Patricia could not get over what she saw. Calhoun looked lifeless, sunken to the bottom of his bath. How come he was seated on his throne by the next morning? She had run away after she screamed. She even went the opposite way so that she would not be seen leaving the king's chamber in such a rush.
"My King." She greeted, bowing deeply to show her respect, although it was just a means to cover her fear.
"Patricia," Calhoun called. "Where have you been all morning?"
"My king I.." she paused. What was she supposed to say? That she saw him sunken in his bath and assumed he had died? "I was in the servants' room."
Calhoun's brow came up in a questioning manner. "The servants' room?"
"Yes, My King," Patricia said and nodded severally to prove her point.
Calhoun chuckled. "What were you doing in the servants' room? You are supposed to serve me, not your fellow servants."
"No, my king. I must have gotten exhausted and slept off."
"Take her away, she lies." He said lightly. Patricia fell to her knees immediately.
"No, my king! I'll say the truth." She begged.
Calhoun waved his hand and the guards left her alone. "Speak."
"My king, I came to check on you and I found you sunken in your bath. I thought you had died so I got scared and ran into the servants' room." She explained.
"Scared? Why would you be scared if I died?" Calhoun asked in wonderment.
"I... I wouldn't want anything to happen to you." She said softly. Her eyes held an innocence that reminded Calhoun of Diana. He stared at her in silence.
"Leave." He said. Patricia got up, bowed, and left. Calhoun was there with his guards. He stood up from his throne and was about to retire when George ran into the room.
"George!" Calhoun scolded. "What has got you running in this manner?"
"My king, the.. the other kingdoms." George paused to catch his breath. "They are raising an army to fight us."
"Did they tell why?" He asked nonchalantly.
"They said we let out a loose wolf who went on a rampage, disturbing and terrifying their villagers," George said.
"Did we?" Calhoun asked as if he was in thought. George shook his head. He knew they didn't.
"Well, that's just sad now. How can they attack us based on useless assumptions? And what did they say they wanted?"
"They failed to mention, my king. I only heard them say we either bring out the rogue wolf for them to kill or we would face the consequences."
Calhoun tsked. "Tell them I await their consequences."
"My king! Perhaps one blood pack was too little for us, but having three kingdoms against us isn't a good thing at all. We don't even know what they are up to."
"Are you afraid?" Calhoun inquired. "Is that fear I smell?"
"Never, my king!" George swore.
"Call Felix and Evander. Tell them I wish to see them as soon as possible." Calhoun said. If his right-hand man wasn't going to be brave, at least he would need his beta and gamma for the job. George bowed and left his presence. The moment he left, Calhoun's eyes narrowed in the distance. He was left with a strange thought and he only hummed. He could feel the stare of his guards at the back of his head but he wasn't in the least bothered about it.
He turned very slowly, giving whoever was staring at him enough time to stop staring. Without sparing them a glance, he turned to the left passage then he stopped abruptly. The guards stopped as well. He turned to the right passage instead.
"Don't follow me. Remain here and inform George where I went." He ordered. The guards paused in their steps. Calhoun went into the passage and then he stopped before the stairs. Rather than climbing up, he decided to continue strolling down the passage. He walked down, staring at the paintings of his parents and grandparents. His uncles and aunts had visited and fled during the overthrow of the kingdom. He stopped at the other stairs. That one leads to the north tower.
He climbed the stairs slowly, processing his thoughts and everything else. When he arrived at the top, he saw George approaching with Felix and Evander. He exhaled sharply. Why did they have to come immediately after he arrived at the top? He hated having to go up and down.
Nevertheless, he stood up there, staring at the vastness of his kingdom. Perhaps the reason he missed her so much must be because he loves her.
George arrived with the men he was asked to bring and he wasn't surprised when he didn't find Calhoun on his throne.
"Men, the King must have gone to his tower again." He said, "What passage did he follow?"
The guard pointed to the right. The three men followed in the same direction as the king had done.
"First or second stairs?" Evander asked.
"It would be the second. The first one will also lead to the west tower and he would have just followed the left passage if he wanted to go there." George explained. "Let's head to the second."
They climbed up and met Calhoun leaning slightly on the railing. His entire focus was on the view before him but they also knew that he knew they were behind him.
"Smart of you to join me here." Calhoun commended. "I don't think I would have been leaving here anytime soon too."
"My king." Evander bowed. "George tells us you wish to see us."
"Correct, Evander. You see, George brought a complaint to me this morning from the other kingdoms. According to him, they want us to fetch for them, the rogue wolf we sent on a rampage to trouble their villagers."
Evander had a confused expression and he shared a glance with Felix who was equally confused. "Pardon me my king but I think I heard you say, rogue wolf we let on a rampage."
"Correct," Calhoun said. "So I brought you both here since you're my second in command." He said, pointing to Felix, "and you're my third in command." He said, pointing to Evander.
"George, what exactly do they want?" Felix asked. He didn't know why they were all against them. Neither of them knew what was going on, except for George. Living with the king had made him shrewd and he could put two and two together to know that Calhoun was the rogue wolf who went on a rampage.
"I believe they're angry since they think king Calhoun sent a rogue wolf to disturb their peace," George answered. "I don't think we have any wolves who would dare to trespass in such a manner, knowing fully well that the king would not take it lightly with them."
"That's sick," Evander commented. "Well we should try meeting these people, we need to sit and discuss."
"Evander, you have been with me for so long and you still approach matters with a sit-and-discuss intention?" Calhoun mocked. "Are you getting more stupid?"
Evander quietened. "Pardon me, my king. But if they only want the wolf, we can also have them explain why they think the wolf is from Wisteria."
Felix considered it as well. It was true. "Pardon me my king, but Evander has a point. They don't have proof that the wolf came out from Wisteria, so how can they just point accusing fingers at us? We could have also been framed! We could have also been disturbed. Do they consider that as well?"
"I think this is a setup. They probably just want to wage a war and since they're three against one of us, they think this is the way they can finally take king Calhoun out of the picture."
Calhoun listened to his subjects discuss ways in which they could protect his kingdom even without knowing that he was the one who caused the problem. He smirked proudly. They had sure learned from him, and they learned well.
"My king, I think Felix and I should go and pay visits to the other kingdoms. The way they would react to our presence would let us know if they truly have proof or they just want to see the end of Wisteria." Evander said.
Calhoun nodded. "Do whatever you think is right. I have only informed you so that when I do act, you wouldn't say I'm too cruel."
Evander chuckled awkwardly. He was the one who said that to Calhoun when he killed a guard in a very brutal way for stealing from his chamber. The other servants had shivered in fright that day.
Felix and Evander bowed and left Calhoun's presence. George remained with Calhoun.
"Are you not leaving as well?" Calhoun muttered. "People tend to leave me."
"You are the rogue wolf, right?" George asked. Calhoun tsked in response. He was truly proud of George for picking up the hints and putting things together. It showed how smart he was.
"My king, doing things like this is so dangerous!" George warned. "Imagine if you were shot."
"You should know that I cannot easily die. That's why despite the threats and battles, I remained the cruelest Alpha King." Calhoun bragged.
"Yes. And not many people are happy about that."
"Hm, that's all they can be," Calhoun said. "Unhappy. It's not like they can do anything to me. Even silver bullets cannot harm me."
"You can't be so sure about that." George refuted. "Just because you read a silly prophecy about some whack words from a drunk sorcerer, it doesn't mean you should begin to live recklessly. You are not only the Alpha of the Wisteria pack, but you're also the king of the Wisteria kingdom."
"What is the difference, George? Diana left me." Calhoun said. "And then the prophecy is true! I'm impotent! I couldn't get any woman pregnant to bear a child for me. Which means when I die, my throne will eventually leave the Montego bloodline."
"You can't be sure about that either," George said. "Perhaps you can find your mate. Or perhaps you have found her. Nevertheless, you shouldn't base your entire life on some jumbled words of a drunk man."
Calhoun chuckled. "My mate? I don't think I would ever want another mate at this point."
George stared at his king who used to be so cold and unemotional. "And why is that?"
"Because George, I am in love with Diana." He said.
"Then maybe she is your mate as well," George said. Calhoun kept silent at his words. George also didn't bother to say anything else so he left. Calhoun resumed his stare. Diana was his mate? Could Diana have been his mate? Was that why, despite not admitting to himself, he always wanted to have her around? Was that why everything she did began to arouse a sexual urge within him?
"What if she doesn't know and then she marries someone else?" He whispered. "There's no way she wouldn't know!"
"Perhaps that's why she gave herself to me so willingly? She didn't put up a fight when I started touching her."
As he whispered, his mind went back to the night they spent together.
Unknown to Calhoun, someone was eavesdropping on his solo talk. The lady had a grim expression on her face. If Calhoun believed that Diana was his mate, he wouldn't ever want another woman. She had to ensure that he forgot about Diana. She didn't know how she was going to do it, but all she knew was that she had a new mission.
Calhoun reminisced about the event and then he was forcefully brought out of his reverie by the sound of someone yelping in pain. The cry was so soft and without thinking, he called out.
"Diana!" He raced over to the stairs, expecting to see Diana on the floor, injured or hurt. Rather than that, he saw his maid fall at the foot of the first set of stairs with her dress all over the place, exposing what was left of her thighs. Calhoun swallowed.