The Alpha’s Bride Crowned With Shadows by Tcee Eke

CHAPTER ONE – DAWN

LYRA

“Mommy?”

I pried my eyes open when the heat became unbearable as I searched for my mom on the bed. She normally stays with me in my bedroom till I fall asleep so I was hoping she would still be in my room and tell me why my room was hotter than hell.

As my eyes adjusted to the light of being awake, I yawned and then stared at my door. My heart sank and a panicked scream escaped from my l*ps.

“Mommy!” I screamed again.

This time there was fear and urgency in my tone as I dragged my six years old self out of bed. I clutched the blanket all around my b*dy as I stared at the flames that was coming towards me.

My house was on fire!

It had already burnt away my door and was heading towards me while I stood on the spot rooted to the floor and unable to move.

“Lyra!”

I heard my mom’s voice as she ran towards my bedroom door, she was using her werewolf speed but I could see some burn marks on her arm.

“Get out of there, Lyra, move to your left,” she screamed at me.

I still remained rooted to the spot too shocked and paralyzed with fear to move. How could my house be on fire? And it just had to happen on my birthday! I should be waking up to happy birthday cheers and cake not a fire!

“Lyra!” My mom screamed again. This time there was an urgency in her tone and I saw the reason a little too late.

The ceiling was about to fall on my little frame and it was enveloped with fire. Before my tiny brain could figure out something, I felt a rush of breeze beside me as my dad’s b*dy shielded me from the brunt force of the burning ceiling landing on me.

“I love you,” my dad whispered in my ears as he k*ssed my temple, “Happy Birthday.”

His voice faded as he grunted while I heard the distinct scream of my mom.

“Get her out of here,” my dad said to my mom as she pulled me away from his grasp.

“Daddy,” I cried, suddenly regaining my ability to speak and think as I saw the burn marks on his back.

“Go, Princess, I’ll meet you outside,” he coaxed, pushing my mom away.

“No, daddy!” I screamed, as I tried to drag him with me.

But I saw the light leave my father’s eyes. He was already too weak and he had just taken a hit for me. If only I wasn’t too stupid and slow I would have been able to get out of the way.

“I’ll meet you, Princess,” he said, giving me a sad smile.

“Let’s go, Lyra, your father can’t hold off the fire anymore,” my mom said.

“Hold off the fire?” I asked, confused.

My mom whisked me off despite my cries and protests as I stared at my father, laying on the floor of my bedroom, a beautiful smile etched on his face as he watched us leave.

Then my mom kept me outside the house, and smiled at me.

“Go get help, I’ll help your dad,” she said to me.

The fire had destroyed the sitting room but it wasn’t burning so much from the underground tunnel my mom had brought me out from.

There was an underground bunker in our house that had a door which led directly into the woods. And now I was standing at the edge of the woods, it was still very early in the morning, I prayed I would be able to find help.

“Alright, mommy, drag daddy and keep in the bunker and wait for me ok, I won’t be long,” I promised.

She k*ssed me and smiled, “I know you won’t. Now run along and never forget who you are, Lyra.”

I smiled at her, “Don’t worry, you can tell me all the stories later, let’s get help first.”

My mom’s eyes were filled with tears as she k*ssed me lovingly, “My beautiful brave daughter, happy birthday. I love you so much.”

“I love you too, mommy,” I smiled.

Then I ran into the woods but her voice stopped me.

“Lyra, trust no one but yourself and your wolf,” she said.

I smiled, “Alright, mommy, later.”

I watched as she entered the bunker while I headed deeper into the woods taking the part that led to the Alpha’s palace.

A few meters away from my house, I heard an explosion that rocked the ground and threw me off my feet. I coughed up blood, gasping as I stared back into the distance and I saw the smoke coming from the place my house once stood.

I shook my head, standing up and trying to run back the way I had come but the impact of the fall had knocked me badly, I felt pain in my sides as I coughed off more blood.

“No!” I cried, crawling my way back.

The sound of the explosion seemed to have alerted the people as I soon heard running footsteps in the woods accompanied by snarls and heavy paws and saw familiar faces of the place guards and werewolves.

“Help my mom and dad,” I cried.

Then I suddenly started seeing dotted spots before my eyes as I felt someone pick me up. The last thing I remember was the sound of my anguished screams before darkness knocked me out.

***

“No! No!! No!!!”

I gasped, sitting up on the bed as sweat trickled down my skin, my singlet clung to my b*dy soaked with sweat, as I gasped trying to breath through the painful memory from the past.

“Shut up, Lyra, it’s not dawn yet!” I heard a harsh voice yell from upstairs.

“Sorry, Aunty,” I apologized, wiping my sweat and tears that had mixed together.

My eyes stung from the sweat entering my eyes and I ignored the pain. I deserved worse pain for being so dumb and cowardly and letting my parents die because of me.

I stared at the alarm clock beside my small nightstand and saw it was already past seven in the morning. My Aunty and uncle always leave their bed by half past eight in the morning by then breakfast must be ready. While my cousin just came out whenever she wanted to.

I saw the date circled on my calendar and sighed. It’s the fifteenth year of the death anniversary of my parents and also my twenty-one years birthday.

Ever since that day in the woods when the palace guards had rescued me and handed me over to my Aunty, my dad’s sister, I’ve been living with them till date.

I always have the same nightmare of that night on every birthday/death anniversary of my parents. But each nightmare didn’t make the pain bearable rather it made it more worse.

My Aunty and Uncle never really cared much about what I do as long as I don’t step in their way and I always do all the chores, they rarely complained. It was my cousin, Emily, who always made my life miserable and made most complains that had earned me punishments in the past.

But recently I’ve not gotten even a single glare from her. She was excited because she was preparing for her mating ceremony with the werewolf she’s been dating for three years.

In our world, it was rare to find your fated mate so the few who finds theirs are considered lucky. While most don’t find their fated mates, they still get married.

Most do an arranged marriage, and most marry for love but at the end of the day they all get married and the female werewolves gives birth to strong and healthy pups to keep increasing our species.

I for one am a strong romantic and believer of fated mates. Mostly because my parents were mates and they loved each other dearly. I wanted to have my mate and leave the pack because it was mostly survival of the fittest.

The major reason why Emily was excited about getting married to her boyfriend even though they weren’t fated mates was because he was from the upper class of the werewolf kingdom, his father was part of the werewolf council member.

He was also from a wealthy family and marrying him would bring prestige to her and her family. My uncle and Aunty were more of middle class people in the werewolf kingdom.

I didn’t like the politics going on in the werewolf community and I finally understood why my parents had lived away from the community, keeping to themselves and raising me which was what had made it difficult for us to get help on that morning, because our house was isolated and far from the pack house.

There was a powerful King who is the werewolf king and his uselsss nephew who is the Prince. It’s rumoured he’s disabled and ugly, very cruel and useless.

No one has seen him in years after the rogue attack on his family in the palace that took the life of all his family members except him and left him disabled while his uncle assumed the throne as the only surviving sane member of the Royal family.

“Lyra, door!” My Aunty’s voice interrupted my thoughts.

I ran out from my makeshift bedroom that was located downstairs in the basement and headed to the door to see who was ringing the doorbell so early in the morning.

A happy squeal made me jump as Emily came racing downstairs. She glared at me and pushed me aside as she headed to the door.

“Make your useless self scarce,” she said to me, a cruel smirk on her face.

I rolled my eyes and headed towards the kitchen. Even though we were the same age, she always bullied me and I kept quiet because I was living with them. I couldn’t wait to get my fated mate and leave this shithole town.

Normally, werewolves get their mates at eighteen years upwards but since I turned eighteen I haven’t seen my mate neither have I shifted or found my wolf. My Aunty said I’m a late-wolf.

I hoped that turning twenty-one would bring me lots of good things like my fated mate and meeting my wolf so I can be strong like every other she-wolf.

As I rounded up the corner to enter the kitchen, I perceived the scent of fresh mint and dark pines mixed with the smell of rain.

I stopped in my tracks and whirled around as I traced the scent to the sitting room and saw my cousin hugging her boyfriend.

Our eyes met and I knew in an instant as my heart shattered into a million pieces. He was my mate and I was doomed!