen said, his eyes searching mine for answers.
I sighed. “I had a terrible dream which had prompted me to stay awake. Someone is after my life and the throne, someone familiar to us.”
“Could it be one of the elders? Glen suggested. “they seem suspicious to me.”
“I believe so, besides information has gotten to me that they have plans to dethrone me,” I said, my thoughts wavering. “Gather the elders at the hall, I’m ending this nonsense here and now.”
“Let’s not be too haste, Alpha, it could ruin whatever plans you might be having,” Glen suggested. “I’ll gather the elders like you’ve ordered.”
Early the next day, Glen wasted no time in gathering the elders at the great hall where I was to address the issue at hand. Standing before the council of elders, I demanded an explanation for their treachery.
“What is this I hear about you treacherous folks? Planning to overthrow me, your alpha and leader of the pack. Do you know the consequences of treason? Do you!?” I yelled, my temper slowly rising.
To my dismay, the elders didn’t deny their intentions. Rather, they accused me of incompetence and being a failure to the pack.
“We make the rules, alpha Chris. And you have not kept to the rules since your coronation,” Kazmir sneered.
“Watch your tone, Kazmir!!” Lothar gnarled, clenching his fist. “You won’t speak to the alpha in that manner.”
“He is not my alpha!!” elder Orvyn scorned. “A deal is a deal, Chris, and your time as ruler of this pack is over.”
“It’s a year already and you haven’t found your Luna. You can’t continue to sit on the throne without a Luna by your side,” another elder said, his tone calm, compared to the others.This belongs to NôvelDrama.Org.
“But what of Lucy?” I protested, desperation creeping into my voice. “Lucy is my mate, and she is more than capable of being my Luna.”
Elder Orvyn scoffed at my words. “She will never be our Luna, she is nothing more than a rogue unworthy of our respect. Besides, her father is a traitor to this pack, he killed the previous alpha, your goddamn father!!”
I stepped forward, fuming in rage as their words continued to make me boil in rage. “I don’t bloody care if her father was responsible. She’s my mate and your LUNA!! that’s all that matters.”
“Never! A rogue will never ascend the throne as Luna, not under my watch,” Orvyn spat.
“We’ve animously decided to free Cade from captive and make him Alpha of this pack. There has been no proof that he had a hand in the allegations against him,”
“Not under my watch,” Lothar bellowed. “Cade remains in the dungeon until Alpha Chris says otherwise.”
As the truth of their betrayal sank in, I felt anger wash over me. Was this Cade’s plan all along? How could they think of making Cade the alpha after all he had done to destroy this pack? NEVER!! not while I’m here.
“I see. So this was the plan all along, to give the throne to that loser,” I said in anger. The sudden urge to slay all of them gripped me but I held myself back and walked away before I did something drastic.
“Cade had all of this planned out from the beginning, he has been working with the elders from day one,” Lothar said following behind. “We have to eliminate him before things go south.”
He was right, I had always had my doubts about the elders. I knew they were up to no good from the start. They probably had a hand in the death of my father in order to secure the throne for whom they wanted, Cade.
At the dungeon, Cade sat quietly as I poured out my anger on him. “So this was the plan all along. To kill Your son and gain the throne. You’ve been working secretly with those old fools to steal my father’s throne,” I yelled.
Yet, he remained silent. “Say something!!” I yelled again. “If you didn’t kill my father, then they did it for you.”
“First, you accused me of killing your father, now the elders. How daft can you be, child? I thought you were wiser than your father,” Cade finally said.
“I’m going to teach you and the rest of those treacherous bastards a lesson you won’t forget in a hurry. I’ll make all of you pay for the crimes you’ve committed against this pack,” I gnarled in frustration.
“Enough with the ranting, Chris. The truth you seek is right in front of you and you are just too blind to see it,” Cade snapped. “Yes, I hated your father and had the thought to kill him but someone else did before I got there.”
I froze. What was he saying? “What do you mean someone else did? If you didn’t kill my father then who did?”
“Someone you know.”