Chapter 25: Chapter 25

When Kathy opened her eyes, she realized she was in an unfamiliar room. It was too plain to be hers. She could smell herbs burning making her realize that she was probably in a healer's room. She walked to the window and looked down. She could see children playing outside and some women talking. The men were larger so she assumed that she was in a wolf pack. The air was chilly outside, the pack was still in winter while Lunae had just left winter. She felt air entering some parts of her body and looked down to see that she was still in her torn clothes of yesterday.

"You are awake." She gasped at the voice and turned back. It was Alpha king Asher standing at the door. His grey eyes scanned her body, possibly for visible injuries. It was the same pair of eyes she saw before passing out.

She stared at his mouth, his fangs were not visible. Those fangs viciously tore into the border guard. Weirdly she wasn't afraid of him, no matter how much she wanted to. Even when she stared at his arms that looked large enough to kill.

"I won't hurt you," he said in a low voice. "I would never hurt you," he added like an afterthought.

'I know,' she wanted to reply but nodded instead. What was wrong with her?

"I didn't let anyone but the healer see you as I didn't want the news reaching the dark queen," he told her and she nodded again in gratitude.

"You must feel uncomfortable in those dirty clothes."

She looked down at her toes, feeling ashamed of how she looked in front of him.

"Here," he said and she looked up to see a white shirt in his hand. She took it and went to the bathroom. She changed quickly and washed her legs, arms, and face with water to get rid of some of the dirt.

He growled as soon as she neared him.

"What's with all the growling?" She asked without thinking then gasped and slapped her mouth shut.

"My clothes…" he growled out, staring at her.

"Oh!" She frowned. "You don't want me in them? Then why did-" she wasn't able to complete her sentence when he let out a low growl.

"No, they look good on you," he said, staring at the wall beside him. He was embarrassed. She bit back a smile.

"Come with me to my office, we have to talk," he said then led her out of the room. They walked through a hallway containing many rooms. He told her they were in the packhouse and that was the Alpha's floor.

There were two men in his office when they got there. Alpha Asher introduced them as his Beta and Gamma. Beta Raven was a huge man with brown hair. He was heavily built and had a playful look on his face. While Gamma Lue was the more serious one. He was slightly shorter than the Alpha and Beta but he was just as large.

"I thought fire elementals were supposed to look fiery with red hair and face," Beta Raven said to her with a teasing smirk on his face.

"And I thought Beta's were smart, Rave but I guess we are both wrong," Gamma Lue said, rolling his eyes.

"Hey!" Beta Raven exclaimed, seeming offended.

"Face it, Rave, you have the brain of a Pigeon, not a Raven," Gamma Lue said and the stupefied look on Beta Raven's face made Kathy burst into laughter. She couldn't remember the last time she laughed.

"I'm glad my embarrassment amused you. You were looking so sad earlier so we decided to lighten things up," Beta Raven told her and she smiled. "I am Beta Raven, Beta of the Royal Wolf Pack but pretty ladies like you call me Raven," he said with a wink and she blushed.

A growl resounded in the room and it was coming from Alpha Asher.

"Watch it, Raven!" The Alpha scolded making Kathy frown.

Raven raised a questioning brow and suddenly a knowing look appeared on his face then he smirked in what seemed like satisfaction. Kathy could feel the excitement coming off him.

"And I am Gamma Lue but you can call me Lue, Luna," Lue said, drawing her attention from the wordless conversation between the Alpha and Beta.

"I am not Luna yet, my mother is." She corrected him and he sent a confused look to the Alpha who shook his head at him.

Alpha Asher pointed at a seat and she sat down. The men took their seats too. "Now that the introductions are over, we have a lot to discuss," Alpha Asher said.

"How is the situation in Lunae?"

Kathy sighed and told them how bad it was.

"Raven, Lue, and I have been trying to prepare a plan that would work but battle strategies need time and that we don't have."

"We have less than four days before the takeover and if Lena manages to take over Lunae, there would be no way to get the kingdom back except war," Kathy explained, desperation clearly in her tone.

"Two days, Alpha. Give me two days to perfect the plan," Lue said.

"Okay, I trust in you, Lue. You are the best strategic planner in the pack," Alpha Asher said Gamma Lue bowed his head and left the room.

The Alpha then turned to Raven. "You will be in charge of watching over the Princess. Make sure no one sees her apart from the three of us until the day of the battle."

Raven groaned. "You know I can never hide anything from Riley."

Kathy wondered who Riley was but she didn't have to ask.

"Riley is Raven's mate and our Beta female," the Alpha explained. "Fine, you can tell Riley but her alone."

Raven nodded excitedly and rushed out after waving to Kathy.

"He is like a toddler in a man's body." The Alpha shook his head.

"What's a mate?" She asked hesitantly.

"Mate is short for a soulmate. Each werewolf was paired from birth with someone whom they would love, cherish and care for. Someone who matched them in all aspects and who their soul longs for." He had a distant look on his face as he spoke. Was he thinking about his mate? Kathy felt her heart hurt at that thought, she didn't like the thought of him having a mate. What was wrong with her?

He continued, "You feel sparks whenever you touch your mate. It is the most pleasurable feeling ever and no one can ever make you feel anything better. Your mate completes you in every way and you share an unbreakable bond."

The intense look he gave her as he spoke made her feel things. She was so attracted to him and she couldn't help it. His eyes were what she loved the most. They told a lot of stories mostly about pain.

She hesitated before asking, "Where is your mate?"

The distant look was replaced by a longing one. His grey eyes showed deep sadness and all Kathy wanted to do was hug him.

"She doesn't recognize me."

Kathy felt a pang of annoyance. What girl would not recognize someone as wonderful as him? He was every girl's fantasy. She didn't want to get started on how hot he was. Stacy would drool over him. Oh how much she missed Stacy and Brianna.

"How? Wouldn't the bond make her recognize you?" She asked again.

"I don't know why she can't feel it but I hope the bond will draw her to me."

"Oh…." She drawled out, nodding in understanding.

"Let me show you to your room," he told her and she stood up then followed him. His shirt looked big on her but it was comfortable and stopped under her knees. She was barefoot and her feet were getting numb from cold. The thick fur rug wasn't helping. She could feel her nipples hardening from the cold and she was wearing a white shirt so they were probably saluting everyone.

He stopped in front of a door, opened it, and went in. She went in after him. The room was huge, even bigger than her room in Lunae, and even nicer.

"I had a maid put some clothes in the trunk."

"Thank you, Alpha, for everything," she said sincerely.

"Call me Asher, Princess."

"Only if you call me Kathy."He nodded and turned to leave.

"What if we don't stop Lena in time for the coronation?" She asked worriedly. Her head throbbed with the thought of a thousand possibilities.

"We will stop her," he said, walking close to her. "I promise," he added.

He stared into her eyes for a few seconds then turned to leave again. On instinct, she grabbed his hand to stop him. The contact made him shiver and instantly, his stormy grey eyes darkened and she stepped back.

"Tell me you felt that," he told her, desperately wanting her to say yes. His eyes pleaded with her to say yes but Kathy had no idea what he was talking about. He was now facing her, with her chest touching his. She felt her nipples rubbing against his chest and blushed in mortification. He looked down at her breasts and his eyes turned even darker with specks of grey in them.

"Felt what?" She asked and he frowned then stormed out of the room. She tried to read his feelings as she had already made contact with him but couldn't as something was blocking her from getting to his mind.

Her entire body felt cold as soon as he left like something was missing. Something he took with him. She couldn't understand why she felt that way or why she was missing him even though he had only just left.

She wondered what he must have felt when she touched him. The way he shivered was like she passed something hot or ticklish over his body but it was just her hand. And his eyes, she had never seen eyes change color so easily. It was terrifying yet beautiful, everything about him was. She wondered if it was a wolf thing.

That lonely feeling didn't leave her until the next day. Riley had called her for breakfast. Riley was as sweet as her mate and even more talkative. Asher, Raven, and Lue were already seated in the dining room and eating. Riley and Kathy joined them.

Asher lifted his nose and sniffed the air as soon as she came in. He gripped his fork so tightly that she could see his hand turning white. He stared at her until she sat down making her blush a little. That morning she had worn a thick woolen black dress that fit snugly against her body and fell to her knees. She paired it with a pair of boots that stopped on her knees.

The dining room was on the Alpha's floor. She found out that the floor also contained the rooms of the Beta and Gamma and also the Alpha's family.

"Good morning," she greeted every one of them and they replied. But the voice she wanted to hear from didn't reply, she frowned.

Breakfast consisted of meat and more meat. It seemed like meat was all wolves liked to eat. Their plates were filled to the brim with so much meat that she wondered how they would finish it. She took a piece of nicely cooked steak and placed it on her plate and dug in.

"So, Princess how are you liking it here so far? Even though you haven't seen the place yet," Riley broke the silence.

"It's been lovely and I hope to see all of it someday," she said as politely as she possibly could.

She could see a hint of a smile on Asher's face but he covered it with a small cough.

"Something wrong, Asher?" Raven asked with a taunting smirk on his face. Asher only eyed him in annoyance then resumed eating his food.

Another presence was felt in the room. It was another man that looked a lot like Asher, close enough to be his twin. He was handsome with brown eyes but Asher was more handsome.

"Wow!" The guy spoke. "Who is the beauty, brother?"

So Asher had a brother.

"Luca, what are you doing here?" Asher asked with venom in his voice. He didn't seem to like his brother very much.

"I smelled a stranger in the house and wanted to check it out but this is a very pleasant surprise," he grinned at Kathy, staring at her with lust in his eyes.

Asher growled. "Eyes off, Luca!"

"Brother, you don't sleep with one woman twice, what's the difference this time?" Luca spoke not knowing the anger his words brewed in Kathy.

However, the insult didn't pain Kathy as much as the idea of Asher sleeping around.

"Watch your tongue, Luca! This is the Princess of Lunae and not some whore!" Asher snarled in Luca's face. When did he stand up?

"So? You've slept with a lot of Princesses before." Luca continued, his words stabbing into Kathy who did not know why she felt offended but she was.

"Luca…." Asher growled, sounding angrier.

Luca rolled his eyes and walked to Kathy. He picked some locks of her hair and sniffed it then growled in delight.

Kathy pulled her hair out of his hand.

"Don't touch me!" She warned, feeling her power surface. She wouldn't let anyone touch her like Gab, no, Atlas did.

"Or what? My brother would throw you out once he is done anyway so I advise you treat me better." He moved close to her again and before he could touch her, Asher rushed at him with supernatural speed and pinned him to the wall with his hand wrapping around Luca's neck.

"I told you to stay away from her!" Asher growled, his voice sounding different. His voice was deeper and sounded darker and his eyes had fully turned black.

Raven and Lue rushed to Asher while Riley watched the scene unbothered like she was used to those kinds of scenes.

"Alpha, the Princess is here," Lue told Asher who then turned to Kathy. Kathy wondered why her presence should be the issue, shouldn't they be more concerned about Asher killing Luca?

"You would attack your brother for a female?" Luca struggled to say.

"Say one more insulting word against Kathy, look at her wrongly or worse, touch her and you will regret it," Asher said darkly and dropped Luca who then fell to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

The men returned to their seats, leaving Luca who stormed out of the room in Anger. Everyone but Kathy resumed eating like nothing ever happened and Kathy stared at them confused.

When did violence become normal?