~Ethan.

My perked up ears paid keen attention to the chatter and murmuring coming from the ground below me as the members of the high court and other elders trooped into the compound and into the courtroom. From my window I watched them coming in small groups of twos and threes, with some of them throwing angry glances towards the direction of the royal chambers.

“Are you ready?” I shook my head at the familiar voice but, not in negation, rather in disapproval of his choice of word.

“You sound as though they are people I should be scared of,” I replied, my eyes unmoving from the window.

“You should. These people are furious at you, and they are searching for a reason to pounce on you, even the slightest misstep from you could cause a fight between you and them.”

 I chuckled lightly and turned to the voice behind me, the worry in his voice evident in his eyes, “then let’s not give them any reasons to.” Tapping his shoulder lightly, I turned back to the window, with a confirmation that my guests were already settled inside, I pulled away from the window and out of the room.  “You are to come with me, Sam, you are my right-hand man.”

“Oh, yeah.” The young lad, who was a tad older than I was, jerked back to reality before rushing up behind me.

On getting to the courtroom, I turned to Sam with a shake of my head, and he raised both shoulders in response. We both knew what we were going in to face; the elders and the members of the high court, and though I have enjoyed most of my gatherings with the high court members, I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to entertain them.  Drawing in a deep breath, I walked into the room.

Feet and seats dragged against the floor as they all stood up, “Long live the king!” they chorused and I hummed a response. Their greeting, I was certain, was merely a chant and not a pleasant wish. None of them wanted me well, if anything, they wanted their incapable king out of the throne.

“Take your seats, please.” I said with a small smile as I assumed my position on the throne. “I was informed this meeting was a matter of urgency, yeah?” They murmured a response, “Okay, so what issue are we handling?”

“What issue are we handling, you say?” One of the elders fretted, and we all turned to him, “people are dying, women and children are dying, your men too, and you ask what issue we are handling as if you are unaware of the issue we have been dealing with for almost a month now.”

“Who else wants to try?” My smile was still plastered on my face as I turned my eyes away from the loudmouthed man and back to the rest of the people in the room.

“My king,” Diane, one of the members of the high court called as she stood, “we are here to discuss no other thing but the epidemic that has befallen us, we have been trying to contain this issue and wait as you told us but, with the tragedy that befell us yesterday, we are not sure if we can keep waiting.”

My smile fell, and my brows knitted; “what tragedy?”

She sighed and turned briefly to the rest of the occupants of the room before turning back to me, “As you may have known, Felicia’s daughter, Anastasia, was supposed to be married yesterday, but the marriage didn’t go through because she contracted the plague. She and her younger brother, they are both in the pack's clinic now and asides them, three other men and Seth’s grandmother were admitted to the clinic yesterday.”

I scanned the crowd and saw Seth alone looking back at me, “Where is Felicia?” she was a member of the high court and was always present at every meeting.

“Still in mourning. Our guests didn’t stay long because of the plague, my king, we think this slickness will reduce our interactions with oth-”

“I am trying my best to contain this situation and to bring a solution.” I knew better than to allow her complete that sentence because if she did, another issue was sure to arise, and I have already had my fair share of the plague talk. Diane sighed and assumed her seat.

“That is all you have been saying, when are you going to provide a standard solution for us?” one of the elders said, and they all murmured in agreement.

“The expert doctor is on her way to us, I have asked and pleaded with you all to exercise patience. She will come to us soon, I promise.”

“We can no longer hold you by your words, Alpha Ethan, you have been promising us this doctor even before this epidemic became this rampant. You couldn’t contain it, how then do you expect we believe you when you say you can find us a solution?” Another member of the high court, Gideon said.

I clenched my jaw to keep my anger in check, it was one thing knowing that some of my subjects consider me to be incapable, and it was another thing hearing them say it to my face and that other thing it came with was anger. Pain. Betrayal.

I kept my palms in a fist and looked up at them, “The doctor will come to us, soonest, I wasn’t going to say it until she got here, but she has agreed to help us, and she will be here in a few days.”

“But my king-” I raised my index finger, shushing the woman who tried to speak.

“The doctor will be here in a few days and that is it.” Murmuring arose amongst them.

“How do we even believe him?”

“What doctor is he even talking about?”

“I will be leaving this pack at the break of dawn to find a physician for my son, I can’t keep waiting for him.”

I chuckled in disbelief at their words, it was quite disheartening knowing that everyone thought of me as incapable, first Isadora who practically left me for my best friend, then my beta who also stands by my best friend and now my subjects.

“There is no reason for anyone to be bothered, the doctor will be here in a few days and that is all I can say to you for now. And this meeting is over.”

They grunted as they rose to bow in greeting before leaving the room, some even dared to curse under their breaths, but I turned a blind eye to their mischief. The plague has brought extreme fear and stress to everyone, especially to me, who had sent a thousand letters to the doctor without a response.

I sank into my seat with a sigh once the room was void of them. Realizing I hadn’t heard Sam’s voice during the meeting, I looked around searching for him to notice him gone and just I began to wonder where he was, he hurried into the room beaming with smile.

“She replied, Alpha! She has responded!” I sat up in my seat and reached for the envelope in his hand. I knew it was just one person who we had been awaiting her response. Hurriedly, I tore the envelope and took out the letter to see three simple yet infuriating words staring back at me.

‘I humbly decline.’ and that was it, no explanations, no courtesy.”

“You do know where this doctor stays.” I said through gritted teeth, my anger, and irritation visible in my voice and face.

Sam nodded, “I do know the where she lives and works."

“Good,” I sapped the letter against his chest and he took hold of it before it kissed the ground, “then go get me that woman and bring her to me at all cost. Bring her to me alive!”

~Aurora.

More letters from Sturgeon Moon pack came in within the consequent weeks and when I got tired of shredding them like I did to the first one, I began keeping them in my drawer to collect dust.

Their request -asking me to come back to the pack - was absurd. I couldn't help but wonder if Ethan knew that it was me, the same Aurora he banished from his pack, or if my new identity as 'Rory' was keeping him in the dark. The name 'Rory', I knew, was a good disguise, but not good enough to erase the similarity of my original name.

Did Ethan really not notice, or was he playing dumb?

I was reaching into my drawer to take out the most recent letter when Arne ran into my room to throw himself on the bed.

“Mommy's bed is not the playground, Arne,” I cautioned as I kept back the letter and closed the drawer, turning to face him.

He chuckled, “Don't blame me, your bed is as bouncy as a bouncing bed. Here,” my face fell at the sight of the familiar seal, “Audrey said I should give it to you.”

“Thank you,” I said with a sigh, before slowly reaching for the letter and adding it to the collection.

“Is that from dad? All those letters you've been getting lately, are they from him?” Arne was a smart kid and I wasn't surprised he noticed I had been receiving those letters but his question caught me off guard.

“Of course not, Arne. Daddy does not send us letters in these types of envelopes, you know that, right?” A sharp pain ran through my chest in protest as to how the lie easily rolled off my tongue. I didn't want to lie to him but, I couldn't tell him the truth either, not when a death threat was hanging above his head. A threat placed by his father.

“I no longer want letters from Dad, I want him here. With us.” His thin voice turned teary.

“And you will have him soon, he will be here with you and me soon, I promise.” Another lie.

“When?”

“Soon, baby.”

“How soon?”

I turned fully to him and pulled him to my chest as I brushed his hair off his face. “Daddy is a brave soldier at a war front, he is doing a fantastic job of saving peoples’ lives but he will be back even sooner than you can imagine. I promise.”

“They wouldn't hurt him?”I forced a spittle down my throat, “No, they wouldn't. Daddy is brave, powerful, and smart, he will be fine, and he will be with us soon, okay?”He nodded, his face showing no signs of consolation.

“Arne, dear, don't be sad.” I wasn't sure whom I directed those words to because I too was sad, and I needed a bit of consolation, a bit of reassurance that everything was fine, that Ethan hadn't found out about Arne, and that nobody was after my son.

“Can we go to the park?” The usual giddiness in his voice was replaced by a hint of pain.

“It's almost dinner time, my love.”

“Okay, can we go for a small walk then? It will make me happy.” He added after seeing my indecisive expression.

“If that's what's going to make you happy.” My face lit up as a small smile crept into his face. “Now go put on your boots, the last to get ready is a stinking banana!” I gripped him loosely and tackled him as he tried to wriggle his way out of my grip.

Seeing that a bit of his former self was back, I let him go with a dare to be ready before him, he countered my dare before running out of the room.With a sigh, I stood up from the bed and pulled my hair in a loose bun. I, too, needed the walk, after being cooped up in the room the whole day, my body longed for some exercise.

As I reached for the nightstand to get my phone, my eyes fell on the letters in the drawer - I hadn't closed the drawer fully- I pulled up the drawer and picked up the newest member of the collection.Would there be something different in this? I asked as I checked the envelope front and back. It was exactly the same as the ones I have been receiving, the same brown envelope and same seal, meaning that the content of the letter will be no different, right?

“Right?” I whispered and threw the letter back into the drawer and snapped it shut this time. Straightening my shirt, I picked up my phone, tucked it into the back pocket of my trousers and shut the door behind me.

“Ha-ha! Mummy is the stinking banana!” Arne teased as I stepped into the living room, I stuck out my tongue and made a face, and he mirrored my expression before running into Audrey's arms. Audrey, who should have gone home.

“You don't always have to wait till Arne goes to bed before leaving, you know that, right? I can tuck him in, I have been doing that for years.”

“I know that Dr. Rory, I just love spending time with him.”

“And he is getting too attached to you.” I took an apple from the kitchen counter and bit into it. “But, as your employer, I am telling you to leave early today. Arne and I are going for a walk, don't wait for us, we'll fix ourselves dinner when we get back, and I'll tuck him in.”

Audrey bit on her lower lip, “Are you sure? I could fix you guys something, I don't have to leave early, it's not like I have anything to do at home.”

If I didn't know Audrey and her family personally, I would have suspected she had something she was running from but, Audrey was the type that puts other people's needs before hers, “Lies, you have your homework to do and besides, staying here will do you no good, go out there and enjoy your teenage years.”

“Okay.” She said after a while of contemplation. “I will see you tomorrow then.”

“On Monday. Take the weekend off.”

She chuckled, “thanks ma'am. Bye Arne. I will miss you, be a good boy, okay?”

“Okay,” he replied and waved as Audrey got on her bicycle until she was out of sight. “Now, what business do I have with you, young man?”

“We are going for a walk, mum,” Arne said as he took me by the hand and dragged me to the door, and I willingly followed. I handed him his jacket before locking the door behind us.

After taking just five steps away from the house, two men walked up to us. I gripped Arne tightly as I tried to figure out who they were. I was certain I didn't know them, and the long strides they took towards us told they hadn't come for chit-chats.

“I am really sorry, ma'am,” one of the men said. As I was still trying to make sense of what he said, a hard object hit the back of my head causing me to fall to the ground, but not before I could see the pair of dark green eyes staring down at me. The owner of the eyes reached out and caught Arne in a tight grip. I tried to push off the ground to reach for Arne but my action only caused me to hit my head against the ground and darkness engulfed me.

~Ethan.

I dragged my eyes lazily between the two girls dancing before me. It was an eyesore, their presence, and actions, yet I kept my eyes fixed on them to remind myself that I wasn’t who they said I was.

I was Ethan Balor, the Alpha king of Sturgeon Moon pack, the one who has instilled fear and respect in the hearts of all other packs, the king who has elevated his pack to the second richest and most resourceful pack in the whole werewolf kingdom, I was Ethan, I wasn’t less of a man, right?

Right?

Adjusting myself on the couch, I signaled with my index finger to one of the girls, she was pale skinned with a dark long hair that dropped to her waist. With a wide grin, she cat-walked to me, her boobs bouncing in her loose bra.

“At your service, my lord,” she whispered into my ear, slowly running her hands up and down my chest. Her fingers against my skin burned, like my body was being destroyed by some toxic chemical. I wanted to push her away and find my way back to the solace of my chambers, but I couldn’t, I needed a reminder that I was better than whom they said I was, than who Isadora said I was.

I told myself, after Isadora toyed with my feelings, that I wasn’t going to reduce myself to the level she had mentally placed me, but I couldn’t keep to the promise, presently I needed a reminder or rather, a validation that I am and has always been a man.

“Kneel.” The lady dropped herself in between my legs as the command left my lips. “The better I feel, the higher you earn.” she nodded. I threw my head back and spread my legs apart to give her more space. 

A knock came on the door, overshadowing the unbuckling sound of my belt and almost immediately, the door pushed open.

“Forgive me for bothering you, My Lord,” A feeling of relief washed over me at the sound of the familiar voice. Perhaps, I needed no validation, perhaps all I needed was to be with the right people.

“Would you now state your needs, or would you rather I dragged the words out of your mouth?” 

“I didn't mean to bother you, but, I came to inform you that the doctor has arrived.” I gripped the lady's hands to stop her from touching me any further, “Leave. Don't worry about your pay,” I added, seeing she was trying to protest.

“But you may also be informed that there is a little bit of a problem” I paused, waiting to hear more, but Sam wasn't giving it.

“For heaven sakes, Sam, spit it out,” I snapped as I stood up the way out of the room, leaving Sam to follow behind.

“The doctor is a mother and her child was taken alongside her.”

I paused in my tracks and turned sharply to Sam, “what do you mean by that? Whatever am I supposed to do with a child?”

“We had no choice but to take him too, we couldn't leave it back.” 

“You brought me kids, goodness!”

Sam gulped, “one child,” he muttered, and I sighed and headed for the dungeon -where I had informed them to keep her- to meet the lady who had dared to go against me while swearing under my breath to make her regret wasting my time.

A blanket of unease and restlessness covered me as we neared the dungeon, I felt beads of sweat forming on my forehead with some rolling down the sides of my face as Leo, turned and howled restlessly inside me.

My breath turned fast and heavy as though I had taken a thousand laps round the pack, and I paused in my track to catch my breath.

"Are you alright, my Lord?” Sam asked, and I nodded as I continued on my path, but, Leo's restless jumping inside of me told me that I was not in any way okay.

I wiped the beads of sweat off my face with the back of my palm before stepping into the dungeons, and a strong scent of magnolia and orange filled my nose, welcoming me in.

“You prepared this place for her,” I said matter-of-factly with furrowed brows, and Sam shook his head with even more furrowed brows.

“We didn't prepare any room for her,”

“Then what's this scent I perceive?” I asked, ignoring his statement. I didn't care about her comfort. I used to, though, I cared about her comfort before she decided to defy my orders and go against me.

“Scent,” Sam asked as he sniffled, drawing much air into his lungs, "the stench of blood?” 

Which was what I was supposed to perceive. The dungeon was not a friendly, so why was I being fed a friendly scent?

“Something lemony,” I muttered. Leo howled as the words left my lips and as if drawn by a force, I advanced further into the dungeon, only stopping when I heard the angry grunts.

Leo jumped and howled as soon as stopped in front of the doctor who was kneeling with her hands bound behind her and a bag over her head but, her bondage didn't stop her as she tried to fight off the two men that were holding her down. 'Mate,' he howled 

A little boy barely old enough to be left without his mother clung unto her, trying as hard as he could to keep his tears from escaping his eyes.

Mate? I asked rhetorically. What did Leo mean by that? And was she the reason he was being so jumpy?

'Mate.' Leo howled louder. A wave of thick cold air passed through me and I shivered as beads of sweat began to appear on my face and arms.

The irony. I was more than surprised by that.

“Take off the bag, now,” I said to one of the warriors with a snap of my finger, and they both let go of her and began untying her.

I wanted to see the woman who had this

much effect on me, this much effect on Leo. I slapped away the hand losing the bag over her head and began untying it myself.

This was a matter of life and death, and any little delay could lead to my death. Literally, I could die from my curiosity and the effect of Leo's over excitement. 

I pulled off her head and dragged the other warrior with the flashlight closer, and my jaw dropped to the ground out of shock as the light fell on her face.

She was the doctor? How was she the doctor? Goodness! She was my mate, how was she my mate? And the child? She has a child! A thousand and one questions ran through my mind and sat at the tip of my tongue waiting to be poured out.

“Aurora?” I muttered. I had wanted to ask her all the questions going through my head, but, her name was the only thing I could say. The shock and surprise overwhelmed me.

“It's Rory now. And, when do I get to eat? It's past dinnertime, you know.” She blew away the hair that fell on her face.

Aurora, my Aurora, was the doctor and…my mate?