The DarkNess Within Him | ✔

Chapter Ten

"Are you and your wolf connected?" Esmeralda, the moon priestess asks me in an ominous voice.

I shake my head as I stare down at the moon stone that she has placed on the stone hedge in front of me. My eyes remain on the glowing oval object before me. It is as big as half of my hand. A medium sized white stone which has a scintillating glow.

I turn to my side and watch the crowd gathered several feet away from me in a semi-circle, all waiting for my ascension. My coronation as Alpha.

In front of the crowd, standing with arms crossed over his chest, eyes regarding me proudly, is Alpha Kai.

I bite on my bottom lip as I remember that he's the reason I have to take up this position in the first place. My brother challenged him out of his stupidity and he returned the favour by pushing an ultimatum forward. An ultimatum I wasn't sure I would take up but after what my father told me, my eyes opened to my brother's selfishness. A selfishness my Pack neither deserves, nor needs. A selfishness that I have to protect them from.

I move my eyes back to the oval moonstone and I feel the moon shinning down on me. It is almost full now and it's transferring its power onto this stone. The stone that will seal my fate as the Alpha of this pack.

After I told Logan yesterday that I plan to take over as the Alpha of this pack because I know the true reason why he hurt father, why he sold me, he got angry. And long story short, he disowned me and left with Mason after telling me that I will pay for this betrayal. He said several other hurtful things that brings pain to my heart just thinking about them.

What annoys me the most though is the amount of men that left with Logan. Logan told the whole pack that I plan to steal his birthright and they were none too happy about that. Some because I'm illegitimate but mainly because I'm a woman. Most of the men said they can't remain in a pack led by a woman and so they left. Well, I wouldn't have enjoyed such chauvinistic company anyway.

"Do you shift often?" Esmeralda questions again and I raise my head to look back at her, my weight settled on my cramped knees.

"No." I answer, feeling the wind gush around the thin white cotton material I have on.

"When was your last shift?" She presses on, her white eyes suddenly glowing but my eyes are fixated more on her white hair which cascades down her back. She wears white as well. Esmeralda is the chief witch and moon priestess. She heads ceremonies like Alpha coronations and mate bond marriages.

"The last full moon."

Esmeralda sighs. "This will hurt you alot then." She looks up to the moon and I can practically feel it's energy seep into her and the stone "It's time." She announces and turns away from the moon and towards me.

She says several chants in a language I don't understand and I watch her eyes glow even more. Then she picks up the large knife next to the shining moonstone and asks me to stretch out both of my hands.

I do. I expect my hands to be shaky but for some reason, they are actually very steady. She clasps the bottom of both of my hands. My palms are bare to her when she takes the knife and slits one clean line from the very centre of my left hand down to the very centre of my right hand.

I wince internally but force myself to take the pain, to endure it. If I'm going to be Alpha then I can't show weakness in from of all these people.

My blood spills out, red as wine and Esmeralda stares down at it, placing the knife back on the hedge.

"The left and the right are always connected. The slit on the right side of your left palm represents your loyalty to yourself, your wolf and whoever marks you." She says and I have to hold myself back from scoffing.