Chapter 20 Throne’s Shadow
||Third–party POV||
The castle of the Werewolf Kingdom was eerily quiet, the usual hum of activity replaced by a tense silence that seemed to press down on everyone within its walls. The grand hall, with its towering ceilings and intricate tapestries, felt more like a prison than a place of The air was heavy with unspoken words and simmering anger, the kind that could erupt at any moment.
power.
Alpha King Darius stood at the center of the room, his imposing figure casting a long shadow over the polished marble floor. His golden eyes, usually so commanding and regal, were dark with fury as they bore into Kael. His jaw was clenched, his hands balled into fists at his sides, the tension in his body palpable. Beside him, Luna Cassandra stood with her hands clasped in front of her, her expression a mask of calm, though the tightness around her eyes betrayed her inner turmoil.
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” Darius’s voice was low, but it carried the weight of a thunderclap, echoing through the hall. “You’re all over the news. Again.”
Kael stood before his father, his head bowed, his posture one of submission. But even in his silence, there was a stubbornness, a defiance that only seemed to fuel Darius’s anger. The Alpha King took a step forward, his voice rising with each word. “And this is the second time in a month! How do you think you can get the vote of confidence and be the next king if you keep making a fool of yourself?”
Kael remained silent, his jaw tightening as he stared at the floor. His golden eyes, so much like his father’s, were clouded with a mix of frustration and guilt. But there was something else there too, a flicker of determination, a refusal to back down.
“Darius, please, calm down,” Cassandra said, her voice soft but firm as she reached out to place a hand on her mate’s arm. Her touch was gentle, a soothing balm to his anger, but Darius shook her off, his temper flaring.
“Don’t ask me to calm down, Cassandra,” he snapped, his voice sharp and cutting. “This brat of yours is out of line, and you know that very well.”
Cassandra’s lips tightened, her own anger simmering just beneath the surface. But she kept her voice steady, her tone one of quiet authority. “Darius, we will find a way. There’s always a way.”
“Yes, there’s only one way,” Darius said, his voice cold and final. “Reject her. Right now. Right here.”
Kael’s head snapped up, his eyes blazing with defiance. “I won’t,” he said, his voice firm and unwavering. “She is my soulmate.”
The words hung in the air like a challenge, the tension in the room thickening with each passing second. Cassandra’s patience finally snapped, her calm demeanor cracking as she turned to her son. “Kael, you are out of your senses!” she said, her voice sharp with frustration. “Do you even realize the position you’ve put us in?”
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goddess,” he said, his voice steady despite the anger in his father’s eyes. “Only a few werewolves are lucky enough to find their mates. I am one of the blessed ones.”
Darius’s eyes narrowed, his voice dripping with disdain. “But those blessed ones aren’t sitting here on this throne,” he said, his tone cold and cutting. “Do you think I don’t know what you do behind my back? I’m done protecting you.”
With that, Darius turned on his heel and stormed out of the room, his footsteps echoing through the hall like the toll of a funeral bell. The door slammed shut behind him, the sound reverberating through the silence he left in his wake.
Cassandra sank into a nearby chair, her hand pressed to her forehead as she tried to steady her breathing. Her usually composed demeanor was shattered, her face pale and drawn as she stared at the floor. Kael knelt before her, his expression one of desperation as he reached out to touch her knees.
“Mom, please,” he said, his voice pleading. “Find a way. There has to be a way.”
Cassandra looked down at her son, her eyes filled with a mix of frustration and pity. “You need to reject her,” she said, her voice firm but not unkind. “And make it up to Lilac. That’s the only way. The way she reacted at the party has won everyone’s heart. If this goes on, everyone will vote for her to take over the throne by herself.”
Kael’s eyes widened, his expression one of disbelief. “No,” he said, his voice shaking. “She’s just an omega, Mom. She’ll die.”
Cassandra’s lips tightened, her expression one of cold calculation. “Hear me out,” she said, her voice low and steady. “You need to reject her, but she doesn’t have to accept. The bond will stay alive, maybe not as strong as it is now, but it will be there. Court Lilac and marry her. Once you secure your place as king; do whatever you want. I don’t care.”
Kael stared at his mother, his expression one of shock and disbelief. “You’re asking me to manipulate her?” he said, his voice filled with disbelief.
Cassandra’s eyes hardened, her tone one of cold practicality. “I’m asking you to do what’s necessary to secure your future,” she said, her voice sharp and cutting. “This isn’t about love, Kael. This is about power. And if you want to keep it, you’ll do as I say.”
Kael’s jaw tightened, his expression one of conflict as he stared at his mother. He wanted to argue, to protest, but the weight of her words was too heavy to ignore. He knew she was right, even if he didn’t want to admit it.
Cassandra leaned back in her chair, her expression one of quiet determination. “You have a choice to make, Kael,” she said, her voice soft but firm. “You can either follow your heart and lose everything, or you can do what’s necessary to secure your future. The choice is yours.”
Kael stared at his mother, his mind racing as he tried to process her words. He knew she was right, but the thought of rejecting Coco, of manipulating Lilac, left a bitter taste in his mouth. But the alternative, losing everything he had worked for, was even worse.
As he knelt there the weight of his mother’s words pressing down on him Kel
for the sake of power?
But as he looked up at his mother, her expression one of cold determination, he knew the answer. And it left him feeling more lost than ever.
The room was silent, the tension thick enough to cut with a knife. Cassandra sat in her chair, her expression one of quiet resolve as she watched her son. Kael knelt before her, his head bowed, his mind racing as he tried to come to terms with the choice he had to make.
And as the weight of their decisions settled over them, the castle of the Werewolf Kingdom remained cerily quiet, the silence a stark reminder of the storm that was yet to come.
