Ch. 20：The Alpha King's Queen

He would cause a scene. I knew it on instinct. In the two weeks since we became fake mates, we had little interaction so I could not say I knew him well but the way his face darkened, even the man giving a speech faltered. He would cause a scene and it would be because of me.
I was used to being humiliated on a daily basis and I was humiliated enough wearing a slave choker but everything would become worse if he drew attention to me like this so I slunk away.
It was not hard to get mixed up in the crowd of people that filled the throne room for the coronation. I dodged and hid between two women with such large and glamorous outfits, I felt no one would notice me between them.
I was wrong.
The crowd started to part and I thought it was my imagination but again, I was wrong. The two women who I felt would overshadow my existence with their attire stepped out of the way and then I came face to face with red eyes.
Before I could say a word, he reached for my neck. My feet became rooted to the spot, my body going into lockdown as his hand grazed my throat, and then he ripped the choker off my neck, his red eyes ablaze.
“It does not suit you.” His cool voice washed over my skin. “Where did you get this?” He asked but from his tone and wandering eyes, I knew he knew. His eyes found whatever he was looking for and they stopped wandering.
“The queen,” we both said.
I turned to see who he was staring down behind me and my gaze caught the queen’s. A small smile tugged at the side of her lips but the girl beside her visibly swallowed, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and looking away.
“Come.” He offered me a hand which I hesitated to take. He did not say a word but his eyes darkened further, forcing me to take his hand without protest.
We walked together to the front of the throne room where the man giving a boring speech in a monotone just finished. People applauded weakly as another man stepped forward.
“In accordance with the will of the goddess, we have waited sixty days after the passing of our beloved Alpha King Seth the First to crown the next monarch.” A man with long flowing hair started.
Without asking, I knew he was the high priest of the temple as only the high priest could crown the king. He also had waist-length white hair, white brows and a long white moustache, the only man in the kingdom with such a description.
“Today, in accordance with the ordinance set aside by our maker, I will crown Alpha Prince Killian the First as the next king of wolves.” A weak smatter of applause sounded in the hall. It was as if someone had instructed the audience not to clap but Killian remained unfazed, his hand in mine firm. I peeped at him from the side of my eyes and he turned at that moment, startling me.
“Your Royal Highness, please step forward.” The priest gestured at the elevated podium where the throne sat.
With my hand still clasped in his, Killian moved. I planted my feet on the ground, refusing to budge as he pulled me. He turned to me with a single raised eyebrow, his eyes narrowed.
“What?” He asked, tugging at my hand but I still refused to move.
“It’s– I’m not supposed to go up with you,” I muttered, feeling hundreds of eyes on me. I shuffled on my feet, fighting to keep my chin up when the weight of the stares on my back made me want to hide.
“Says who?” Killian asked, again his brow raising. Good question.
“Your Highness,” the priest’s calm voice called.
“It is your coronation, not mine.” It was his coronation – his day. If he went up there with me, people would talk and their words would not be pretty.
“You are to stand by my side as my Luna or have you forgotten?” My heart pounded at the weight of those flippant words.
“Y – Yes, but –“
“Your Highness, please take the stage.” Impatience seeped into the priest’s words.
“I am not –“ I started again.
“You are wasting my time.” Killian’s voice went low and the effect was immediate. My feet unglued from the ground and my legs moved.
With shaky legs and a heart that pounded loud enough for the whole room to hear, I climbed the stage with Killian, swallowing to moisten my dry throat. The priest gave me a look but he said nothing as he climbed up behind us.
“Let us start with the oath of loyalty,” the priest said.
The coronation began but I could not hear a single word the priest uttered. My ears rang as the crowd almost buried me underneath the weight of their stares. People spoke underneath their breaths, their gazes sweeping me from head to toe. I knew what they were doing – they were trying to decide my worth.
…you are nobody.
I did not know why but those words whispered in my ears. My chin almost fell to touch my chest but I held my head up.
Many people stared at me but a gaze burning into the side of my face made me turn. I met fiery green ones that looked like they wanted to bury me underneath a rubble of hatred. Without a doubt, Scarlett hated me but for the first time since she strangled me in her pack, I felt the depth of her hatred for me and she hadn’t even done anything. She was at the back of the room yet her burning gaze pierced my skin. Her eyes seemed to tell me ‘you are in my place,' and I was indeed in her place.
My lips tugged up at the side and I relished the flush that stole across her cheeks. She stood beside another girl who watched Killian with rapture but she had her eyes on me. I squeezed Killian’s hand in mine and her gaze darkened.
“What are you doing?” Startled, I turned to look at Killian who was leaning into me ever so subtly. I almost dropped his hand but his grip tightened.
“Please, focus, Your Highness.” The priest sighed, giving me a small glare as if it was my fault. Mortified, I realized it was actually my fault.
The oath continued for an hour more, with Killian repeating everything the priest said, and then it was over. Killian had sworn to lead by the ordinance of the goddess and he became the Alpha King of wolves.
He walked towards the throne and stopped in front of a seat at the right hand of the Alpha King’s throne. The queen’s seat. A hush fell over the room as he gestured for me to take a seat.
“Killian,” I murmured his name but his eyes were hard and resolute.
“I am the king now,” he murmured. “Do you dare disrespect the Alpha King?” A small growl sounded in his words and it had me shaking my head.
“N – No, Your Majesty.” Unable to look at him, I looked away as I sunk into the plush seat of the queen. A few people gasped but someone shouted.
“Your Highness, you cannot put just any woman on the queen’s throne!” It was Scarlett’s father. I looked around the hall for the queen and saw her already staring at me. I had not mated with Killian yet so technically, she was still the queen. He put me in her seat and she was furious.
“I am the king now.” Killian’s quiet words resounded in the room. Then he took his seat on the throne, adjusting the crown on his head. “Let me formally introduce you to my mate, your queen.”
“Killian, you dare put that whore in my seat?” It was the queen that spoke this time with a voice lacking her usual mocking tone. Her eyes flashed red. An Alpha. I shivered.
“I am the king now, mother,” His tone mocked her. “You will regard me as ‘His Majesty, Alpha King Killian the First,’ from now on. As for my mate,” he paused. “Let it be known that an insult to her is an insult to the Alpha King, a crime punishable by death.” The hall froze. “My beloved mother,” he continued in an even tone as if he did not feel the effect of his words on the people gathered around. “I understand you did not mean to call my mate a slur so I will ask you to apologize.” Silence reigned in the room and everyone, myself included, held their breath. “Right. Now.” He spelt the words out with venom in his tone.
“Killian, you cannot be serious.” The queen swayed, her eyes shifting to mine for a brief second.
“Do you want to call my bluff?” The hush in the room deepened from his chilly words. “Apologize.” He did not even wait for an hour after his coronation to show his tyrannical behaviour.
“I – I am sorry.” Even the haughty queen looked frightened.
“On your knees.” My mouth fell open. “You will apologize on your knees.”