Forged in the Flames by Karima Sa'ad Usman

I remained seated on my chair, and the silence in my office was absolute.

Qusack did not say a word, and Abraham looked confused. I was just as confused as he was because I

did not know what to do.

I looked at Qusack to give him immediate order so we could act.

Fedrick may have said one month, but he could strike anytime. I refuse to let him steal my birthright. I

had never heard of this mistress or child, so I was highly suspicious of his intentions. Also, knowing

how his relationship with my father was, I doubted he would have entrusted his son to the Snow King.

“Qusack, get me a pen and paper. I need to write a letter to the Hill king to carry on certain issues,” I

said, and he leaned forward to ask me.

“Like what?” He said, and I knew he was only asking out of concern. I could not get mad about it. We

have been friends for so long that I knew I could always trust him. “The Snow King is trying to say that I

am a fraud. I was wondering if Gabriel, the traitor, could identify my mother as his former Queen.

Maybe that would shut them up,” I said, and Abraham disagreed.

“Before I joined your pack, Alpha, I used to work in the legal library of scholars in Snow. I was cast out

because I helped a nobleman remove a law account from the archives.

I am trying to tell you that I know how the committee works.

Gabriel’s account will not suffice. The reasons are that he is a werewolf.

According to the Unity Law, he has no right to speak. Let us say they choose to make an exception

because of the circumstances; they could argue that his account is false. You are his master, and he is

your slave. He could say anything you want him to say.

Let us now say they do not see it that way, and he indeed identifies your mother as Queen; they could

argue that you found her in her feral state in the wild, recognised her, knew of the mutiny and decided

to seize the opportunity to claim she is your mother.

Moreover, I have heard from the Halfbreeds in Snow that their parents told them the Queen was

accused of having affairs. They do not know you are King Mathia’s son and your mother is Queen

Isabelle. Due to the restricted access to the Queen, they haven’t seen her yet, but there are rumours

that the Old King was so in love with his fated who passed away that he neglected his Queen, and she

had to result to having flings. It is also in their records.

King Fedrick is malicious. He could argue that you are a bastard.” Abraham said and left me wondering

because my options weren’t great.

“Where is the light in all of this, Abraham?” I asked him impatiently.

“The only way you can win against the Snow King is if your mother regains her sanity. No one would

dare to tell her truth, and Fedrick would not have a choice but to accept whatever you say,” He said.

“What about this son that Fedrick said is with him? I know he is an actual person. I heard his name in

Peakland,” I asked, and Abraham nodded.

“Bastards can’t inherit when there is a legitimate heir,” he said. That did not sit well with me because

my being regarded as a legitimate heir involved my mother regaining her sanity—something I did not

see ever happening.

“Also, he said the King had a son by his mistress; the only mistress your father had in the records was

a werewolf named Olive. It means this son is a halfbreed, and the unity law forbids his ascension as

King because all halfbreeds are to be treated as werewolves,” he said.

I could not believe my father had fathered a halfbreed. Something I grew up knowing as an

abomination. Bringing a half-breed into this world was cruel because they never truly fit in anywhere.

The werewolves never accept them because they look and smell like Lycans. The Lycans never accept

them because they do not smell right and lack particular lycan abilities.

It was hell for halfbreeds, and that is why it had been forbidden.

We might have let the ones in Forest live, but I learned they usually kill them from birth in other parts.

They saw it as a form of mercy killing.

What Abraham said relaxed me, and I beamed because that was true. If Miles is a half-breed, why did

Fedrick, the King who hates werewolves the most, raise a tainted child?

“How does Fredrick plan to make this guy the king?” Qusack asked.

“I think he would use the law of exception, it doesn’t always work, but he might use the law of exception

and win because people are afraid of him. The law of exception states that without an heir, anyone

related to the King by blood can ascend if they are male and of age,” He said, and I wondered how that

would help.

“That did not say a halfbreed?” I said, and he nodded.

“Anyone means anyone, if they had said, except werewolves and halfbreeds, then anyone would mean

Lycans strictly. But it said anyone and gave no exception, so he could use that law to do that; he has to

prove that you’re a fraud. I am sure it would be a bit difficult because there has to be Lycans that can

identify your mother,” he said, and Qusack shook his head.

“Not when all of them are afraid of Fredrick. They would not want to get involved,” he said, giving a

valid point, and I nodded in agreement.

“If he has to use the law of exception, he must conquer us. Because you did not inherit Forest, you

conquered it and took it over; he would have to take it by force from you to give this supposed heir. We

all know he would not have a problem with that. Unlike us, he has a vast

werewolf army. Something we lack immensely. And I do not trust these werewolves to train them. They

were the ones that rose against your father; they could do it again. They might even prefer a halfbreed

as King than you, Alpha,” Abraham said, and Qusack cleared his throat.

“I am sure they are not stupid, Abraham. Anyone in their right mind would know Alpha Nikolas is a

better option than someone the Snow King raised. The man has only a daughter, so he may have

replicated himself in this child. We need to investigate the supposed heir to know his ideals,” Qusack

said, and it was a valid point.

I doubted Fredrick would raise the child right.

Miles might just be as sick as Fredrick, which may be why the Hill King and Queen panicked when

Lena told them she was seeing the guy.

“I will advise you to do the needful and stop trying to take Forest as a birthright. It doesn’t stop Fredrick

from waging war against us, but the entire committee would be against him because he has favoured a

halfbreed over his kind,” Abraham said, and I sighed.

“I do not know what he wants from me, and to think he is my mother’ s brother,” I said, and Qusack

gasped, Abraham did not seem surprised.

He probably knew all along.

I wondered what else he knew that he was keeping from me. He did have a fascinating job before he

was cast out. All that knowledge in his head would be useful someday.

“I found that out in Hill. My mother went to Snow after the treachery, and he rejected her. He is why we

had to live in the woods of the Forest. I learned he did not only reject her but also sent hunters after

her. My mother lived in fear of hunters throughout. I thought they were werewolves, but now I know that

the hunters were from Snow and her brother had set them on her. I do not understand why my mother

would withhold such vital information. She only spoke of the werewolves,” I said, and Abraham sighed.

“I guess she was angry at the people that put her in the situation. If the werewolves had not killed her

husband and taken her home, she would not need to return to Snow. King Fedrick would have no

power over her. It was normal that she would hold on to the grudge of the people that cause the

problem,” Abraham said.

“I disagree,” Qusacksaid and looked at me.

“I know Queen Isabelle is your mother, and you love her so much, but it is highly suspicious that she

did not tell you this, but she spent ten years telling you of Gabriel and his friends.

Her brother had also wronged her. His duty was to take her in and lend his army to her to help her

retrieve Forest from the werewolves. Suppose he turned her away, then he is equally in the wrong.

She has a right to Snow and his army. She has the right to return home. There is no shame in it. He

wronged your mother, and she should know it.” Qusack said, and I knew he was trying to say

something but must have held back out of respect.

“Say it, Qusack. We have come a long way for me to be mad,” I said, assuring him and bracing myself

for whatever he would say that might hurt my feelings.

“She was hiding something. That was why she told you nothing about her brother or what he did to her.

Gabriel did worse, but sending hunters after his pregnant sister was extreme. There must have been

some severe bad blood between the two, and she might have been at fault. It might also be the reason

he is transferring the aggression to you. Oddly, he would side with an outsider over his blood,” Qusack

said, and Abraham shook his head.

“There don’t necessarily need to be bad blood between them. Forest is the richest place on our

continent, so it is normal for him to covet it. After all, he had tried to take Forest several times, and

Gabriel could resist him. Gabriel had been resisting him until we came along. I believe he would

continue because now that we have taken over, it means Gabriel can no longer resist, but he might be

playing it safe simply because you are a Lycan, and the Lycan Unity law is against attacking a Lycan

directly for no cause.

Snow has lived off the riches of Forest for a while. The only thing they have been unable to make

money off is the slave trade.

The cost of slaves is extremely high now because the Hunters have to result to kidnapping and stealing

instead of taking.

Other than that, they had been stealing resources for the woods and selling them in the market. Others

have no choice but to purchase from them because Forest has been cut off.

Throughout Gabriel’s leadership, no one could trade with Forest. It was forbidden, and Gabriel would

not let anyone enter Forest, so they had to rely on the black market to get things or depend on

recycling instead of creating new things.

I learned that development has been slow because of it, but they make much money from it.

What makes you think that King Fedrick would side with Alpha Nikolas against a child he raised

himself? With this child as the King of Forest, Snow will have access to everything in Forest. The

natural resources and the slaves.

Compare it to his sister’s son, who grew up in the wilderness.

Once Alpha Nikolas is King, he cannot command or order him. It is more profitable that the bastard is

King than the actual heir.

I can bet you all that he has terms and conditions he wants Alpha to fulfil before he supports his

kingship. I am sure that access to the Forest’s natural resources, along with the werewolf demographic,

is high on the list. It is also something that Alpha would not willingly give easily,” He said, and we were

silent.

Abraham joined my pack five years ago when he was sentenced to death for a crime and managed to

escape. I knew he was a scholar, but this was my first time seeing his worth. It was amazing how well

he blended in with the rest of us.

“So, what would we do now?” Qusack asked, and I sighed because I did not know what to do.

My mother had made me vulnerable by not telling me the entire story. I just hoped something would

happen in my favour.