Chapter 138: Book 2 - Chapter 44
Chapter 44 – A Turn of Events
Serena
“I am no son of a majestic, respectable alpha king,” Aero continued. “I am a son of a scheming, ruined alpha king. I have recently uncovered the truth about my father, King Gideon, and my so-called mother, Queen Olivia. She is not his true mate, and she is not my real mother.”
A collective gasp was heard from the audience, and their faces contorted with confusion. Elijah, who sat near the stage, tipped his chin down and placed a hand on his chest. He was urging my husband to continue, despite the fact that this will eventually demote him to a non-royal. He was cool with it. He didn’t care.
“Rhea is with me.” I remembered his words when we were still on our way to Donna’s house with the car he rented. “I’m complete with her. I don’t need a royal status and I don’t care what others would say.”
“Do you want to find your father? We would be happy to assist you with this quest,” I told him, trying to be thoughtful. He simply shrugged and met my eye in the rear-view mirror. “I might want to in the future, Serena, but not now. I want to focus on Rhea and building our family.”
I smiled at this, happy that he had found a home in my friend’s heart.
Back to the present, Aero reciprocated Elijah’s silent message with a short nod.
“My father did all those ghastly things to the kingdom because he was blinded by his love for Olivia,” he went on. “Many lives were lost and destroyed. Many true mates were silenced. I wish to ask forgiveness in behalf of my father and I want to make amends. If you will let me, I proclaim now to reinstall the old belief of the mating system. Let all true mates with the crescent moon marks be confident. Step up and declare you are truly mated. You don’t need to hide anymore. You are not alone.”
Aero stood up and neared me; took my right hand with his and raised our arms to show our crescent moon marks. Tears threatened to blur my vision, but I held them back. I didn’t want to miss this scene.
Under the light of the moon, bodies start to approach the stage. They were in groups of two; some were holding hands, some had their arm around the other, some clutched the elbow of their partner. Others who were in the upper rows of chairs stayed put, but they lifted their hands up like the rest.
They were all true mates, and they accepted my husband’s offer. It was a glorious sight.
I heard the loudest cheer thereafter. Louder than our fake wedding, louder than Elijah and Rhea’s union, and louder than anything I heard in my lifetime. Aero and I smiled at each other, taking this grand reception positively to heart.
“There you go. Our kingdom is fixed,” I told him just as I planted a kiss on his forehead. He answered me with a kiss on my lips, a lengthy one at that, until I withdrew and summoned his coat in my hand.
“You’ll catch a cold, my king,” I said with a cheeky grin. He took it from my hand and wore it without fixing the buttons. He didn’t have the time to, as he was too excited to proclaim the joyful news.
“Everyone!” he started again while placing an arm around my waist. “As you can obviously see, my wife, your luna, our queen is expecting. I will become a father soon!”
“And we are expecting triplets!” I added.
That news got the crowd howling in happiness again.
“Together with our children, we hope to bring Phanteon and its people into a brighter future. Help us make this a reality,” I stated, knowing that our audience would still hear it despite the applause and cheers. They had excellent hearing after all as werewolves and lycans.
“This is a promising start, Aero,” I shifted my attention to my husband and said.
He showed his agreement by awarding me a megawatt smile. “Indeed, it is, my queen.”
Since this was a harvest celebration, food and drinks were prepared in tables set-up in and around the amphitheater. Musicians started to play their tunes and with Aero’s signal, the grand banquet started.
We were congratulated by the alphas of the packs, the council, our close friends and the mated couples present. It was an overwhelming occasion, but I enjoyed it. Aero didn’t mind the well-wishes too. He shared my happiness. I shared his. We couldn’t be happier with the life we were leading now.
We dined together with the alphas and the council on a long table on the stage. My father and aunt were present, so was Elijah and Rhea near our side. Alpha Aaron and Victoria sat close, both exchanging loving gazes, while the rest were alone or with their mates.
At one point, my father asked about the names of our children. Aero and I glanced at each other when the topic centered to that. Elijah threw in his suggestion, which comprised a range of names starting with A, while my father suggested names starting with S. The other alphas and council joined the conversation, giving their take on what names could be used and their meaning.
Aero and I just nodded and gave a reserved smile. We hadn’t really agreed on the names of our children. For now, we just wanted to savor my pregnancy journey and the wonderful assurance that we will see them soon.
“My king, I need to go to the backstage. I need to answer the call of nature,” I whispered an hour later when I felt the need for a physiological relief.
He drank his wine first before agreeing. “Don’t be long, Serena,” he said.
“Of course.” I kissed his temple, stood up and left the table.
I passed by the back hallway of the stage, managed a short flight of stairs before finally arriving in the backstage room. Here, there was no soul in sight. It was only me and the untouched food on the table.
I did my business inside the bathroom in less than a minute. Washed my hands and checked myself in the mirror. Just as what Aero wanted, I planned to head back to the table, but as soon as I stepped out of the bathroom, I felt someone’s eyes on me. I caught this person’s smell. It was very familiar and nearby, just inches behind me. Before I could turn around to face this person, darkness filled my vision and my consciousness ceased.