THE WAY KEEPER

CHAPTER III

MARCUS POINT OF VIEW

Earlier

‘I can’t believe you actually convinced me to do this’ I said looking at Robert, my brother-in-law. He chuckled lifting the book he used to cover his face to look at me with his puppy brown eyes. He was very handsome, standing only a few inches shorter than my 6ft 7 inches only he was broader chested. With chestnut hair cut in a modern style and a square jaw with a number six shadow, it’s not hard to see why Lara fell hard for him and I know he would go to the ends of the earth for her. His wore a white, short sleeved button down Versace shirt , revealing his various warrior tattoos across his arms; a testament to his accomplishments as an Alpha; with a pair of grey pants and loafers.

‘Your sister said the same thing the first time I took her on a public bus with me’ he replied sitting up

‘How did she take it?’ I asked chuckling, knowing my sister would probably do something crazy.

‘She hit me on the head with her stilettos and had me sleep on the couch for three months’ he said laughing shaking his head.

I burst out laughing knowing it was something Lara would do. It’s hard to imagine her with her five foot frame hitting one of the most feared Alphas after my father, but knowing Lara with her short bursts of anger like my father, it’s not so hard to believe. When we were younger my mother was afraid her mate would run away because of her aggressive impulses but it all changed when Robert came into her life.

It was a royal scandal when my sister broke up her engagement to a royal prince to be with Robert; a non-royal Alpha who built his pack from scratch and in no time became one of the most respected and feared Alpha’s of our time with a pack over a hundred thousand strong; and accept him as her mate. Upon getting to know him personally, I’m not surprised she did. He is a good man and a strong Alpha with a sharp mind and brilliant reputation as a warrior but he is also gentle, patient and has wisdom beyond his years with the sagacity of a leader. I personally learnt a lot from being with him and in no time we became best of friends, but even our friendship couldn’t save him and my sister from my father’s wrath.

My father gave them two choices, Robert either stayed with her; abandoning his pack or have them disbanded, or she left with him and abandoned her royal status. She chose to leave gladly without thinking twice. Her decision hurt my father’s ego and almost got Robert killed. However, my mother did the unexpected and went against her mate the king, by rallying the support of all Luna’s against their Alpha’s, causing women to not accepting their mates and fulfilling their duties until my father agreed to release Robert. My father had no other choice but to give his blessing and let my sister go. It took five years however before my father made his peace with Robert. And for five years, Robert took my father’s insults and public humiliations with a straight face and without a word, which earned him more respect within the palace.

Once I asked him ‘Why do you always come back here, knowing what my father will do?’ He looked to the horizon and replied, ‘Lara is my life and she sacrificed everything to be with me. Till the end of my life, I will sacrifice all that I have and all that I am to make her happy. Even she has asked that we stop coming here, but I know she is happy when we do, so for her I will gladly take a thousand punches from your father if only to see her smile.’ He looked at me and continued ‘You will understand the feeling one day when you find your mate.’

I smiled thinking of those events in my mind lost in the past, reflecting on those words. I have been searching for my mate for six years now with no luck and dad is getting frustrated because he want to retire and be with my mum, but the law states it clearly that I cannot take the throne without my Luna. My girlfriend is pestering that I make her my chosen and mark her because we have been going steady for two years, but I don’t want too, plus my mother doesn’t like her because of the scandals we have caused together. Father thinks I am not taking the search seriously and has given me till the end of this year to find my true mate or he will be forced to find me a chosen. I didn’t like the idea of being forced and got into argument with my parents. My father called on Robert and he came over and asked that the both of us go over to his place; even stated he wanted to show me a cool way of transportation so I could cool off. What he didn’t say was it was a road trip in first class on an interstate bus.

‘Robert, can I ask you something?’

‘Sure he replied

‘When you met my sister how did you know she was the one? That you would go through everything you did for her?’

He smiled dropping his book and put his hands behind his head as he reclined on his seat, wearing a far off look.

‘Can I tell you a secret, but you have to promise me to never tell Lara?’

I nodded looking at him, curious about what he was about to say.

‘The first time I met your sister, I was twelve years old and she was ten. My parents and I had just been turned rogues because our Alpha wanted my mother; being an alpha’s daughter herself, but she refused him and chose her true mate my father who was the lead pack warrior. After so many incidences, my father been an honorable man did what he felt was best for the pack, he chose to leave and my mother followed him taking me with them. We travelled for days trying to get to my grandfather’s pack and just when we were about to reach the borders, my father’s Alpha jumped him from behind in a surprise attack with several other wolves. I looked at my father, bloodied and bruised but still looking defiantly as the Alpha that betrayed him and held a silver knife to his throat.’ Robert whispered almost choking on a sob he tried hard to hold in. Tears were beginning to fill his eyes as he recalled the events in his head

Many years before

‘Come with me now, reject your mate and I will spare him.’ Alpha Jenkins said to Maria who was crying as she held unto her son tightly hiding no too far from the scene but successfully hiding her scent because of her Alpha blood.

‘No don’t do it, just keep running!’ her mate Cassius replied

‘Shut up, you traitor!’ the Alpha screamed stabbing the warrior in his arm, twisting the knife. Cassius grunted from the pain but still looked defiantly at the Alpha before him.

‘Give yourself to me or he dies Maria!’

Maria looked at her son who was looking at his father crying before proceeding to talk to him. ‘Robert, look at me honey’, she said turning his face to look at her. ‘You will achieve great things, and your father and I will be with you every step of way my love, but you have to go now.’

‘No please don’t leave me mama!’ her son cried holding tightly to her waist.

‘I’m not going anywhere my love, I’m right here’ she replied point to his chest. Close your eyes my song. Where are you?’

It was a game she saw him play with his father anytime he refused to let his father leave the house, and she learnt to play it with him whenever he missed his father.

‘In my room sleeping on my bed,’ he replied with his eyes closed.

‘And where is your father?’

‘Standing at door protecting us’

‘And where am I my love?’ she whispered

‘Holding me and stroking my hair till I fall asleep’ he replied.

‘And that is where we always will be, no matter what, we will always be beside you?’

She kissed him on the forehead and said to him looking him straight in the eye, ‘Listen to me carefully Robert, this is important. You have to go to my father, with him is a diary owned by your father. He will give it to you and you will understand everything. Go now’ she said sending him forward but he didn’t move, he stood crying looking at her.

‘Robert go, please.’ She whispered tears running down her face; he ran to her hugged her cleaning her face.

‘Please don’t cry mama, I’ll be a good boy. I swear, I will always be your good boy and do what you say.’

She hugged him tightly as his hair soaked in her tears. ‘I know my love now go and don’t look back, no matter what. And when you get there remember to give them this’ she said pointing to the half of a blade she kept with him earlier. He nodded and ran into the forest.

‘It was the last time I saw them both alive. I ran for three days without food or water. On the evening of the third day, I saw a group of young girls swimming by a water fall. They had a food basket placed at the edge of bank and I was so hungry, I stole the whole basket and ran. One of them spotted me and screamed and your sister runs after me out of the pool half naked, rushing out to get the food back. I was so tired I ran up a tree when i felt no one was watching and sat to eat but the basket fell from my hands to the floor. The girls found it and surrounded the tree screaming and throwing rocks at me to force me down but your sister just stood and looked up at me. She asked them all to stop and leave without the basket. When they left, she looked up at me and said ‘If you wanted to eat, all you had to do was ask, you didn’t have to steal.’ She then took the basket and dropped it at the foot of the tree I was sitting. She sat beside the basket saying, ‘‘my father says to me all the time that a man must never allow himself to be defined by his trials or circumstances, only if he can define himself and rise above his obstacles can he achieve anything truly worthy of praise. He must never give up and keep fighting, no matter what.’’ She looked up at me and said ‘‘you are too handsome to be a thief, so make something more of yourself’’ and she left. When I came down and opened the basket I saw food which was there earlier, with a pair of diamond ear-rings which wasn’t. I swore to myself to find that green eyed girl and show her that I had conquered my obstacles and become the good man.’

‘My grandfather found me, took care of me, and helped me to create my own pack at the age of eighteen. I got my revenge at twenty, graduated top of my class in Business administration at the age of 21, made my first billion before the age of twenty-three. Yet through it all I knew I owed everything I had achieved to the ten year old girl who gave up her diamond ear-rings to a stranger she barely knew because she saw in him what he didn’t see in himself.’

‘I never saw her again for another twelve years, but I knew immediately that it was her when we met at the palace though she didn’t recognize me anymore. I saw her and knew she was mine, but even if we were not destined mates, which we turned out to be; I would gladly have abandoned my real mate to be with her.’

My eyes bulged out of my sockets hearing his story. ‘Are you serious?’ said I said

‘You ask me how to recognize your mate’ Robert replied pulling out his wallet searching for something. ‘For me a soul mate is the one who makes sacrifices for you without regrets. Who loves you without demand and encourages you to be your best version of yourself without self-benefit.’ He finishes by dropping two diamond clip ear-rings in my palms. I immediately recognize them; our mother had given it to Lara as a birthday gift but Lara came home from a holiday with one of our cousins and claimed to have lost them playing at a waterfall. Mother was furious and severely scolded Lara because of them.

‘You didn’t sell them?’ I asked

‘I couldn’t’ Robert responded, ‘they are a constant reminder that someone believes in me and I can’t afford to fail because of her.’

‘Why didn’t you tell Lara?’ I asked again

‘At first it was because I was afraid she would reject me; thinking I was once a thief, but as time passed and I know her love for me is not to be questioned, and it is simply because I haven’t found the perfect moment. I plan to give those to my daughter by the way, so hand them over.’

I laughed but returned them back to Robert who was smiling as he placed them back in his wallet. ‘I hope you find her Marcus, and then you will know and truly understand that his Majesty only wants what is best for you.’

‘After listening to your story, I can’t wait to start my own love adventure’ I said

‘Be careful what you wish for, I said your sister was my inspiration I never said it was easy wooing her, that is a story for another time.’ We both started laughing and changed the topic.