Forged in the Flames by Karima Sa'ad Usman

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I held Aliana under the running cold water, and everything she said raced through my mind.
I had known it would come to this. I was surprised she had waited this long before discussing her father’s predicament with me.
Unknown to her, I had received various reports requesting I go easy on Gabriel because of his health; even Qusack had
discussed it with me. Qusack had brought it up yesterday during our private talks, and I had shut him down. I thought Aliana had
discussed the matter with her Qusack before meeting me.
The fear in her eyes got to me, and the fact that I had made her cry got to me. I knew I had to control myself. How can I say I
love her when I am unwilling to listen to her and make her happy?
The fear of losing her father showed in her eyes, and even though we had separate opinions on the matter, I had to let her have
her way.
I knew if I refused her request, she wouldn’t be happy. I cursed at the difficulty of the situation.
Somehow, I believe the fear of discussing her father with me had made her sick.
Bane and I were mad at ourselves for using our command on her. She was a beta werewolf; it was too much for her to handle. I
do not know why I ordered her the way I did. I needed to watch my temper when with her.
While I held her under the shower, I thought of what she told me her father told her about the event.
It sounded plausible, but could he prove it?
If he did not go on for years, making people believe he had liberated the werewolves of Forest by defeating my father in a battle,
I would have been a bit lenient. But the story that was spread among the werewolves and the Lycans was that he led a mutiny
against my father and killed him. He might have told his daughter this so he could seem innocent. I would not let my love for
Aliana cloud my judgement where Gabriel was concerned.
He was still my enemy, but I would no longer trouble him. I will let him be and ignore him.
I will let him live so Aliana will not be alone.
I aim to please her, and that is what I would do..

No amount of hatred would keep me from making the woman I love happy. Other than killing Gabriel and ending his lineage, I
had done everything I had promised and set out to do. I had done everything except ascend as King, and I was on it.
Ending Gabriel’s Lineage would be wrong since he was the one that saved my mother’s life and gave me a chance to breathe. I
would give him back that gift of life.
I held Aliana under the shower, and soon she began to shake from the cold.
I will have to have her tested in the morning. I cannot let her fall sick. I needed her to be healthy and strong.
We left the shower, and I wore her a bathrobe to keep her warm.
While I attended to her, I began to fear she had been poisoned or exposed to something that would make her sick.
I began to suspect Erica, Gezel and my mother.
My mother’s peace talk did not fool me. It was weird for her to think she could fool me, knowing she was connected to me now. I
could easily sense her lies.
I knew she loathed Aliana. If she could have her way, she would end her life. She would do it in a heartbeat without remorse.
“Won’t you come to bed?” I heard Aliana say.

She was still sniffling from the tears that she had cried. I did not know I was frozen on the spot until she snapped me out of my
thoughts with her words.
I looked towards the bed, and she was under the covers. Her nose was red, and her eyes were swollen. I had made her cry. I felt
guilty. I went to the closet, put on my shorts, and then joined her in bed.
“So, you want to sleep in the bathrobe?” I asked her, and she shook her head and removed the robe.
We were under the sheets, so I pulled her into my arms to warm her with my body.
I kissed her neck where a mark should be, and she moaned slightly, snuggling into my arms “I am sorry I made you cry, Little
wolf. Please do not fear me. The world can be afraid of me but not you. I can never harm you,” I whispered to her, and she held
on to my arms around her waist tightly while she pressed her body against mine.
“I am sorry I made you mad,” she whispered.

Her voice was raspy and tired. I had outdone myself in the fear department.
“I do not want you to think I want to control you. I can never dream of it. I would have remained silent if it weren’t life-threatening.
I know you hate him, but he is all I have,” She said and sniffled.
“You have me, Little wolf,” I said, but we both knew it wasn’t certain. To be with her, I would have to jump many hurdles. We
would have to hide our emotions, and I would have to pretend until I got the kingship.
To everyone, she was a slave and mistress.
To me, she was everything, but no one would know that until I had achieved what I set out to achieve. That way, we can live our
lives free of judgement and prejudice.
“It took a lot for me to discuss it with you. I was hoping to tell Qusack to talk to you about it, but I did not know what would
happen. I promise I won’t get involved with your methods again, but please look into what my father told me. I want to know the
truth too. If it isn’t too much trouble, it would be nice to know the truth,” She said gently, explaining herself, and I held on tight.
I did not have the time to look into the matter. All my time now was aimed towards securing Forest and taking the crown. I had
everything planned out. I will strive to be crowned once I protect Forest from Fredrik.
I planned on buying favours by opening a trade deal directly with alphas from all regions. I do not intend to give Aleksander or
Fredrick a monopoly. I also planned to search for and open business with independent lands and territories that do not fall under
Snow and Hill. Though they are far away, expanding the trade would bring good fortune for us.
Once I have the crown, I will abolish the Unity Law in Forest and set my own rules in my kingdom. The Unity law will no longer
be a universal law. There will be no slavery in Forest, and Lycans and werewolves will be allowed to mate and be together.
They will have equal importance and opportunities, and hopefully, Aleksander would follow in my footsteps so Fredrick would be
alone with his unity law. Once that is done, I will publicly proclaim Aliana as my queen, and we can freely be together and start a
family. This way, there will be no need for war or death.
Fredrick might feel deceived, but that will be his problem. He will have no choice but to trade with us still, regardless of the
situation.
I held on to Aliana tightly; I just needed her to hold on a little longer.
“Once I get the crown, you wouldn’t doubt my love, Little wolf. You wouldn’t doubt me,” I promised her.

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“I do not doubt you, but I would rather you are alive and well while we remain a secret than to have the Snow King come for you
and your birthright because of me. My love is willing to make a sacrifice because I know you will do the same,” She said quietly,
and her words cut me deep. It made me wonder how deeply she had thought of it all.

“Why would you say this?” I said, and she turned around in my arms to face me.
“I had a discussion with your mother, and she told me you must settle down to get the crown,” She said, and I tightened my jaws.
I had warned my mother to stay away from Aliana.
“She did not upset me, Nikolas. She was just worried for both of us,” She said quickly, but I knew my mother meant harm.
“And what did she tell you were her concerns?” I asked, wanting to hear the vile thing she must have told Aliana.
“I should let you settle down with a Lycan to get your crown. She asked me if I was willing to subject another woman to misery
because I will always be in the picture,” She said, and my mother had a way with words. She had indirectly told Aliana I would
have to marry someone to get the crown and that Aliana would be a bad person if she remained in the picture.
She wanted Aliana to lose faith and confidence in me. I really wonder how my father managed with her. There is no way she
developed this sneaky conniving behaviour overnight.
People don’t become manipulative suddenly.
I wondered about the things she must have done while she was queen. Too bad no one ever said anything about her.
“I have told you I won’t settle down with a Lycan for the crown. Forget what my mother said. Right now, I am going easy on her
because I need her to back me up against her brother at the council. So, I told her what she wanted to hear. I won’t settle down
with anyone. I can’t subject you, myself and whoever the unfortunate person would be to a life of misfortune and heartbreak.
None of us would be happy. That much I have come to understand. Do not let my mother get into your head, Little wolf.” I said
and looked at her.
Her eyes were teary. I guess it was hard for her to imagine me with someone else. I liked that; it meant the feeling was mutual.
“You promise?” she finally asked, and I kissed her forehead.
“I promise,” I said, and she snuggled into my arms.
Her body was warm now, and she seemed to have stabilised. I planned to have the physician check on her in the morning.

Morning came, and I was first to get out of bed. Getting to the office early was important because things were happening quickly.
I looked at Aliana, and she was deep in sleep. Her hair was messy, and she looked sexy wrapped in the sheets. I imagined her
naked body under the bedding and immediately had an erection.
I felt like a bad guy because I knew she was ill. I wanted to wake her with pleasure and bury myself inside her, but I decided
against it and headed to the shower. A cold shower would have to do this morning. I knew it would make me a bit cranky the
entire day.
I showered and returned to the room to dress up. I was about to leave when Aliana woke up. “Good morning,” she called out with
a weak morning voice.
“Morning, Little wolf; how are you feeling?” I said and went to meet her in bed.
She smiled at me. Her eyes looked beautiful and innocent, and her messy hair looked sexily dishevelled.
“I will send the pack doctor to check on you,” I said, kissing her forehead. She shook her head immediately.
“I plan to use the werewolf clinic,” She said quickly, and I frowned. The place was just a warehouse in disrepair that needed
renovation. “Why there?” I asked her, and she smiled at me. “I am sure they can run a simple test. Besides, let’s keep up
appearances until you get your crown.” She said and smiled.
“This should motivate you to fix up the place, your Majesty,” She teased, and I laughed. I had already asked Qusack to oversee
the renovation of the place, so it was no big deal.
“Very well, make sure Ania and Lisa go with you, and if they do not have what is required, let me know so you can use my
doctor,” I said, and she smiled and nodded.
Knowing she was uncomfortable about her morning breath, I kissed her on the cheek and left the room in high spirits.
I had so much to do.
Terminating Gabriel’s employment was the first on the list. I did not want Aliana to come home crying again.