Forged in the Flames by Karima Sa'ad Usman

The heated moment I had with Aliana got to my head. Bane wanted her badly, and I did not know how long I would deny him.

I feared she might become an addiction once I started because my wolf never craved someone so much. Teasing her like I did calmed him down a little.

I did not want to lose sight of my mission and my revenge.

I knew refusing to seal the deal got to her. I saw the pain in her eyes even though she tried to mask it.

I wasn’t sorry, she shouldn’t have expected anything more.

I suspected she was yet to understand her predicament, and it was because I was lenient on her, but not anymore.

Aliana always has the nerve to reply whenever I say something. I do not know where her confidence comes from because clearly, she is afraid of me. Soon she would know that silence and obedience would serve her better in her predicament.

She would submit to me whether she liked it or not. When her father realises the hardship and turmoil she is going through, he will feel helplessness and pain, just like I have been feeling for nineteen years.

I heard Aliana rush out of my room, and I heard her sob. I exhaled while I worked on myself. I wouldn’t deny that I was tempted to finish with her, but this was more rewarding. I would be betraying my mother if I allowed myself to please Aliana.

To think she had the effrontery to make suggestions on feeding my mother. Thinking of her explaining her plans made me laugh. Her father and kind were the reason my mother was in that situation in the first place.

I wondered how she planned to fix it. Something that even Lycans could not do I only allowed her to prove a point, and when she failed, I would turn up the heat on her people a little higher and let them know why.

I would make her suffer and ensure her people blamed her for their suffering. Gabriel would not dream of defending or rescuing her. It will be heart-wrenching, and he will feel pain. Qusack might say I had already won and should move to get the kingship recognition, but I wasn’t satisfied yet. I wanted them to suffer like my mother did, raising me alone. Like I did, being forced to grow up at ten and take care of her. I want Gabriel to feel unimaginable pain, and he would feel it through Aliana.

I did not care what my wolf wanted, I would deal with the Nowaks and Werewolves for their crime against my family.

Once I was done in the bathroom, I linked the two maids I assigned to Aliana and gave them instructions, then, I allocated three men to the cause.

They were to report everything to me. I planned on giving Aliana a month and punishing her for failing because I knew she would fail. She might think she could warm my cold heart by trying, but she did not possess the fire for that. I decided to join Qusack outside We were trying to renovate the kingdom and build a mega city, and I planned on using the werewolves as slaves to do the job. Qusack and I planned to draft them that morning.

planned to reserve the more complex work like stone cutting and transporting to Gabriel and his

have little or no help, and I would give them an impossible

planned to make them realise how good they had it with my father. I want them to regret betraying

whom I did not care who she was, stood in front of the female line. I cleared my throat, and they all bowed with respect. I had men standing scantily on each side of the line with silver thorns on whips. They would use it on the werewolves if they acted

carrying Aliana’s scent because of our encounter this morning, and I hoped Gabriel would recognise the

since it had happened, I might as well use it

touched her because I wanted her, I wanted to know what she would feel like, and she felt good. So damn

going to share what is mine, that much I had made clear, but now I had her scent, too It would fade away after a while, but it was okay because Gabriel would know. He would know that

little girl wasn’t a little girl anymore, she was

as she should be,” I said, and he didn’t utter a word. I wanted a reaction from him, but nothing happened. “At least she is making herself useful, it is time you make yourself useful,” I said and waited. I could feel him vibrate

relaxed, but I did not miss the tears that escaped his eyes. It was satisfying to watch because I remembered how my mother cried every day, especially at night when she

least his daughter has a bed. We had

others will work on the building projects.

all resume your duties following the Lycans

and I drafted

masons and transporters, people began to plead

Alpha,” Gabriel said with boldness, and I knew he had a death

horror in

I returned to the packhouse. Qusack followed me and tried to catch

not want to give him a definite

leaving her as a maid will be okay. Passing her around would be

you think I spent all these years planning to fight and conquer my father’s enemies only to play with a werewolf b*itc*h? The daughter of the b*astar*d responsible for my family’s destruction?

all of them. Send her to her father and let them work on the

not know, Niko,

my rules,” I