Tony was a nice gentleman. I am sure he would make a good mate to whoever his soulmate was. However, Alpha Cosmos was mine. Although he was rough on the edges, I still preferred him to any other, including Tony.

I saw Amy coming from a near distance and I knew trouble was coming. I had come to Tony’s shop to get certain information about my parents from him but with Amy’s presence, my aim would be difficult to achieve.

“Hello fake Luna,” Amy greeted me with a wicked smile.

“You don’t have to be harsh, Amy,” Tony replied.

“When I am Luna, you know your chances of marrying anyone will be slim. I will ensure that every seed of hatred you have sown will be equally rewarded,” I said with a smile.

I do not understand Amy’s hatred for me. Sometimes I think she found my beauty intimidating. At other times, I thought it was because of my father’s wealth and position. I wish we could be friends.  Every move I made to befriend her had been repelled by her. It was like she was sent to torment me.

“Tony, are you now dating the Alpha's girl or what? Why is she here?” she asked.

“Amy, my shop is open to all customers. Is there anything you want,” replied Tony.

“I wanted to have some private time with you but seeing her here makes that impossible,” Amy said.

I really do not know what Amy wanted, sometimes I think she was after my life or she was just flirting. It was like She was going after everyone that was interested in me. Tony was a gentleman and she was forcing herself on him. 

I was wondering if she had a thing with Alpha Cosmos when she said, “When I become Luna I am going to make sure people like you work hard like those of us,” she said.

“What makes you think you can be the Luna to Alpha Cosmos?” I asked.

“You can ask the Alpha yourself, for all I care. I am going to be a Luna and make you work,” said Amy.

“And what makes you think people like us don’t work?” I asked again.

“You are of the privileged few, where your money helps you to do the work and your work doesn't help you get the money,” said Amy.

“Tell me something I don’t know,” I said.

“Alpha Cosmos was your father’s apprentice and your mother was Alpha Cosmos's lover,” she said, smiling sarcastically as she had just won a jackpot.

“You need to stop now, Amy, why are you here?” intervened Tony, but it was pretty late as Amy had spilled something she was not going to get away with.

I stood up in anger, I was going to hit her when Tony stopped me. Tony had seen me train with my father so many times and had told me that with my skills I could drop anyone within minutes. He admired my fighting skills and now, he was not going to allow me to use them on Amy.

“You should thank Tony. I was hoping you would do what you intend to do so I can place you where your likes should be,” Amy said.

“You better be careful, you don’t want the trouble you are brewing,” said Tony.

I stared at Amy with so much disgust and bitterness, but I could relate to what she had just said.  She may be right that the wealthy don’t do the type of work she wants them to do, but that is because they have done a lot of work to position themselves in wealth.

I wished Tony had not been there. I would have given the lady the beating of her life. I watched her as she left Tony’s shop smiling at herself, believing that she must have hurt me.

“Tony, Is Amy telling the truth about my Father and Alpha Cosmos?” I asked.

“You may want to ask a direct question because I do not do gossip,” Tony said.

There were a lot of things I thought about after the last encounter with Alpha Cosmos, but being an apprentice to my Dad was not one of them. If he could take the land from my father, then he could as well take my mother from him.

Tony has always been careful with me. I think it was because he loved me. He has always tried to protect my feelings, but for now, I do not need anyone to do that for me. I want answers and I want them before the Alpha’s next visit to my place.

“Mandaline, you need to stop worrying about your parents or who they were. You have a beautiful life ahead of you, live it,” Tony said.

“Tony, I do not know what you are afraid of unless you are saying that any information I need from you I can get from Amy,” I said.

Tony was not happy that I was comparing him with Amy, so he told me a short story about my father's past and his close relationship with Alpha Cosmos. Tony was an older member of the pack and had been known by my family for many years.  I knew I could trust Tony as he was a trusted confidant and knew so much about the pack’s history more than a lot of people.

I sat down listening with rapt attention to whatever Tony was about to say and he saw this too. He cleared his throat and asked to be given a few minutes to drink water and keep a few items in their place.

Tony began to tell me about the tale of my father, who was once the greatest steelsmith Zandex had ever had. He told me of how truly, as Amy had said, Alpha Cosmos was one of his apprentices. He also revealed to me the shocking ultimatum that Alpha Cosmos, when he was still working for my father, had presented him with a choice of severe consequences after seeing that my father was loved by my mum then.

Cosmos, before he became the Alpha, had asked my father to choose between becoming the Alpha of the pack or marrying Geraldine, the fine angel who was the talk of the town and who happened to be my mother now.

Of course, my father had chosen my mother because he thought the position of the Alpha was not up for debate. Tony said that was where he was wrong.  Cosmos, on the other hand, thought that Geraldine, my mother, would go for a younger man.

He was stunned to learn that my mother did not decline my father’s proposal, even though it meant that she would lose Alpha Cosmos, who had loved her first. 

The future and the leadership of the pack were at stake, though everyone expected my father to be named Alpha, a choice had to be made.

Tony continued his narration as he told me about how my father was betrayed and the position was stolen from him. He told me of the betrayal of certain werewolves within the pack.

“Are you saying some person in this town betrayed my father?” I asked. This was because I had come to believe everybody loved my father. 

“May I continue,” was Tony’s reply.

“Okay, please continue, I am sorry, I interrupted you,” I said.

Tony explained how Alpha Cosmos was consumed by ambition, and had poisoned my father to remove him as an obstacle to becoming Alpha. I listened with shock as Tony revealed the sordid details of how Cosmos's lust for power knew no bounds.

I did not know how to take it in as my heart was heavy with anger and sorrow at the same time. I now realized the enormity of the treachery that had befallen my family. Alpha Cosmos would do anything to have what he wanted.

My father was rich but could be richer. His tragic fate had been orchestrated by someone who was mated to her but loved her mother and despised her father. This revelation forced me to confront the reality of my past. There was a sudden rush of adrenaline in my veins for revenge.

I knew Tony was telling the truth. I also knew I had to be careful. My father is a man of principle and, obviously, he would give me my hand in marriage to Alpha Cosmos. I need to speak to him.

I wanted to get more about this story as there were so many angles I could not relate with.

“So tell me Tony, how did you come to know exactly what had happened between them?” I asked.

Tony knew I was really desperate to know how he had come to know such closely guarded secrets. He was reluctant to answer me and I could see that from his facial expression, he was uncomfortable with that question.

Tony hesitates, clearly torn between loyalty to the pack and his desire to reveal the truth. After some persuasion, he reluctantly recounts his own involvement in my father’s workshop. He was an apprentice too, working alongside Alpha Cosmos.

“But I love you now and that means a lot to me. If the Alpha loves you, he should fight for you.” Tony said.

“No one is fighting over me. Go ahead, I am listening to what you were saying,” I said as I beckoned him to continue with his story.

Tony revealed the internal turmoil he endured when he realized the extent of Cosmos’s deceit.

“So did you tell my father?” I asked.

“It was not that easy, Mandaline. I had to watch your father’s health decline without knowing what had caused it.  This made his business growth slow down rapidly. I mean his declining health benefited Alpha Cosmos, who had started something similar. I had to carry the burden of silence as it weighed on me for many years,” Tony said.

I was shocked! He knew all this and could not even mention a thing to my father but watch him decline in health. I wanted to ask him how my dad recovered from that poison, but mentioning his involvement and his silence made me distaste him.

My Father was a great Steel Smith who had made so many sacrifices for the pack. Alpha Cosmos was just a cruel creature who deserved wicked things to happen to him. I thought of avenging my father, but he was not that kind of person. My father would rather look at the future than recount the past.

How was I mated to this cruel thing by the moon goddess? Was she not aware that Alpha Cosmos was a cruel and vile werewolf? I could kill him as a wife. Any respect and love I had for him died immediately.

I left Tony’s shop, there was this heavy burden of my newfound knowledge. It occurred to me that my path would be fought with so many challenges. I resolved that I was going to confront Alpha Cosmos.

I want to hear his side of the story and want to look at him in the face to tell me of his plans for my family. How could you be mated to me and still love my mum? How could you despise my father so much that you wanted him gone? Why do you want our land, Alpha Cosmos?