Chapter 54

• Lone Wolf
• ALPHA ZACHARY. How I'd briefly forgotten the existence of the only other person who made life a living hell for me while growing up made me question my sanity and how soon it took me to forget my moments of pain. All things considered, forgetting Luna Hegna didn't sound like too much of a big deal because she was out of sight and miles away from the pack, at its outskirts, leading a quiet life and probably cussing me out everyday. Tybalt hid himself well out of sight too but he was still all around my pack and lived within the same walls with me yet I forgot all about my brother. My brother who almost killed me at the duel and maybe has tried and failed a few other times before that. It was more than me being forgetful. It was me letting my guard down without realizing it. It was me thinking less of how I came to be on this throne as an Alpha and more of me being on this. It was me being distracted by everything required of me as an Alpha and maybe by the maid I was still unable to get off of my mind. I must have thought I had it all in control, ordering my Beta to keep a close watch on him and his movements but I guess I should have known Tybalt better than that. He was nothing but a sly snake who I knew better than to believe or trust whatever comes out of his mouth or whatever he makes you believe. Lone wolf? Who was he kidding? Tybalt was nothing like that. I knew better and I am saying it, it was all a show. Considering the kind of brother I grew up with, I didn't need anyone to tell me what it was. Apart from his strength and his title, Tybalt fed on the attention he got from everyone in the pack since he was everyone's favourite and of course, the same one between us. Up until now, I've never seen him lead a quiet life and on many occasions, he doesn't have to be announced before you know that he is coming your way. Tybalt organized late night feasts and meaningless parties that he invited a lot of other spoiled Princes of other packs to, carelessly making use of the resources meant for the pack. He was popular among the women too and I've seen him mess around with one or two maids around the Palace. While the maids feared a single look from me, they melted under his touch. All these, the Luna let slide while being proud of her son's extravagant lifestyle. I never thought of myself good enough to be the Alpha of this pack, I didn't think I deserved it but Tybalt definitely wasn't fit for it either. All I saw the pack becoming while being under him is nothing but ruin. He would throw a fit when he failed to get what he wanted and It was one of the reasons why I didn't send him out of the pack with his mother and ordered that he became one of the guards at the Palace. I remember the day I made the command and both Alan and Serge argued it out with me. "I know you're the Alpha now, big congratulations on that but hold up, are you saying your first order is to let that murderous brother of yours stay in this pack?Do you think he'll sit still and not plot ways to have your head?" "Alpha! I don't think it's a good idea to let the Alpha Prince remain in the pack. The entire woodlands saw him almost kill you at the Duel and we both know he's capable of doing that. Yet you're going to leave him here? And on top of that, as a guard?" Serge argued from the inside while Alan backed it up outside as if the both of them planned it before laying it out to me. Nothing could change my mind though because I knew my brother like the back of my hands. "He'd plot ways to kill me either way; outside the pack or inside. But one thing I know is that he has a greater chance of achieving that outside this pack without me seeing it coming. He had to be here, where I can monitor his every moment. In my pack, I have the greater chance of having his head." My argument had shut them both up and Alan carried out my orders just as I asked him to. Now I think I really should have heeded both their advices and kicked him out. That way, I would have never gotten to see the current look he had on his face as he stood in front of me. That all too familiar look that has been impaled in my brain that I can count the number of times he's stared at me that way. It was the first time I've seen him since I became the Alpha of the pack and his entire being and aura made me feel like he'd jinx the palace for days. He'd really changed. Our resemblance still remained uncanny but I could tell how much weight he'd lost and how empty his brown eyes looked. "Pay your respects to the Alpha, guard." Alan's voice broke into the brief silence the room sank into at Tybalt's arrival. My Beta drew the attention of Tybalt to himself but didn't even flinch at the death glare Tybalt sent his way once he took his eyes off me. The insulting way with which he said the last word was enough for a proud man like Tybalt to want to kill my Beta. Tybalt still had Alpha blood in him but as a Beta, it was part of Alan's nature and job not to cower regardless of the person he gets himself involved with. Alan merely stood and returned the glare. "Leave us," I commanded. Alan turned to look at me with a questioning brow. I assured him with a nod that I was going to be fine without him. What kind of Alpha am I if I can't even handle my brother? Alan nodded and bowed slightly before sending a threatening look in Tybalt's way and letting it linger there for a second or two before turning on his heels and walking out of the room. Tybalt's attention returned to me with a sly smile crawling up his lips. "Zach, you ama–" "It's Alpha to you Tybalt. You're a subject and that's how my subjects refer to me. I won't take any form of disrespect from you." The smile on his face disappeared and I caught brief anger in his eyes which he tried to hide just as soon as it flashed through. He might be good at hiding who he really was from anyone else but not from me. Never from me. "Right right...I never even got to congratulate you but trust me, I had you in mind." I held back an eye roll. Like it was anything new. "You've always had me in mind, Tybalt. I'm pretty sure you still do and that's why you're here." He chuckled, moving around the large space of the throne chamber with long strides while also looking around as if noting a few things he'd missed since he hasn't being here. "I would have been here a long time ago if that's my reason for coming here brother." I ignored his disrespect and focused on making sense of his words that did make sense. Why have I never thought of the fact that Tybalt never showed up in front of me? Considering his temper, I should have expected him to come the next day of the duel after I was announced the Alpha, to throw a fit and ruin the entire day for me. Why did I never see him anywhere around the pack even on the days I had the time to move around and not be cooped up in the throne chamber, signing treaties and whatnot Did he really sit still for the past weeks that rolled into months,without doing anything? Did he really become a lone Wolf? Whatever it was, I knew better than to believe he sat still because he gave up. "Then why are you here Tybalt? If you've stayed away for so long, why are you here?" "You sound scared," he had already stopped in front of the burning furnace in the room that was used to keep the room warm and the cold away. I said nothing in return to his words cause I knew what I felt towards my brother was nothing close to fear. It might be a whole lot of emotions that came together; hatred, caution, fear, desperation–to form a single one that I had no name for. "You don't have to be scared brother. I mean no harm. I was merely doing my job." He paused as if something in the fire caught his attention slightly. I waited for him to continue. "You see, I got assigned to this side of the palace today. Trust me, I rejected it too. The palace is this big and I have to patrol this side? My words mean nothing to anyone in this pack anymore you know? That's how I ended up here. And since I was in passing, I thought it was only right for me to pay my respects." I didn't hold back the snort this time. He didn't respect me one bit and it was written all over him. I didn't know if he's story was true or not, I didn't care, as long as he's Tybalt, he could never be up to any good. "But oddly enough, you weren't in here when I came around even when your Beta clearly stated you were inside... working." He turned away from the furnace to look back at me. The way he drawled his words told me he was onto something. I didn't let him see through me just as he closed himself off. "It's my pack Tybalt...my whereabouts are nothing of concern to you. As a subject, your obligation is to remain here and wait for me if you have anything important to say but I guess you had other matters to attend to." "Stop Zach...don't go down that lane." Serge had been watching the whole exchange between Tybalt and I while fuming inside of me. Now he was trying to tell me to take caution with the bait I just threw at Tybalt. It was me trying to test his intentions. Or maybe it was the gnawing feeling of seeing him with Haera the night before and why he had to be there to save her and then carry her like she was some damsel in distress. Amusement took over his features and I knew that he caught on. "Well...I could say I did have other matters to attend to last night. It was a matter that really needed my attention as the only one who could take charge of that particular matter at that particular moment." His eyes bore into mine as we both tried to read meaning to our reactions. His own gaze was intent. Tybalt was trying to read me and I did my best to hide the fact that he didn't just refer to Haera as 'matter' and then shoved it in my face that he was the only one there to save her. I knew right there and then that Tybalt didn't sit still all along. He knew something more than he should. "That bastard... You should have given me the chance to tear him off at the duel. Now's not the time to exchange words with him, Zach, dismiss him." I blocked Serge out of my mind. I didn't need him trying to reason with me. I needed to know what Tybalt was up to. "What matter was more important if I may ask?" I tossed the bait again. He smirked. "None that concerns an Alpha like you I presume. It's something I believe only lowly workers like me should care about," he responded with a knowing look. I should stop. I really should. Tybalt was better at this game, it could come back to bite me in the butt but I still wanted to push on. The thought of him with Haera was still driving me insane. She's too pure and innocent for someone like him and I think the thought of him hurting her annoyed me more than the thought of him having his hands around her yesterday. "Unless I'm wrong?" He asked tauntingly. I feigned ignorance. "I don't know what you're talking about Tybalt." "Fine then but you know what was strange yesterday, I sensed your scent in the most unexpected place for an Alpha to be...I almost thought you cared about the matter that needed my own attention if your scent was everywhere around. If that's the case then I must be really wrong to think such matters don't concern an Alpha like you." "I warned you..." Serge said quietly. My hands curled into a fist that I kept on both hands of the chair I was seated on. I kept a straight face like his words didn't get to me We were speaking in ways that would be hard for anyone around to understand but we both knew what we were talking about and Tybalt made it pretty clear that I had nothing to hide from me. He sensed me in the kitchen yesterday just as I sensed him before he showed up. I was really a fool to not think about that possiblity of him having any idea I was there. Yet in the most twisted way, we both just laid ourselves out in the open as well as what we've been up to. I was right. Tybalt was better at this game because he had nothing to lose playing it. I on the other hand had a lot I could lose if I played the game the wrong way. I tried to ward off my anger so I could answer him without any form of hardness in my tone but it was hard not to. When I finally collected myself, I gave him the same straight look I've had on my face since he arrived here. "Once again, this is my pack Tybalt. My scent is bound to be anywhere because this pack is mine. Whatever it is that you're yapping about, keep it to yourself and away from my ears." The chuckle that left his lips after my words made me want to give up being peaceful and let my anger get the better of me but still, I held back even as hard as it was. "Fine then. I've come to pay my respects now, haven't I? I will take my leave now so I can return to patrolling the pack and making sure the matter I handled is still holding out well," he said and gave a Curt bow that I didn't expect before turning on his heels and walking away. He stopped when he was only a few inches from the door, took a short pause with his back turned to me before swerving around to look at me again with an evil glint in his eyes. "Be careful Alpha... matters like that could be your downfall." And then he turned to leave while I watched till he disappeared out of sight while also realizing one thing. I started the game but Tybalt me at and it came back to bite me in the butt.