Chapter 23

• ZACHARY
• I heard the commotion outside of my tower before my door swung open and almost broke out of its hinges. I didn't have to look to know who it was and so I didn't let her distract me from reading the map of the woodlands that was spread over my table. I didn't even have to hear the intruder speak before I knew what they were there for. After all, I expected the reaction when I made the decree this morning that the Previous Luna of the pack was to be sent out of the Palace to one of the many houses owned by the Alpha family. I knew Luna Hegna wouldn't take it well and anticipated this kind of reaction to the decisions I made as the new Alpha of the Imperial pack. "You insolent brat! How dare you?" Luna Hegna seethed at me from where she stood by the opened door in my room. My Beta ran in after her breathlessly and I could feel his helplessness at the situation. It took about fifteen minutes to keep her from coming into my room but she still got in anyway. "Please...you really have to leave." Alan was pleading with her again but I stopped him with a hand signal. "I'll handle it." I said. "I'm sorry Alpha," He said before turning on his heels and walking out the opened door. I set the cup of hot tea that I held before she came barreling into my room,down on the table before rolling the map neatly to a side of the table. Although I already moved most of my things out of the tower and to the main palace after I became the Alpha of the pack, it still took some getting used to, to be away from the place where I spent the most time of my life. In just a day of being crowned the Alpha, I have missed the view from up here in my tower. The view that made me feel like I was the biggest person on Earth while the others who I could see from up in my tower were nothing but crawling ants. Looking out the window everyday was the only thing that gave me some sort of comfort that I was higher than any of those people I can see from inside here. Now, I don't even have to feel that way anymore. Because I was the most powerful person now. I was the highest in all of my territory and with a plan to become the highest, beyond the walls of my territory. It's only being a day and the duties I've had to oversee were so much and I knew they would leave me drained for days. As much as I detested the Luna, I have to give it to her that she did a good job at handling the Pack matters as a female. It was why I expected her to go ballistic when I made the decree. I'm sure somewhere down there, the people I assigned to her have already began packing her things out of her Chambers. Standing from across me in the room, she was literally fuming at me. Her eyes were red with rage. "I thought you would have left by now. Why are you still here?" I asked, feigning ignorance even when I was the reason for her current misery. "You bastard!" She seethed. "Watch your words! I won't hesitate to change my mind and send you out of the pack instead of a small house by the outskirts of the pack where I am giving you a privilege to lead a different life." She scoffed. "Privilege? You mean imprisonment? Because that's what it is! How dare you even think of sending me out of my husband's home!" "It's not his home anymore. And it's not yours either. You're no longer the Luna of this pack and I don't see any reason why you should be around my palace. I'm giving you a chance to rest from your duties all these years, am I being too lenient?" She burst into a hysterical laughter that made her eyes water as she did. I stood there, waiting for her to finish up her display of what seemed like madness to me. I took the chance to look her over. She's changed overnight. The confidence and pride isn't there anymore. Her shoulders have sagged and head wasn't so high up in the here any more. She's powerless. And nothing has ever felt so fulfilling. Even winning the fight didn't make me feel as satisfied as seeing my tormentor in total ruin. "In just a day, you've changed so much when you only got lucky! You got lucky! I was looking forward to you losing so I can finally throw your worthless self out of this pack. Just a taste of power in a day and you've gone ballistic! Thinking you can get rid of me! It doesn't change who you are! You are still the son of a thieving mother! A bastard!" She rasped off with shaky voice. I bunched my hands into a fist. Her words still rubbed me off the wrong way even when I was already past it. It's one of the reasons why I knew she had to leave the pack. For my own sanity. I knew I had to take her far away from me where I will never see her again. "You wanted to throw me out? Ahh...how the tables have turned." I said before stalking towards her. She didn't move a muscle and glared at me like she would kill me if I get any closer but I did. I stopped right in front of her and looked her straight in the eyes. "A bastard like me almost killed your son and became the Alpha of this pack. This bastard is going to throw you out either you like it or not. Your words don't matter to me anymore." I paused and the continued, "You've done well. Your faith to the pack will forever be remembered and you have laid a good foundation for me. I have rewarded you in the best way I can and you leave tonight! There will be maids to attend to you. Food and all luxuries will be provided to match your exuberant lifestyle!" "Fine! I'll leave. I had no intention of bowing to a bastard like you anyways. I'll take my so---" "Tybalt stays here." I cut her short. Her eyes widened in their sockets but I didn't wait for any other reaction from her. "What do you mean? What are you going to do with my son? He's coming with me!" "Tybalt is a warrior of the pack. An important asset who has to protect both me and the pack at large. There's no way I'm letting you take him. From now onwards, he guards this palace and answers to me." There was a brief moment of silence at first. I knew she was trying to process my words but I stepped away from before she could reply me. I knew she would go ballistic with the announcement I made but I didn't care. Knowing she was a kettle of sizzling water that would soon blow off, I mind linked Alan to come in and get her away from my room. She lunged at me just as Alan burst the door open and strode over to her. He grabbed her before she could reach him. She struggled with him. For a female, she was really strong and once again, it's the only thing I respect about her. "I'll kill you! I will kill you! I swear on my life that I will kill you if you don't let me have my son! My son will not answer to you. My son will---" The rest of her words faded away as Alan dragged her out of my room and down the stairs of my Tower. I couldn't deny the peace that settled on my soul as soon as she left and I knew I would forever be at peace with her absence. I know what the world will say when they find out I kicked her out of the palace to a secluded part of the pack that no one even visits. She would probably die as a lonely wolf but that was better than sending her out of the pack and into the hands of rogues. People will fear me and say things behind me but I didn't care. This is my pack now and they will all go by my rules. My first plan is to remove anything standing in my way of ruling the pack well and I've succeeded in doing that. Alan came back after a few minutes. I was standing by the window and watching the entourage of different packs getting into their carriages and preparing to leave. "I'm sorry for not handling the situation well." Alan said. "It's fine. I needed the closure anyway." "But do you think it's a good idea..." I turned to him as he trailed off on his words "I mean, to let Alpha prince Tybalt stay here. I don't think he's going to let it go. His mother's exile and his loss." I could understand Alan's concern because I already thought of it too. But sending Tybalt out of the pack wasn't as easy as sending his mother out. She was old and me sending her out in the guise of her resting was still a good enough excuse. Tybalt couldn't leave like that as much as I wanted to oust him out. Besides, he has to be around to see me step up higher as the Alpha. "How is he taking it?" I asked Alan. Something below my tower caught my eyes as I saw the entourage I recognized as the ones from the Moonstone pack, loading up their things to leave the pack. "So far he hasn't done anything rash and that's unusual." "Keep an eye on him." "Yes, Alpha." "The princess...has she joined the entourage?" I asked Alan. He hesitated before making answering and saying yes. There was something strange about Alan but I didn't want to dwell on it. I could tell he was in shock about the entire thing. Finding my mate and her turning out to be the Princess of the Moonstone pack. It was the greatest surprise of my life. When she came to my room a few minutes to the duel, I was elated to see her and then right in front of me, after telling me she had something she needed to say to me, she pulled the sash off her face and her beautiful face almost knocked the air out of me. And when she told me her name, the completion of the one syllable I hung onto because she was unable to complete it before the Luna appeared. . Ilvira. The humble princess who pretended to be a maid because she wasn't interested in sitting through the festivities. She told me she was sick and tired of things like that and wanted to be free. It's why she pretended to be a maid but got sent to my room unknowingly. While listening to her, I missed out on asking her why she ran at first since she wasn't just any maid and she didn't mention it too but I didn't care. I loved that she was humble and smart. Someone like that got to be my mate even if I would have accepted her either way because she was perfect either way but I guess luck was on my side and I knew our union would strengthen relations with her pack. I knew that finally, I would be happy. Happy and fulfilled. "Start preparing our entourage to their pack to get her the traditional way. We leave in two days."