Heart Of A Lycan King
Chapter 23

AIDEN

I was back again to the same damn spot. The darkness and the smell are the only thing confirming my suspicion. I stood frozen, as my body shook from something, and yet, I couldn’t see what it was. The shadows danced in the dark, and it was weird that despite how gloomy everywhere was, I could still see the shadows. Despite my heightened sense of sight, I could see nothing but the shadows.

I could still feel them getting closer.

I shut my eyes tightly, wishing for this to vanish. But no matter how hard I shut them, no matter how hard I wish for the image to disappear, it doesn’t. Instead, my body leaned to the shadows, as though it was being called to them.

Then the pain hit, and a sharp gasp escaped my parted lips as I tried to contain it. It hit again, and I had to bend over, my spine feeling as though it would split into two at any moment. I g*****d, willing for the pain to vanish as it only intensified with each passing second.

Then the shrieks began, loud and eerie. The loud, shrill sound made my skin crawl, and I suddenly felt something hot on the left side of my abdomen. This time, I couldn’t contain it, instead of a g***n, I screamed.

“Argh!” The sound ripped from my lips, and my throat burned. The pain intensified and only then did I notice I had been naked this whole time. I looked down to my abdomen, where the pain was the worst and to my surprise, found a marking there. A drawing.

Then the pain stopped. The darkness vanished. And now, I could see my surroundings. The scent had changed from decayed soil to that of rotten animals, earthy fungus, and spray of skunk. The moon shone through a lattice of leaves, patchy sky, and rumbling clouds. The trees looked dead and lifeless. Nothing moved except for the shadows.

I stared back at them, afraid of looking down to see what the mark on my torso was or what it meant. As the shadows danced more through the tall thick trees, coldness washed over me, and then everything stopped. As though time had been paused.

I couldn’t move. Couldn’t speak. I simply stared. One of the three shadows approached me, and as it got closer, I figured out it wasn’t a shadow anymore. A cloak hung in the air, and no matter how hard I squinted my eyes, I couldn’t see what was in it. Barely visible black trails snake through the undergrowth as it moved, before it finally stopped before me.

It snarled, stretched a single long nail with no finger towards me and tipped my head.

‘The connection has been made. We’ll come for you soon.’ And then, it vanished and everything else as well.

**

Jab, jab, cross. Jab, jab, cross. Cross. Cross. Cross.

Sweat trickled into my eyes, burning me, and I swiped a forearm over my face before slamming a fist into the punching bag again. Whenever thoughts crept back into my head, I hit harder. Too many f*****g thoughts, too many f*****g feelings.

Jab, dodge, hook. Jab, cross.

My arms burned, and I welcomed the pain, welcomed the way it seared everything out of my brain. There was nothing but the hard resistance of the sand in the bag and the jolting impact that shocked up my arm and down my leg.

Jab, jab, jab, cross, cross, cross. Harder. Can I punch the bag straight off its chains? Maybe.

Cross, cross, cross, cross. And then I stopped, bending over to catch my breath. At the same time my eyes caught the mark on the left side of my abdomen.

The head of a two colored wolf.

I had woken up from that weird dream to find the mark I had gotten in my dreams right on my torso. For a better part of the morning, I had spent it wondering what had happened and how that was possible. But nothing came to my mind.

This was the third dream I’d had like this in five days. However, unlike today’s, the first two only had the shadows dancing around me before I woke up. Nothing more.

Today however, I felt pain. And even after I woke up, the pain stung still. And so did the mark. The ink spread down my abdomen, the mouth of the wolf open wide with red streaks on its teeth as though representing b***d. Its eyes were a deep shade of brown.

For some weird reason, the wolf reminded me of Nala, even though I had never seen her wolf. I missed her. So f*****g much.

And so, deciding I didn’t want to dwell on these thoughts too much, I decided to train with a punching bag. My eyes stung and were heavy from the lack of sleep, but I didn’t want to sleep. Not after that dream.

I’ll need to see the High Priestess about this when I get back to Zembele.

The moment I had seen the wolf mark, my first instinct was to call Nala. I couldn’t tell why, but I had the urge to do that. However, when I had woken up from the dream, it was only quarter past 6 in the morning. She must be fast asleep after our call two hours ago.

Hence why I decided against it.

A smile danced on my lips as I recalled our phone call. Just like I thought, space would work wonders. I may be overwhelming her all the time, especially since she’s not so used to emotions like this. Giving her space was all I needed to break the ice. And slowly, I’ll get her used to me and weave my way into her heart. Slowly.

‘I wish I could mind link her,’ Leo said quietly.

‘Leo!’ I called, a sudden sense of relief washing over me. ‘Where the f**k have you been? You blocked me off since your encounter with Nala two days ago,’ I snapped.

‘Says who? I did talk to you after my encounter with her. What do you mean I blocked you off?’

‘Because you did! You only spoke to me once and said to ask Nala if you can talk to her when we return. I’ve heard nothing from you since then. Heck, I couldn’t even feel you.’

‘I was nursing,’ he mumbled, and I could hear the hint of sadness in his voice.

‘Nursing what?’ I asked, sitting down on the bare floor. I stretched one of my legs and curved the other, then placed my left arm on the curved leg and let the other fall to the side.

‘A broken heart,’ he said solemnly.

I stifled a laugh, waiting for him to continue. I knew where this was heading to.

‘I didn’t know it was that bad. She was shaking under my touch, Aiden, and that…broke me,’ he finally finished, and I found I couldn’t laugh anymore.

I had thought it had to do with Nala and the fact that she asked him to take his thumb…my thumb off her lips. I thought he recoiled because his ego had been bruised, but I guess it must have been something entirely different.

‘I mean, I knew she had suffered in her pack, but to what extent, I don’t know. However, I had taunted you about not doing things right around her. Until I touched her…and felt her fear and I caught a glimpse of its extent,’ he mumbled.

‘It’s…’

‘The thought that I had been stupid enough to almost give into my desires made me figure out how much of a fool I was. I nearly ruined everything before it even started. I am just a selfish idiot.’

‘I think that makes the two of us,’ I tried to joke. ‘We both are selfish idiots and that is why we are a team.’

I pondered on his words and realized I had been the only one close to understanding how Nala feels. That was his first one on one encounter with her and he didn’t like it.

‘But she agreed to talk to you when we return, so you are good. She was not angry,’ I offered.

‘And that makes me feel worse. I want her to get angry and tell me how stupid I was,’ he grumbled.

‘Don’t be a pup,’ I teased.

‘Oh! Do not think your ways are better. I’m still very sure if I was the one in charge, she’d have already given in. And maybe, I’d have marked her already. I wonder how it will feel when I finally…’

‘I was waiting for you to mess up. You don’t sound remorseful one bit,’ I said.

‘Why? I am. But I can make it up to her in different ways. And by the time I’d be done, she’d forget the one mistake I made, and everything would be history,’ he boasted.

I ignored him, my mind drifting yet again towards the mark I now had and the dream.

‘When do you plan to talk about what happened this morning?’ I heard Leo ask, his voice suddenly too serious.

‘What are you talking about?’ I asked.

‘I guess you sometimes forget that we are both part of each other. What happened this morning? I couldn’t feel you for a while. And it felt like you blocked me, or that something strong stood between our bond,’ Leo explained.

‘Our connection was lost completely?’ I asked. The nagging feeling was back.

‘Yes. I tried to push through it but it didn’t work. When I finally felt the connection was back, you were scared and confused.’

I sighed, wiping the sweat off my face as I ruffled my hair. ‘I don’t know what happened. It felt so real, especially since I woke up with a mark on my body. A mark I had gotten in a dream.’

‘Do you think it has to do with the history of the Lycans? I mean, the Moon Goddess never really liked us after the mistake our ancestors made.’

‘I don’t know, Leo. I plan to visit the High Priestess as soon as I return.’ I answered.

‘That is a good call. I do not like how this makes me feel. It feels as though there’s danger looming,’ he mumbled.

I simply nodded. It did feel that way. But whatever it was, I was certain we’d overcome it.

Loud knocks distracted me from replying, and I glared at the front door. Kane strolled in, a bag strapped on his shoulders.

“Good morning, Your Eminence,” he smiled, hit his chest with his hand and bowed. “I hope you had a wonderful night’s rest?”

“Bastard,” I called with a smile of my own. “I hate when you do this.”

“Show my respects to the King? Why? I’m…ugh!” I tackled him in seconds and before he could react, I had twisted his hand in a tight grip. “I give in! I do! Please, stop this Aiden!” he cried, hitting my arm with his free hand.

“Do you really?” I asked, tightening my hold.

“I do. I promise I won’t address you as that anymore today,” he pleaded.

“Not what I want but I’ll take it for now,” I heaved a breath before I let him go.

“Your zoom meeting with the Elders starts in three hours,” he informed as he swung his hand. “That was painful, you f*****g wicked man!” he hissed.

“I like it when you cuss,” I laughed, taking the tablet he was stretching towards me. “Will Baba be attending?”

“Yes. I saw his name on the list of attendees, so I guess he’ll be there although I don’t think it is necessary. There isn’t much to discuss today except arrangements for the upcoming Kalmanshe festival of the year,” he explained, his eyes sliding down to my exposed upper half, directly to where the mark on the left side of my abdomen was.

I waited for him to say something about it. But apart from his brows creasing, he said nothing.

“That’s in like…two weeks, isn’t it?” I asked as I tapped away on the tablet.

“Yes,” he nodded, coming to stand beside me.

“Great. We begin training in 20 minutes. I hope we are prepared to face those humans tomorrow.”

“I know I am. And I trust the rest of the team as well. Besides, we’ll see the coach and the rest on the training grounds.”

“Okay. Have Kamal visit the Banga clan on my behalf for the Yam festival,” I commanded.

Kamal was my Delta. He’s mostly busy training the warriors and never really likes partaking in politics. This was why not everyone knew him, save for those who had the displeasure of earning his wrath.

“There is something else…” Kane scratched his head. From his reaction, I knew I wasn’t going to like what he was about to say.

“Elder Manze is rallying the other elders against you because of what you did to his son regarding that Omega. I don’t know the full details yet, but I heard he went to the Malakari pack and he and the Alpha had a long meeting behind closed doors.”

“It took him a while to make a move. I have been waiting,” I said with a smile.

“Wait, you mean you were expecting this?” Kane asked bewildered.

“Yup!” I replied, popping the ‘p’ sound. “I deliberately chose to handle the issue that way because I needed a reason to break Matteo’s bones. To rip him apart,” I replied. “I knew he was Elder Mantipus’ nephew. I’m trying to get rid of two fools at the same time.”

“Why am I just now finding out about this?”

“Because I knew you’d never agree with my plan. So I had a little help from Kamal.”

“What did you do, Aiden?”

“You’ll find out when it’s time. Trust me, it’s nothing serious.” I passed the tablet to him and smiled. “Now, let’s go train.”

I pulled a long sleeved white jersey over my head and head out, grateful that Kane seemingly hadn’t caught my new mark. Or could he just not see it?

I ran towards the rest of the guys on the field, and we hugged each other lightly before training began. Today, we were focusing on the technical aspect of football training. It generally includes dribbling, passing, shooting, heading and tackling. But it can also be position specific, particularly for goal keepers. By the time we took a break, I was sweating profusely.

And I missed Nala even more.

So, I jogged to where I kept my bag with my cell phone and pulled it out. Then tapped away on it, clicked on camera and snapped a picture of myself all sweaty, a cheesy grin on my face. Satisfied with how the picture looked, I clicked on Nala’s name before I hit the message icon, added the picture I had just snapped before I began typing away.

‘No daisies where I am this early morning. But would a sweaty Aiden do the trick? Good Morning, Nala.’

**

NATASHA.

“Excuse me, you are 23 years old?” Tiffany asked wide eyed as we both stared at Lacie. It was almost 10 in the morning, and all three of us were seated outside the house. Today was the first day I was taking interest in exploring every inch of the bungalow that sat on the far end of a mostly green lawn.

It had a screened in front porch where we currently sat, and a garage with two beautiful cars resting in it. One was the white BMW Hurricane we had travelled in four days ago and the other was a black Toyota Camry. They looked breathtaking, shining when the now glaring sun shone through the window onto them. The house had five rooms in total, each had a bathroom in it. There were two living rooms and a large kitchen. Two of the rooms were at the top of the house, just a bit above the other three rooms. One you needed to climb seven steps to reach. The room Aiden and I shared was one of those at the top.

Now, as we sat outside the porch with chilled hibiscus drink and fruits set before us, it felt natural. I had never done this.

Although I felt uncomfortable sitting here and laughing with the girls while the two middle aged women were busy cleaning every inch of the house, I still tried to enjoy it. So I shoved the thought of that, and that of the shadows back and faced the women.

But one thought kept lingering back. Aiden.

I missed him.

“Why do you all look surprised? Do I look too old for my age?” Lacie asked as she sipped her drink.

“No. Of course not. I didn’t mean it that way,” I hurriedly said.

“Neither did I,” Tiffany added.

“Ease up, ladies! You can be comfortable around me. I don’t bite,” Lacie said with a smile.

I forced a smile as well, and sipped my drink, its coolness rolling down my throat and settling my nerves.

“How old are you, Nat?” she continued.

“20,” I mumbled.

“And I’m 21,” Tiffany said before she was asked. “I turned 21 three months ago.”

“That’s awesome!” Lacie clapped her hands after she had set her cup down.

“I already know you are from the Malakari pack, Nat. What pack are you from, Tiffany?”

“The Ngunli pack. I am a Ngunlian,” she replied.

“Ooohhh! The one with the cattle!” Lacie screamed. “Do you know how to squeeze milk from them? Or make ghea? Oh Goddess! I love the taste of ghea in local soups!” She leaned back on the wooden chair and sighed.

“Uhmn…I…” Tiffany clasped her hands together, and I immediately understood what she was feeling. Anxiety. Fear.

“And what pack are you from, Lacie?” I asked, shifting the attention from Tiffany.

“My parents had an inter pack marriage. Just like Aiden’s parents. My mum, as I’m sure you know, is the twin sister of Aiden’s mum. They are from Langa Mandala pack. And my dad is part of the royal household from the capital, just like Aiden’s. My dad and Aiden’s dad are cousins.”

‘That is a weird family connection and I do not like it,’ Erin murmured, still weak from our encounter with the unknown…with the shadows from last night. After the encounter with the shadow, and our connection was temporarily severed, everything seemed as though it ceased.

For almost an hour, I couldn’t move. Couldn’t feel Erin. Couldn’t fathom what was going on. And then just like the way the connection vanished, it returned. It took Erin another hour before she spoke to me, and when I had asked her what had happened, she said she had no idea. And didn’t know how to begin explaining.

So I let her be. And she had been mostly quiet for a large part of the morning.

‘I sometimes think she’s trying to show us she’s known Aiden all her life,’ I said to Erin, eyeing Lacie.

“My mum is also from the Langa Mandala pack,” I finally said, the small smile still intact on my face.

“Then you know about the ‘Dandali’ and the dance under the moonlight?” Lacie was exceptionally intrigued now.

I laughed. Hearing her talk about Dandali and the dance under the moonlight brought back fresh memories of my parents. I had been to Langa Mangala just a handful of times, and I always look forward to night time so we can go to Dandali, dance, chat, and tell stories under the moonlight.

Abba told me he’d met my Umma on one of those nights. He had visited an old friend of his and the friend had invited him to Dandali. My mum, as an Omega, was part of the women who sell small chops for the packhouse and hers was kolanut. Old wolves enjoy chewing on it and spitting the red spit after a while.

Abba had said Umma had tied a single ankara wrapper around her waist, which reached her ankle, and wore a white polo shirt, with a head tie the same color as her wrapper she had and danced.

I could see the picture vividly, because I had been there. I had witnessed those kind of dances.

And I wanted to witness it again. Just so I could feel a connection to my Umma.

“Yes. I know how to do most of the dances there and know some of the songs as well,” I replied with a shy smile.

“I have always found the dance, language, and culture of the Mangalians to be amazing!” Tiffany chirped in.

But before I could reply, Lacie gasped as she stared at her phone before she quickly stood up.

“s**t! I’m late for class!”

We sat quietly as we watched her drive away. Her car had been parked nearby but I hadn’t really paid it any attention.

“She talks a lot,” Tiffany said quietly. “I hope you don’t mind?”

“No, I don’t,” I smiled.

We were silent after that. I wanted to ask her how she sustained her bruises, but I was afraid I’d be crossing the line. I’d instantly flip if she were to ask me that.

“So, how do you feel about being the King’s mate?” I heard her ask.

“It still feels unreal, although I want to believe it, there are times I think this isn’t real.”

“I was sold to a Lycan by my step father,” she murmured. “My father is dead, so my mother remarried. You know how it is almost nearly impossible for Omega’s to find a mate. Both men were not her fated mates. They were chosen mates. He hated me.”

“Because you aren’t his daughter?” I asked.

“Because I wouldn’t get intimate with him,” she replied quietly, her eye dropping to her clasped hand.

Most of her bruises had vanished like mine, and it made me happy. My bruises had never fully had time to vanish. Until now.

“I don’t understand…” then it dawned on me what she meant. My eyes widened, and my lips parted in shock. “He…he…”

“Yes,” she nodded. “He wanted me. And because I didn’t agree, he told my mother that I was trying to seduce him, and so, he was going to sell me to whoever is buying so I wouldn’t ruin their marriage. My mother never objected, and that was how I ended up in the capital at the house of Elder Manze. I was the only child my mother had with my father before he died. But I had three step siblings. Two boys and a girl. As nomads, which is what my pack specializes in, my father was one of the Omega’s chosen to be a herdsmen, looking after the cattle, and he always took me with him when he went on such trips.”

“After his death, and Mother remarried, my life became a mess. After arriving to the capital, I had thought things would be easier, that is, until I had met the first son of the Elder who also wanted me intimately. I think he was drunk on the day he tried to rape me, but I was saved and I still don’t know who saved me. That was how the King found me and I’m here with you now. That is pretty much everything about me,” she finished with a smile.

How was it easy for her to talk about this?

“Did…did he hit you?” I asked timidly.

“Almost every day since I refused to give myself to him. It lasted for 3 weeks and I slowly got used to it.”

“How do you speak about this so easily?” I finally asked the question disturbing me.

She smiled. “For some reason, I just thought of sharing this with you, and it made me feel better,” she answered.

In that moment, I wondered if I’d feel any better if I wrote something in my diary.

“I’ll go get us more drink,” she said as she stood up.

I followed her with my gaze, wishing I had enough confidence to speak about my past like she did.

‘Every individual is carved differently. Some forget easily. Some find it easy to share gruesome parts of their past, some don’t. Go at your pace, Nat,’ Erin said.

The beeping of my phone stopped me from replying, and even before I had seen the name, my lips stretched in a small smile. I had been waiting since I woke up, waiting for his call. Or his text. It could be anything and I would be happy. I just needed to hear from him.

I picked the phone up from the table and swiped before the message icon popped and I saw Aiden’s name.

I tapped on the screen and my lips stretched even wider. I was seeing a picture of him all sweaty, with his hair falling to his face as always, a cheesy grin that had the edge of his eyes a bit creased, and the warmth in them.

My stomach tightened in knots, and I simply wanted to lick the sweat from off of his face while breathing in his intoxicating scent.

Goddess! I am turning into a mess!

‘Are you going to reply or just stare at him?’ Erin teased.

I snickered, then began typing away on the phone.

N- ‘Ewww! That is gross. I’m sure daisies would have been better.’

I hit send and leaned back against the chair, thinking if I’d be this comfortable if he were around. I began thinking if the response I sent was right, or if It’d piss him off. Honestly, I was just trying to make it funny and show him I am willing to do this, but now after I had sent that message, I wasn’t so sure if I did the right thing.

My phone beeped again and I quickly sat up, afraid of the response I would see.

A- You did not just say that, Nala. But I won’t take any offense. Just wanted to let you know I miss you sooooo much!’

I didn’t know what to say to that. Because I wasn’t expecting a reply like that. I thought he’d be…angry. Sighing, I typed a simple reply.

N- How is training?’

A- Not much fun. How about a video call so I can see your face as well and show you the training pitch?’

I stared at the message, thinking. But thinking too much is never a good thing. And I wanted to see him. To watch as he speaks. And he smiles. So I typed my answer and hit send.

N- Yes.