Stripping For The Alpha King

Chapter 42

Ajax wanted to stay with me, I could see it in his eyes. I knew that he wanted to keep me against him and tell me everything would be alright. I knew he wanted to comfort me and convince me that I hadn't just received the shock of my life, that all of this was totally normal. But, even when he was trying to hold and touch me I just stared straight ahead. I could feel the blankness of my expression and the soft, even breath that entered my lungs. I was almost completely unresponsive. Each word, each touch, was utterly useless.

Ajax sensed this and tried to fight it for a while. He attempted to coax a response out of me by asking questions that I ignored and rubbing my back in soothing circles. Eventually, he realized that nothing was going to work. My mind had slipped into shock to protect itself. Nothing could stop that now. Ajax told me that I was allowed to do whatever I pleased and that he would be milling around if I needed him. I didn't even blink when he told me he would check up on me in a few hours.

I stayed where I was. I didn't change out of my clothes for a long time, though they were dirty and scuffed up from my encounter. I laid down at one point. I just blankly stared at the ceiling.

After some time I began to feel my mind working again and it was exploding with denial. I thought that this was all crazy and I was a fool for letting Ajax convince me of any of this. I saw something strange in the woods, something that I might've misinterpreted, something that my mind struggled to process. And I had been feeling strange for some time. However, there had to be another explanation. I stood up on shaky legs, telling myself that werewolves were not real and this was all so absurd. But when I moved towards the large window I saw a creature moving on four legs and several following it.

A pack of wolves was racing around the palace, looking like they owned the place.

I suddenly felt very ill and stumbled backwards.

This couldn't be possible.

I needed to clear my head. But I couldn't go outside. I couldn't risk happening upon another creature. I didn't want to see Ajax, I didn't want to see Adeline or Orion either. It seemed that the only safe place was the shower. I cleaned the scuffle off my body with the steaming water and tried to convince myself that it never happened. But I was still surrounded by marble and fine finishes, reminding me that I was in some kind of palace. A palace that had been built for the king and queen of werewolves.

I didn't bother to dry off my hair or even my body before I pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a baggy tee-shirt. I didn't want to succumb to my racing mind, but I couldn't find it in myself to force some kind of distraction. I laid on my bed and stared at the ceiling again until I fell asleep, feeling like I was spinning in circles.

I woke when I felt my bed dip down. My eyes cracked, expecting to see Ajax watching me intently with those concerned green eyes. But it was wide brown eyes that I knew so well instead.

"Hey Holly," I muttered, rolling onto my side. My sleepy eyes closed again as I told myself that I was safe. She was my best friend. I could hardly remember a time in my life when I had existed without her. She had been everything for me. She was a sister who kept me in line when I turned bratty, she was a fashion expert who critiqued my clothes, she was a diary that I could vent to in the worst of times.

She was the tool that Ajax claimed kept some beast within me alive.

My eyes burst open and I sat up. Holly didn't move away and her expression remained neutral like she was expecting this kind of a reaction.

For a while nothing was said. I was upright, holding the blankets to my chest like the world's softest shield, hoping that it would somehow protect me from everything that was swirling in my brain. Holly just watched me move, looking at me squarely like she was prepared for a fight.

Instead I broke.

"Tell me he's lying," I whimpered, "Tell me that I need to take my medication because I'm hallucinating. Tell me I'm crazy and you need to take me to a mental institution. Just don't tell me that Ajax is real, that he's telling the truth."

"Keiko," she sighed, dropping her gaze, "Ajax isn't lying. Everything he has tried to tell you is true. Don't you know what you saw? Didn't you see him shift, one second a man the next a wolf? How else would you explain that?"

I shook my head so wildly that my still wet hair swung around. "I can't have this conversation again. If Ajax told me the truth then what are you?"

"I'm a werewolf."

"That's impossible. I've known you my whole life and I've never seen any signs. We've never talked about it and you tell me everything."

At my accusation Holly faltered a little. Regret and guilt were reflected on her familiar features.

"Your mom wouldn't let me tell you. All those weekends I went away on camping trips that you weren't allowed on? Those were the times that I got to let my wolf out. Those random guys that went to the strip club with ajax are pretty much my family."

"How could you keep this from me?" I accused, feeling tears fill my eyes.

"Do you think I wanted to?" she shot back, "Do you know how much I wanted to share this whole world with you? I wanted to tell you all about how painful my first shift was. I wanted to stay up late and talk about what we thought our mates would be like. I wanted to spend hours picking out our clothes for Ajax's visit because he's the prince and it was a huge deal. I know that you were ignorant to all of this, and not by your own hand. But that doesn't mean that I didn't have to go through all of this alone."

The blankets that I had been holding onto so tightly dropped a little now. The pain in her voice was real. And I had been the cause of it. she wasn't lying, she wasn't defending Ajax. She was my friend and I had left her alone through some very important events.

"What about my mom?" I asked.

"She drugged you."

"No, I know that. I mean, is this hereditary or just random."

"Oh, no. she's a werewolf as well," Holly confirmed with an adamant nod.

"Then why would she keep all of this from me?"

"I don't know, Keiko. All I know is that she told me that she needed a young she-wolf to keep the werewolf in you alive. Without the proper support and being close to a werewolf community the wolf in you would fade completely. So she kept me around to make sure that wouldn't happen but gave you pills to repress it. sounds a little backwards to me, but I never questioned it."

"I don't understand how she could do this to me. I don't understand why. And now that the secret is out she's nowhere to be found," I muttered, running a hand over my face.

"I don't know," Holly whispered, placing a hand on top of mine, "I should've been a better friend and questioned her about it more. Maybe I should've gone against her wishes and told you everything anyway, but I thought she was just doing what she assumed was best. Now, you need to trust Ajax and his family because they are trying so hard to help you through this."

"I don't understand anything," I whined, feeling so close to tears all over again.

Holly grabbed both of my hands in hers and gave them a comforting squeeze, "I know. But we are all going to be here for you now. So, how about we go down to that fancy kitchen and ask them to whip up some of our favorites before we turn on a movie and pretend that none of this happened for the night?"

"Sounds like a plan to me," I laughed shakily.

***Happy last update yall! If you're in Alberta like me I hope these updates got you through the cold spell. It's been -40 here. Cold enough that cars just die while you're driving them, cold enough that any moisture freezes instantly and pipes burst regularly.***