Forged In The Flames By Karima Sa’ad Usman
Chapter 58 The Committee (Nikolas’ POV)
We soon arrived at the palace. It was an old stone wall building like mine. It wasn’t in disrepair, and they had upgraded the place, but they had maintained the old features, which gave it an elegant and antique look. We alighted the car, and Qusack handed the car keys to the valet to park. My mother stood at the entrance and looked at the building. I saw tears stream down her cheeks; she was reliving her memory of the past. She was frozen to the spot.
“Fred didn’t let me enter, you know,” She said and looked at me.
Tears in her eyes. This was a real pain, not the pretence she put up just so she could have her way.
My mother was wearing her pain on her sleeves.
‘‘He did not let me in. They took my nannies from me. I was heavily pregnant, and Fredrick could not look upon me with pity,” she said.
“I was kneeling here pleading that he let me in. I told him my husband was dead and those werewolves had taken over Forest. I told him I needed shelter. This was also my home. I grew up here,” She said, wiping away her tears.
“He said I was useless. He called me a disgrace. Said I should have died with my husband. Said it was shameless of me to accept a werewolf’s kind gesture. He said he had no kingdom to share with me since I could not rule what was already mine by marriage,” She said and sniffled.
“I told him I just needed shelter and would return when my child was of age, and he laughed. He took my nannies and chased me away. Looking back now, I wonder how I made it alone. Out there with no one to help me and nowhere to go. I thought of crossing the sea, but the three kingdoms were all I had ever known. I was trapped,” she said, and I went to hold her. She had never shared this pain with me before. It was profound, and it hurt her deeply. I wondered why Fredrick would be cruel to his own sister. It was a shame.
I held her hand, and we entered the palace. My mother looked at the place like a stranger. It was clear the building had been modified a great deal.
We were ushered to the hall where the meeting was to be held.
People were already present.
I somehow knew King Aleksander was around.
With just thirty minutes to go, I knew everyone would be around other than Fredrick. We entered the hall, and people began to murmur when they saw us.
We were led to a place that had seats reserved for Forest. There were six seats altogether, but only four of us had come.
I noticed people looking and whispering. Some even pointed at my mother and me.
I did not know what to make of their actions, but I ignored them. I looked at the throne, and there were two seats there. King Aleksander was already sitting on one.
He looked at me and winked, and then his eyes fell upon my mother. It didn’t linger when he looked away. I knew they might have history, but I wondered how deep it ran.
There was a long table with chairs on one side. It was on a lower level after the throne. Some men were seated there, and they were all looking at us. I knew those were the committee leaders.
There were three empty seats on the table, which were apparently reserved for my nominees and me. The rest of the hall had people. They were just representatives and members of the committee, preferably floor members.
Soon the tall doors on the other side of the hall opened, and a tall, brawny man walked through. Everyone except King Aleksander stood up to pay their respects.
I saw the man emerge, and he looked like my mother.
The resemblance was striking, and I could see myself too.
He was indeed family.
I knew it was Fredrick, and the thought of that alone made me want o sit down and blatantly disrespect this man.
He looked dangerous, with battle scars on his right cheek. He wasn’t peaceful, so he was expected to sustain injuries on his wicked missions. That was what I called what he did. Taking people by force against their will was wicked. I was taking back what was mine by attacking the Forest, but he was stealing what did not belong to him by attacking and bullying others. I had no respect for the bastard.
He went to his throne and sat down. Aleksander extended a handshake, and Fredrik took it. They both bowed to each other, showing they were equal before he sat.
The meeting started.
The head of the committee greeted everyone and told us what was on the itinerary, with my matter being most of it.
“Joining us today is one who claims to be the son of King Mathias Kowalski and the rightful heir to the throne of Forest. He is here to demand his rights. Although he has conquered the territory and taken it back from the werewolves. He would rather be recognised as a Kowalski than a new king should we choose to crown him,” The man I had come to understand was Alpha Olsen Sadowski, who sent me the invite, spoke and nodded at me to stand up.
I stood and bowed to greet the kings and the people in attendance.
“I do not claim to be King Mathias’ son. I am his son, and I have come with my mother to testify to that,” I said, and it was clear that they already did the math.
“Young lad, you do not know why I pushed back,” Frederick said.
“My colleague and I have many reasons why we have decided not to give you the crown yet,” He said and smiled.
“How have you been, Isabelle?” He asked my mother, and she stood up.
“Alive,” she said with venom in her voice.
“I heard you went feral. You are one lucky wolf,” He said and laughed, and some people laughed with him. I was mad but controlled myself. My mother had asked me to do whatever it took to take the crown peacefully, which I would do.
“The Forest did you well, Izzy. I didn’t know a woman like you would have that much fight in her. Pray, tell me what you ate while in the bush,” He said, and it was out of line, but no one dared tell him to be quiet. My mother did not respond to him.
“Now that you have acknowledged she is your sister, and as you can see, she is well, and she isn’t denying that she is my mother, I think my point has been proven,” I said.
Frederick laughed heartily and shook his head in disagreement.
“You look like your mother, but I am sure she did not tell you about her escapades in the palace before you were conceived.” He said, and I frowned at him.
“Come on, Fredrick, the lad has Mathia’s eyes,” Aleksander said, trying to stop him from what he was about to say, but I doubted the man would pass off the opportunity to humiliate his sister.
“Your mother was a whore. A power-hungry one at that. Then she became a cheap one,” He said, smiling.
“Deny it, Izzy?” He challenged my mother, and she couldn’t speak.
“She slept with Leon, Mathias’s half-brother. In fact, she was sleeping with him thinking he would be given the kingship of Forest. She had no interest in Mathias. Leon was the love of her life. The key to making her a queen. Her key to the Forest kingdom. Leon did not tell my sister his mother was a concubine and that he was illegitimate.
She found out when Mathias was named the next inline. They didn’t stop there, really. They continued their love even after she had married Mathais. Some of the Rendezvous was held here. Am I lying, Izzy?” He asked her, and my mother quivered in shame. He wasn’t lying at all.
“Mathias suspected it, but she denied it every time. Then Leon got killed by werewolves, and she was alone. That was when she became cheap. She slept around a lot after that. Some of her lovers were werewolf officers, “she said, looking at her disgusted.
“Gabriel turned her down, you know? My spies told me of her many advances to the King’s Beta,” he said, and I was shocked, but I had heard enough.
“We are not here to discuss my mother, your majesty,” I said as respectfully as possible.
“But we are, young lad. I am telling you this so you will know why I doubt you belong to
Mathias even though you might have his eyes. Looks can be deceiving, you know. There is no guarantee that she was pregnant by Mathias at the time of his death, and there is no way to find out. So, stop trying to claim you are a Kowalski,” He said; everyone was silent. I linked Abraham immediately.
“Does his argument hold?” I asked Abraham. “I am afraid so. If your mother’s fidelity is in question, then there is no guarantee you are Mathias’s blood. She should have told you this. We would have come up with a better argument.” Abraham said, sounding a bit annoyed.
“Tell him you took the Forest from the current leader, so it is yours regardless of what he thinks about your mother,” Abraham linked me back, and I looked at King Fredrick.
“Well, my mother did not tell me everything but thank you for the history lesson. Regardless I know I am King Mathias’ son. Nonetheless, I still have the right to be crowned because I conquered Forest and took it from the people ruling it. It is my right to ascend as King.” I said, and Fredrick laughed.
“Well, for that to happen, young lad, there are many boxes you have to tick. You must achieve a long list of things for my colleague and me to deem you worthy of being equal.” He said, and Aleksander chipped in.
“This is wrong, Fredrick. He looks like Mathias, and you know Isabelle. Why do you want to put him through stress over his birthright?”
Aleksander asked, showing that their opinion was divided.
I was grateful to the Hill King because I was beginning to feel alone. My mother had disappointed me ultimately.
“Let’s not talk about heirs. In that case, then, they are two. A possible bastard by my dear sister Izzy and Mathias’ illegitimate heir by his fated werewolf mate whom I have raised as my nephew for years,” Fredrick said, and people gasped. I didn’t. I knew he was heading there.
“You bastard!! How could you, Fred!!” my mother called, and Olsen banged the gavel.
“You will address his majesty with respect Luna,” he warned her and I could see how unfair the Lycan world was. Fredrick had insulted my mother and his sister, and no one cautioned him, but my mother’s outburst was reprimanded immediately. It was a sad situation.
“Olive’s baby died. Leon buried her and the child.” My mother said, and he laughed.
“She had twins, Izzy. One survived, but Leon did not want a half-breed to be heir to the Forest kingdom, so he sold the child to me as a slave. I raised him as my distant relative,” Fredrick
said, and she was in shock. It didn’t seem like the King was lying either. I began to suspect
Gabriel might have told his daughter the truth about Leon. He seemed like a conniving bastard. If he wasn’t, why bring his lover to my father to marry? I had a lot of digging to do. My mother had lied to me too much for me to be relaxed right now.
“So, what is the way forward, your Majesty?” Olsen asked King Fredrick
“Those in favour that we give him the crown assuming his Mathias’ son say, Aye,” Fredrick said, and Aleksander and the people in Hill community said, Aye.
Fredrik did not like it.
The number of those in support was counted, and it totalled twenty-three.
“Those not in favour say, Nay,” Fredrick said through gritted teeth. He was mad at
Aleksander. The Hill king had stuck his neck out for me. I hoped he would not regret it.
People from the Snow kingdom, along with two alphas from the Hill kingdom, said Nay, giving a total number of Twenty-seven people.
Even if I placed Qusack and Abraham in the council and they voted in favour, it would not show the result in my favour.
“So it is clear that we look at the other matter,” Olsen said, and my mother gritted her teeth.
She had cost me this, not Aliana or the werewolves. It was her fault for being loose and lying to me.
“Well, there are things expected of you to fulfil, and once you have done it all, we can consider having another hearing on the matter,”
Fredrick said, feeling like a victor.
I wondered how the bastard slept at night. He was doing this to his own blood for what?
“You must be a part of the committee and nominate people that would represent the interests of Forest on it.
You must contribute to the collective with money and Warriors.
We collectively guard our borders against intruders that might come from the sea. We would like you to contribute handsomely to that cause,” Fredrick listed, and I was silent.
“You must obey the unity law and all that it entails.
I know you are fond of werewolf women. My spies have given me reports. The daughter of the man that killed Mathias is your mistress, right?” He added, and some people gasped.
111 do not care whatever sick game you are playing in Forest but do not break the unity law. The day you take a werewolf bride, that would be the end of your opportunity to rule the Forest as King, and we will come for you to enforce the unity law in Forest.
Our forefathers have built our society fiercely, and we will not let you crush it. No werewolf would achieve noble status. It is called a Unity law for a purpose. Because the three kings signed and agreed to it. If indeed you are Mathais’ son, you will respect your father’s wishes and abide by the laws he helped install,” He said, and I sighed.
“And who will determine all this has been fulfilled?” I asked, wanting to know the yardstick of measurement and who to look out for.
“Me and Aleksander, of course,” he said, and I knew I had nothing to worry about with Aleksander.
“If I donate money to the collective purse now, can we proceed?” I asked, and he frowned.
“I might be sleeping with a werewolf, but we aren’t mated. The unity law is obeyed in the
Forest. The werewolves are slaves working on the projects to develop Forest,” I said, and he laughed.
“You are quite impatient, Nikolas. You can’t say you uphold the unity law when you pay wages and give them food. You do not allow them to be sold to other parts as slaves,” he said, and I nodded.
“I have to pay allowances so they do not die. As you know, I have attacked them for nine years straight, so their numbers aren’t good; I do not have enough werewolves to do the work in
Forest, so why should I starve and kill or sell them when I am looking for more slaves to help my projects move faster? Your informants should have told you this,” I said confidently, and he was silent.
“If you require slaves in Snow, I say you should be kinder towards the ones that come here so you can have people do the work. If we treat the werewolves the way you treat them, they will be extinct.
It is not my fault or King Aleksander’s fault that there aren’t enough slaves in Snow.
Still, King or not, I will not allow your men to come into my territory and hunt without my permission,” I said, letting him know the crown to me was just a mere formality. I owned Forest. My mother t*ouched my hand, and I yanked it away, i “I have been called a bastard today, and all sorts of things have been said, but one thing is sure; I accomplished the one thing you couldn’t, King Fredrick, which was to take over Forest, and you might hate me for it. If you genuinely felt my half-brother was an heir, you could have fought for him to regain his father’s kingdom. Instead, you tried to take it for yourself. I have heard the stories, your majesty.
This is all because you want Forest for yourself, but I am not a coward. Many people might not speak to you like this out of fear, but I’m a savage. I know no crown or laws.
As far as I am concerned, the decision method is already flawed if you will be presiding over the matter,” I said, and Fredrick was silent. I could see he was observing me.
I was tired of the bulls*hit. As things were, I might take Aliana and leave, but I could not walk away from what is mine.
Aliana and I would never be happy, and she would never be free if the werewolves were not free. So, I planned to put up with the bulls*hit, get the crown and abolish the laws in Forest. I will pretend if I have to just long enough to get what I want.
“I request that King Aleksander preside over this?” I requested, and Olsen banged the gavel and shook his head.
“On the contrary, Alpha. You have said many things here today, and we will let them pass as emotional rants. This council will preside over the matter.
You are to build relationships and form alliances in your given period. Show us you have what it takes to be King, and we will reconvene to decide. If it pleases the Kings,” The man said, and Fredrick and Aleksander agreed to Olsen’s term.
I knew our part of the meeting was over by then. I was given a seat on the committee along with Qusack and Abraham. We represented the kingdom without a king.
The meeting lasted three hours, and we were ushered to our rooms once it was over. I wished I could leave immediately, but we had to be polite.