THE ALPHA KING'S SUBSTITUTE BRIDE

“Your betrothed would be here any minute,” my father, Alpha Faustus announced, breaking the eerie silence in the dining.

My step-sister, Kira was present at the dining but I knew very well that he was not referring to her. He was talking to me. I had been betrothed to the son of the Alpha of a neighboring pack, Prince Christopher, and no matter how much I protested, my father would not hear of it.

“You don’t seem to be excited, Anna?” he frowned.

I stared up at him and rolled my eyes. Did he really expect me to be excited after he had married me off like an animal without seeking my consent?

“I’m doing this for the family,” my father pressed on. “For your mum…”

“Enough!” I cut in. “Don’t speak about my mother, please.”

I knew all he had to say. It was the same old story –our pack was lacking resources after the wars and we needed alliances with richer packs to survive. My marriage to Prince Christopher would mean the end of the hunger in our pack. According to my father, their pack was one of the richest in the world.

I had barely started eating my food when the doors of the dining hall swung open.

“The Alpha, Kasper Noland, and his son, Prince Christopher have arrived,” a guard announced.

My father stood up immediately, gathering his red robes. “Let my guests in!”

The guard stepped back and our guests walked in. My eyes scanned the Alpha first. He was a short man with a wild look on his face and from the way his pot belly bobbed up and down as he walked, I wondered if he would be happy to share the food in his kingdom with us. My betrothed, Christopher was better off. He was tall and slim with sand-colored hair and bright eyes. He still had the wild look on his face but at least he was handsome.

“Welcome to my kingdom, my esteemed guests,” my father said. “It is the usual tradition of the Black Water Pack to tell our guests our rich and ancient history and I would be pleased to do you the honors. About two hundred years ago…”

“Oh shut it old fool!” Alpha Kasper grunted. “We all know your wolves are starving to death and all you want is a share of the meat in my pack. Skip the damn formalities.”

My father nodded quickly and sat down. “A very wise decision. Let’s go straight to business.”

I shut my eyes tight, pained by what I was witnessing. An outsider, insulting my father in his pack…my own father, referring to me as a business.

“Which one of them is Anna?” Alpha Kasper asked. “We don’t have all day.”

I could feel my blood begin to boil within me. The Alpha was already getting on my nerves.

“Anna…” I heard my father whisper. “Stand up.”

I remained seated, my eyes fixed on the two men before me.

“Anna, please…” my father whispered.

I stood up slowly and for a split second, my eyes met with the Prince’s.

“I am Anna,” I said.

“Well come over here, would you?” Alpha Kasper grunted.

As I approached him, he turned to his son. “Sure you want this one? Doesn’t look like she can satisfy you and raise a healthy heir.”

I stopped dead in my tracks. “Excuse me?”

My step-sister, Kira chose that exact moment to speak.

“What the Alpha means is that you look pale and sickly,” she laughed. “You can’t satisfy his son on the bed.”

I turned back to face Kira and I frowned. Yes, we hated each other, but we were still family. She was meant to be supporting me.

“Why the look?” Kira protested. “Not like I’m lying. I mean, you’re a virgin. No prince would like to be mated to an inexperienced little girl.”

“That’s enough Kira!” my father boomed. “You will not say a word at this dinner anymore. Understood?”

Kira silently went back to her food but the damage had already been done. Prince Christopher stood up to his feet slowly and walked up to me. He assessed me for a minute before speaking.

“She’s lying right?” he asked me. “You’re not a…”

I looked him dead in the eyes, waiting for him to complete his statement.

“I’m not a what?” I asked. “Or you don’t have the balls to say the word?”

The dining fell silent immediately. From the corner of my eyes, I could see my father. His face was bowed down to the ground. Once again, I had fucked it up.

“I would be your future Alpha,” Prince Christopher warned. “And you would be subject to me.”

“I would never be subject to someone like you!” I spat back, annoyed.

The prince turned to face his father, Alpha Kasper, and shook his head.

“I’m sorry father,” he grunted. “I was wrong about her.

Alpha Kasper shrugged and rose to his feet. “We would take our leave now.”

“Oh no no no,” my father cried, rising to his feet. “Anna didn’t mean all that she said. She would love you, serve you, and give you a strong heir at the right time.”

“You would hear from me Faustus,” Alpha Kasper growled. “You and your daughters have made foolery of me today.”

He turned around and marched towards the door, his son following closely behind and my father gritted his teeth in anger.

“What is wrong with the two of you!” he cried. “If we had sealed that deal, our stock for the winter could have been refilled.”

Just then, a guard barged into the dining, holding a letter with a royal seal attached to it.

“A letter from a friend,” the guard announced.

“The one who just left?” my father frowned.

The guard scratched his head, obviously confused before handing him the letter.

“It’s from Lartes,” the guard said.

I watched as my father heaved a deep breath and opened the letter. From the way his frail hands quivered as he opened it, I knew it was not good news. He had started dealing with the dangerous Lycan King, Alpha Lartes.

“What is it, Father?” I asked.

“This is not about you,” he grunted pushing me away. He walked up to where Kira sat on the dining and he smiled at her.

“Get ready,” he said. “Tomorrow, you shall wed Prince Xavier, the Lycan king’s nephew.”