Chapter 12
1076 Words
ASHER’S POV
Being in front of the sacred stone did nothing to calm the fire in my gut. I stared down at the petite female standing before me, her violet eyes filled with a defiance that she had absolutely no right to possess.
She had no wolf. The pack mind link was completely dead inside her head, she couldn’t communicate with me no feel the communal link.
My chest rose and fell in heavy, ragged gasps as the reality of everything settled into my bones. Having this woman by my side would make the rogues and other groups try to push a rebellion.
She was an insult to me and my pack by that silver crest back and their cunning alpha.
For generations, the rulers of this territory had mated with the strongest, most ruthless females in the kingdom. Now, because of Richard’s pathetic trickery, I was bound by blood to a defective human.
If the surrounding alphas discovered that the supreme king had accepted a wolfless mate, our enemies would smell weakness. They would target our borders within a week.
"You really are a useless burden, aren't you?" I barked, my deep voice rumbling low in my chest.
Mira did not flinch. She crossed her small arms over her chest, the fabric of her simple green linen dress stretching against her skin. "I told you the truth, Asher. Your pride is your own problem. I never asked to be yours or your future luna."
"Watch your tongue, female," I hissed, taking a step forward until my boots brushed against her bare toes.
My six-foot-four frame completely blocked out the light making her under my shadow.
My dominant alpha aura reared its head and filled the room. "You belong to this pack now. You do not dictate terms to your king."
Chase stepped between us, he bared his neck and raised his hands like he was trying to keep me from breaking her in half because I was seriously considering it. "Asher, calm down. The initiation is finished. The blood has already bonded her to our link. We cannot undo this without the high elders, and a public trial will only expose the vulnerability to our rivals."
"I know the law, Chase," I growled, shoving past him and walking toward the edge of the terrace.
I gripped the cold marble railing so tightly the stone began to crumble under my palms.
My mind raced furiously through our options. I could not send her back to Silver Crest without looking like a fooled fool who had been outsmarted by a low-ranking alpha. But keeping her here as the future Luna was a recipe for absolute disaster.
The female wolves in this Pack were brutal, highly trained killers. The moment the formal announcement of our treaty was made, the high-ranking females would smell her lack of strength and her being wolfless will even make it worse.
They would immediately challenge her for the title of Luna Queen. In our pack, those challenges were accepted as part of our laws, and they frequently ended in a bloodbath.
"She won't survive a single round in the arena," Chase murmured, walking up behind me.
He looked back at Mira, who was currently tracking our movements with a cold, suspicious gaze. "Emerald or any of the female generals will tear her throat out in the first thirty seconds of a trial."
I turned around slowly, my golden eyes scanning Mira’s petite body.
She was small, but she had a stubborn stiffness in her spine that I had never seen in an omega before. She was physically weak compared to a werewolf, but she wasn't a coward.
"I cannot send you back, Mira," I stated firmly, my voice dropping into a low pitch.
"But I will not let you disgrace my name by dying like a dog on the floor of my own arena. Since you have no wolf to defend your life, I will train you myself."
Mira let out a sharp, mocking laugh that rattled my nerves. "Train me? You almost choked me to death in the basement five minutes ago. Now you want to be my teacher?"
"It is not a request," I barked, walking back over until I was towering directly over her again.
The scent of her, sweet jasmine and fresh dirt filled my nose, irritating me even more. "Tomorrow morning at dawn, you will report to the private training courtyard. I will teach you how to hold a blade properly, and dodge a killing blow.
You will learn how to fight off the other female wolves that will try to challenge you for the role of Luna, and hopefully that would be enough or, you will bleed out on the stone."
Mira tilted her head up, her violet eyes narrowing into slits. "And if I refuse to show up?"
"Then I will drag you there by your hair," I replied smoothly, a dark, ruthless smirk touching the corners of my lips.
"You wanted to find a weapon to kill me earlier. Let's see if you can actually learn to use one before my people challenge you to a real duel."
Mira clenched her small fists at her sides, her pale skin flushing red with a mixture of anger and frustration. "Fine. Teach me your stupid rules of war. I will be there."
"Good," I grunted, turning back toward my Beta.
"Chase, escort her back to the royal quarters. Lock the doors and ensure she doesn't try to climb the perimeter walls again. I have a border treaty to rewrite with a pack of liars."
Chase nodded politely, gesturing for Mira to follow him down the stone corridor.
She gave me one final, venomous glare before turning her back on me and walking away. I watched her retreat until the dark silk of her silver-black hair disappeared around the corner.
The anger inside my chest didn't dissolve. It twisted into a curiosity. She was a human anomaly in a world of beasts, and she was officially my responsibility.
I spent the rest of the day in my private study, staring at the maps of our northern borders.
My thoughts kept drifting back to the dead silence in the pack link when I had tried to reach her mind. It was a completely unnatural phenomenon.
A purebred omega should have at least a faint, weak spark of a wolf spirit, even if they couldn't shift. Mira had absolutely nothing.
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