Chapter 30
Amelia's POV
I tried my best to act normally, to continue playing along with Thrian's game, because that was the advice Ryker had given me. If I could play along with him even after knowing what he was planning, then I could be the one to manipulate him instead of him being the one to manipulate me. It made a lot of sense, but it didn't make it any easier for me. I almost felt like it was impossible because of how difficult I was finding it to work with him.
His efforts were apparent, trying to make me fall for him and being nice to me for a change. But with the knowledge that it was all an act so that we would be able to work and appear to others as a couple easier, it wasn't easy for me anymore to continue, and I didn't feel like he was doing anything at all.
On his part, he somehow seemed to notice that things were a bit wrong between both of us. It had been three days now, and throughout yesterday, he hadn't talked to me at all. Maybe he had finally given up trying to meet me. I fought for him, and all his efforts were finally caught in that picture. I would be very happy if that was indeed the case, but telling what the odds were, I wasn't about to simply believe that he had given up because he hadn't talked for one entire day.
Ryker walked up to me knocking. I was seated in the training room, watching as the guys practiced. It had been an awkward situation when we had spoken after our last encounter. Somehow, I felt like he was avoiding me, or he was really that busy with carrying out the Alpha's orders. He sat beside me and smiled. At least he wasn't going on with that annoying attitude with me any longer. That was a change. He was acting like the friend that he was.
He gave me a piece of paper from the Alpha, saying it was a task for me. I read it through before shaking my head. I didn't understand one bit of it. "Can you explain it to me? What does he want exactly?" I questioned.
He smiled at me, a warm look as he responded. "There's a company at the borders, somehow in our territory and somehow in Alpha Jerome's territory," he told me. "It's very important for both of us and for this pack in general if we manage to get it because it would pretty much give us control over the borders and add a little piece of land to our territory."
"And what does that have to do with me?" I asked.
"He wants you to go and contest in order to win it over," he told me.
I blinked. "Me? Why me? How on earth?"
"Just relax," he continued. "It's not going to be difficult. As a matter of fact, I'll be there with you."
I contemplated for a while before shaking my head. Sure, his presence was very reassuring and he would be a great help, but I knew that he would pretty much be the one doing everything. At least that's how I thought about it at the moment. "You might as well go on by yourself to win it over," I told him, but he shook his head.
"The Alpha is very busy; he might have gone by himself. I can't go because I can't effectively represent the Alpha. The only other person that can do that is the Luna herself, and that happens to be you. So there's no option."
"But can't any random person buy the company and win it over?" I asked, wondering why he couldn't just go by himself.
"Well, I don't think that's how it works exactly," he told me. "It might have been possible, but the person that's competing for it is from the other pack. Alpha Jerome's son is coming to represent Alpha Jerome himself, and if another Alpha isn't there to compete, do you think anybody would have a chance of getting the business deal with the company? When he bids, they would simply give it to him just because of his name and status."
"Because of the advantages that it would have. My word won't matter. They would have to believe me. Anything due to my status - I'm just a servant, and unlike his son, I am a loner," I responded, finishing his statement, and he nodded.
"And you are a loner, so you have to do this."
I contemplated for a while before looking at him seriously. "Do I actually have a choice?" I questioned.
He contemplated for a while also. "I don't know, but I don't think you would want to find out. You are the Luna after all, and if you can do this, there are many benefits for you. For one thing, the others would accept you a little more, and then it would be difficult for the Alpha to sideline you if he wants to later on. He won't be able to simply destroy you anymore as you would be getting your own power, your own band of followers due to this display of strength."
I thought about this for a moment. That was a very good advantage for me, and from the way he put it, there was a very good chance I would get all of that if only I could succeed. I had my own stakes in this, and it wasn't just for the pack and to do the Alpha's bidding - it was for myself also, and that made me eager. That was the only reason why I was doing this, because if not, I wouldn't be able to win at all as I wouldn't put in effort.
I nodded at him. "Alright then, let's get to work. When is it going to take place? When do I have to be there?"
He stood up, looking at me seriously. "It's happening this evening. We might as well start preparing now."
"Why so soon?" I asked him, putting my hand on my head and looking at him. With such a small amount of time to prepare, I wouldn't be able to prepare a reasonable speech or anything at all.
"Not to worry," he told me rationally. "All you have to do is be yourself and put in your usual amount of work, and I'm pretty sure you might win."
"What about this Alpha Jerome's son? What kind of person is he?" I asked him, frowning.
"His name is Davis ," he told me simply. "He's well-known to be reckless and brash. Davis doesn't usually take his time to do anything properly. Competing against someone like you who fought for literally everything you have and your current status, who has survived situations he can't even imagine - I really think that you have a better chance of winning. All you have to do is to be courageous and brave."
I listened to his words carefully. Was he just hyping me up, or did he have an actual point?
"Just trust me on this one," he said. "Get ready. I'll come to get you from your room within an hour's time so we can start journeying there. It's better to arrive early so that we can prepare a little more, and also better to prepare at the venue than to waste time here, just in case we won't get caught in the end."
I nodded at him. "Right then, see you later." Standing up, I made my way out of the training room while he stayed back. I glanced back at him and he waved. I turned back facing ahead, thinking about the task ahead of me. At the same time, he made it sound easy, but I knew that nothing was easy - not in this world where I had to put in all my effort in order to get even the smallest of results.