“Which is why you have to take things seriously from now on, Isabela.” Katya sits to my left, joining in on our hushed conversations. “You’re almost eighteen, and with that, you’re going to have to start taking over some of Queen Mother’s responsibilities. Maybe start with going to the family meetings more often?” she suggests, taking my hand in hers.
My older sisters were the ones who took care of me when our mother passed away suddenly. Katarina is considered the golden child. The protective firstborn and the smartest out of the three of us. She aced every etiquette and skill test when we were kids, and now she took over as guardian of the pack, making sure that the elderly and the young were and are taken care of every day.
Katya, on the other hand, is the princess everyone adores. Known for her valor and kind heart, she took over as the Healer of the pack, and she teaches potions and healing techniques to other pack members. They’re both revered and loved, and they embody the picture-perfect royal image everyone expects of them.
Meanwhile, no one’s really paid any attention to me. I’ve been treated as an outcast from the moment I was born. My dark hair and green eyes stand out amongst my blonde-haired and blue-eyed sisters and grandmother. As a child, I’ve been told I was too strong-willed, too stubborn, too tough.
If the birthmark of the chosen one didn’t appear at the center of my back, I bet no one would care if I go rogue. But I have to try to fit in from now on.I need to get other people to trust me. “Yeah, I’m trying to do that now. You don’t think it’s too late, right?” I ask Katya after a moment of silence. The room is starting to get filled now with people I’ve never seen before.
“No, I think it’s great that you’re here too,” she reassures.
“Who are these people anyway?” I point in the direction of a flock of women wearing camo pants and black shirts, sitting near the front of the room.
“They’re warriors.”
“They’re women, though.” I scan the room for males in the same getup but don’t see any.
“We have more women warriors than we do men, which is how it’s always been,” Katarina replies.
My grandmother takes her place at the center of the room, flanked by her Beta and Delta on either side of her. Toward the opposite end of the room, a group of men and women huddle together. They all look a bit rugged and sluggish in appearance, and out of place inside my grandmother’s lavish drawing room.
“Who are they?” I whisper.
“They’re the new Omegas. They couldn’t keep up with any of the skill set training and cannot fight properly. There’s more of them in the estate, doing odd jobs and errands here and there. There’s little room for them in the estate now though. I feel that grandmother’s going to have to… kick them out. Wait, have you never seen one before?” Katarina eyes them too.
I shake my head. “It’s ‘cause you’re either holed up in your room or too busy sneaking out to see your human friends to meet people living in the estate,” Katya intervenes.
Right. I guess I’ve been a little out of touch with my family. I sigh.
“Silence!” my grandmother’s voice rings through the entire room. “We will start the meeting now. If you have an issue you’d like to address before the family, you may do so now. Anyone?” She sits straight on her throne, looking at each and every one of us. A man in his early forties raises his hand. “Yes, what is it?” My grandmother encourages the man to stand.
“Thank you, Your Highness. I’d like to raise a matter of grave importance regarding the inheritor of the crown, Her Highness Isabela.” I whip my head up immediately at the sound of my name.
What did I do now? My grandmother sets her steely gaze at me and nods. A sign for me to stand up, too.
And so, I stand head held high, just like my father taught me. “What about my granddaughter?” My grandmother stares at me, though she’s addressing the man who raised the question.
“Her eighteenth birthday is in a few days, my Queen. Which means at her induction ceremony she will be given new responsibilities. We feel that she may… not be ready, my Queen.” He sneaks a look at me and I start to feel my heart beat faster.
Where is this going?
“We,” he continues, gesturing at the different pack divisions gathered in the room, “don’t feel comfortable welcoming her into any of our respective ranks. She’s never given us a reason to trust her, or shown any initiative to learn about our way of doing things. She’s too unpredictable to trust, Your Highness.” A murmur breaks out in the crowd. Side glances and a couple of sneers are thrown my way but I keep my eyes ahead.
“Hmm, I see what you mean.” My grandmother smirks. “What do you suggest, sir?” She eyes him up and down.
“We elect a new leader,” he requests simply, and the whole room breaks into chaos and disorder. Katya holds my hand reassuringly, though I can sense panic in her too. Katarina’s face is unreadable; she remains silently looking at the people conversing loudly.
“Break tradition? Is that what you’re saying?” a sentinel yells.
“I will not stand for this nonsense! Isabela is the inheritor of the crown, she’s the one tasked to continue the royal bloodline. Her birthright is to be the chosen one.” My grandmother’s voice overtakes the entire crowd and her people fall silent.
“My Queen, I apologize for the hasty statement, but I merely meant that we separate the person leading the pack and the one who continues the bloodline. We need to ensure the survival of the pack, instead of relying on traditions. Especially if we cannot even trust our future leader,” he states, his back turned to me.
My grandmother is glaring daggers at me as if to say “Look at what your irresponsibility has done.” She sighs. “Do you have anything to say, Isabela?” As soon as she utters her question, the entire room turn their heads toward me.
“My birthright is mine to carry from the moment I was born until the day I die,” I declare to the room. “I will never give up my crown.”
Chapter Fifteen