Lucian's POV
Surrounded by mournful faces, I felt completely isolated and helpless. My father had spent his life punishing, manipulating, or killing these very people. Yet, they were the only ones who showed up for his funeral.
"Where is your Beta? Jalin, is it? Such an admirable young man. I haven't seen him lately," Alpha Siluria of the Ocean Howler Pack leaned towards me and inquired.
He was almost as old as time itself, having served three kings in a row. Now, he was about to serve me. I wondered if he would live to see my funeral.
"Alpha Siluria, it's always a pleasure to talk with a loyal subject like you," I responded curtly.
Just then, chaos erupted in the crowd. People stepped back, revealing Alpha Mick striding into the graveyard, carrying a severely mutilated woman’s body in his arms. For a heart-stopping moment, I thought he was holding Leah, and I nearly leaped from my chair. But as Mick laid the body on the ground, the woman's head lolled toward me, and I realized it wasn’t Leah.
Mick's voice trembled as he shouted, "Your Highness, my mate and the love of my life, Clara, was attacked by an enhanced werewolf today. Now she’s dead."
Gasps of horror rippled through the crowd. I frowned, staring at the woman’s body. Her chest cavity was torn open - a truly gruesome sight.
Alpha Siluria stood and addressed Mick, "Alpha Mick, I understand your grief in losing your mate, but this is His Majesty's funeral. It's highly inappropriate to show up like this."
Mick’s voice rose, filled with anger and despair, "Some members of Lycan family have been conducting illegal and unethical experiments on werewolves in Mediland. They're also secretly running the slave market at the expense of fpeople in Mediland! The enhanced werewolf had Lycan strength but wasn’t a Lycan. He used to be an average werewolf like you and me! Now, he’s a killing machine on the loose, and there's no way to stop him! Your Highness, what do you have to say about this?"
The graveyard was eerily silent, the tension so thick it felt tangible. Alpha Siluria spoke first, his voice calm yet firm, "You are tormented by the loss of a family member, Alpha Mick. I understand the weight of your sorrow. However, His Highness is also grieving a family member now. Perhaps you should step back and refresh yourself?"
Mick, ignoring the suggestion, continued with fury in his eyes, "The monstrous brute who murdered my newly wedded Luna serves your sister, Her Highness Leah! Where is Leah? I need to confront her! She must be held accountable!"
Rory stepped forward, calmly asserting, "Alpha Mick, you've heard His Highness. You must calm down and leave."
In a fit of rage, Mick shoved Rory away, sending him sprawling to the ground. Rory, taken by surprise, couldn't react in time.
Mick's voice rose again, "Your Highness! I demand to see Leah! She must answer for..."
I stood, my presence commanding the room. Helping Rory to his feet, I addressed Mick in a steady, intimidating tone, "You barged into my father’s funeral, accused a Lycan of murdering your wife on a Full Moon night, demanded your pound of flesh, and physically assaulted my people before all the Alphas in the Kingdom."
Mick, feeling the weight of my Lycan dominance, instinctively retreated a few steps, falling silent.
"Your behavior is erratic and disrespectful," I continued. "The royal guards will now escort you to the clinic, where you will undergo drug and alcohol testing." I lowered my voice menacingly, "You had better hope the tests find something, or your actions will be deemed an affront to the Lycans."
Just then, as the guards moved forward to take Mick away, a woman darted from the crowd, rushing to my father's casket. She clung to it, wailing, "Your Majesty! I'm so sorry I arrived too late! I couldn't protect you just as I couldn't protect my husband and newly wedded daughter-in-law! What kind of mother fails her son? What kind of Alpha can't shield his subjects? What kind of Betaire can't protect his King? The world is unraveling!"
"Who is that?" I asked with a frown.
"It's the late Alpha Dire's wife," Alpha Siluria replied quietly.
"His wife? I thought that old witch had died," I said.
"His second wife, Jessica Fay. Younger, more sinister, and far more unhinged," Alpha Siluria clarified. "Apologies, Your Highness, I meant to say witch."
As we spoke, the woman, Jessica Fay, sprang up and defended Mick from the soldiers. "Stay back! I will not be weak again! No one will harm my son!" She then fixed her gaze on me, venom in her eyes, "You've taken your father and sister's lives, but you will not take my son's!"
I narrowed my eyes, feeling the weight of the scene before me.
"This is a circus," I thought as I gazed at my father's casket. For a moment, I wished we could trade places.
Alpha Siluria tried to comfort me, "Your father used to say that being a Lycan King was like eating a pile of shit served on a golden plate every day."
"Well, here's my plate of shit today," I muttered, rubbing my temples.
"We're here on behalf of the people from Mediland! We demand to know the truth about the laboratory and the slave market! And we demand the Court to hand over the murderer of my husband and my daughter-in-law!" Jessica cried out, raising her arms before collapsing to her knees beside the casket, "Look what they've done to my baby!"
Alpha Siluria stepped in, "If you want the Court's help, you need to play by the Court's rules. Baseless accusations will get you nowhere."
Jessica rose, her eyes filled with fire, "Baseless?! I have proof! I'll show you right now!"
As her voice trailed off, a familiar figure appeared at the entrance. My blood ran cold.
No. Fucking. Way.
Tall, pale, with golden-framed glasses and a impeccably tailored suit.
"Long time no see, Your Highness," Jalin bowed slightly, a malicious smirk playing at the corner of his mouth.
How dare he? My jaw clenched. How dare he show his face here after what he did to Leah? And to me?!
"Your Highness, I come in peace. I am only trying to save my Alpha's life."
"Your Alpha?" I narrowed my eyes further.
"Yes, Your Highness," Jalin enunciated every word with calculated precision. "I am now Alpha Mick Toussaint's Beta, and I request a private audience."
I nodded to Rory, who allowed Jalin to approach.
As he leaned closer, he whispered, "I came back for revenge, Lucian."
Keeping my temper in check, I replied in a low voice, "I've never wronged you. I've treated you like a brother."
"I know," Jalin murmured, glancing at my father's coffin, "but the one I truly hate is lying in that box. So you'll have to take the fall for him."
"Then you leave me no choice. I will have you arrested right now," I said, forcing a smile to mask my rage.
"I know where Leah is," he responded quietly.
That was the last straw. I grabbed his collar, fury boiling over. "If you harm her..."
He ignored my threat and continued, "I'll tell you where she is, but only if you make a public confession before the entire Kingdom."
"A confession? About what?!" I demanded, eyes burning into his.
A cruel grin spread across Jalin's lips. "About every vile thing that old bastard did in his long, pathetic life. I want you to do it right here, right now, during his obituary."