Lucien
I stood facing Eli, as I had done before. Except this time, I loathed the words I knew I had to say. He nodded encouragingly.
“Come on, brother. Do some damage, but not so much that I cannot fight in the battle to come,” he said, grinning.
His trust in me nearly broke my heart. I had pushed this man to his limits, each and every day of our lives. And still, he insisted on being a big brother to me. I opened my mouth and closed it again.
“Say it, Lucien.”
I inhaled slowly and closed my eyes. Like a coward, I couldn’t even look him in the eye as I said it.
“I, Lucien Rikom Zal, challenge you, Alpha Eli Rikom Zal for the throne of Zamee.”
“I, Eli Rikom Zal, accept your challenge.”
I stood, staring. It was only a small mercy that Asha, Orsa and the dowager queens weren’t h
