Forged in the Flames by Karima Sa'ad Usman

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Chapter 72 Correspondence (Nikolas POV)
Qusack finally arrived with a dark-haired Lycan called Shirley. She was pretty, but she could not compete with Aliana or Natasha.
She dressed provocatively in skimpy sheer clothing that left little to the imagination.
I guess Qusack had told her who she would be dining with, and she planned to score. I could see her disappointment when she
saw Natasha and Aliana.
Everyone in Forest knew they could not compete with Aliana, where I was concerned, so I figured she had come dressed that
way to hold on to Qusack or catch the prince’s attention.
Shirley sat down after greeting us, and Qusack sat with her.
He had an apologetic look showing he was sorry for bringing her along, but it wasn’t his fault. I was the one that insisted that he
brings a date.
He had found a way to oblige, so I couldn’t complain.
I noticed Shierly was looking at Aliana and Natasha as if they were beneath her, so I put her in her place so she does not ruin
our evening.
“Watch yourself at this table. You are simply here because Beta Qusack invited you. Suppose you condescendingly look at
Aliana or Natasha. In that case, you will be punished,” I linked her, not wanting anyone to hear or know what I had told her.
Because I did not want our evening to be awkward. I saw her tense up and lower her gaze just as she should.
Ania and Lisa brought in the food ready to serve. They dressed nicely, and Aliana smiled at Ania. Seeing they had all
straightened their hair, I believe they did their hair and make-up together. The clothes they wore were good-looking. The dresses
were mid-length, and they looked nice and elegant. They did not look like servants at all.
“The two of you are serving tonight?” Qusack asked Ania, and she smiled and nodded.
“Yes, Beta,” she said, then moved to serve me the appetiser while Lisa served the prince and Natasha the appetiser. After
serving Aliana and me, Ania served Qusack and Shirley.
Shirley wasn’t nice to Ania, but Ania managed her complaints gracefully. I wondered why Grant sent her for branding. One day I
will find out.

“This isn’t a five-star restaurant, Shirley, and you are a guest here,” I warned the girl.
I could see Qusack’s unease.
I wondered why he would bring a Lycan. There were always arrogant and bitchy. I do not believe it is in their nature, but the Unity
law gives them the right to be blotchy towards lesser breeds.
I believe it is because werewolves and mixed breeds are more attractive because of their fragile feminine features.
Lycan women are attractive too, but they have a strong masculine element that detracts from the gentle feminine look. That was
why most people found werewolves and mixed breeds more attractive.
Qusack cautioned her and then apologised.
Shirley did not give us any trouble after that and behaved herself.
We talked about many things, but the women remained silent.
I could tell that Aliana and Natasha would have socialised without Shirley.
Neither women were comfortable being friends with a Lycan.
Understanding the friction in the dining room. I told Qusack that he could excuse himself after dessert or send Shirley home, then
return to join us. He was more than happy to oblige, i
Ania and Lisa served a dark chocolate cake that was delicious.

Qusack and Piotr loved it so much that they asked for a second helping.
“Who made this cake? I want to know so the person can make it for me at least once a week,” Qusack said. The cake was that
good. I wondered why we never ate dessert like this at the dining. “I did, Beta,” Ania said, beaming at him, and I was impressed.
We all were. It was obvious she was happy we liked it.
“How?” Qusack asked, amused, still munching the cake.
Piotr wasn’t speaking much. He was stuffing his face with the cake. He was on his third helping, and I knew there would be no
leftovers to take to our room, so Aliana could have something should she need food in the middle of the night. “My mother was a
baker,” Ania said, and that explained it.

“Well, she was a very gifted baker,” Piotr finally spoke, and we all agreed.
“Ania, you handle dessert henceforth. Make sure you get all the help you need. I do not want you doing it alone. If they give you
trouble in the kitchen, report to Qusack. He will handle it. I said and looked at the cake.
“It would be nice to have some sweetness in our lives amidst the chaos of bitterness, envy and vengeance,” I said, and Piotr
agreed.
“I know my stay in the Forest will be fun,” Piotr said happily.
There was no need for Qusack to send Shirley away and return because, after dessert, we were all tired, most especially Piotr,
who travelled the road the better part of the day. We decided tomorrow would be another day to catch up.
Aliana and I retired to our bedroom after dinner, and we were too tired and full to do anything. We simply stripped, and I cuddled
her to sleep.
I woke up at seven the following day and prepared for my daily activity. We had set a lot of things in motion. I could not afford to
slow down. I linked Ania and Lisa to split themselves; One should serve the prince while the other should serve Aliana in the
room. I planned to eat breakfast in the office while dealing with files and documents.
Just as I thought, piles of letters were waiting for me when I got to the office. Fortunately for me, Qusack had read most of them.
“What are they,” I said, skipping pleasantries and going to sit at my table, and Qusack sat up.
“They are trade requests from Alphas in Hill and Alphas in Snow,” he said, and I sighed, a bit tired of this whole trade matter.
“Well, it means we should speed up our letters of agreement and send them to those we desire to trade with,” I said,
uninterested and unwilling to read the letter’s content. The worried look in Abraham and Qusack’s eyes spoke volumes.
“What is the matter?” I asked them, and Qusack sighed.
“They all want to buy slaves from you,” he said, and I was stunned.
“Majority of them are your supporters on the committee. They want you to make an exception and sell some slaves to them even
though you said they are scarce in Forest.
Some claim they need slaves to work in factories for their businesses and help their production output,” Qusack said, and I could
understand the problem.

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If I refuse, I might lose their support next meeting. If I agreed, I would be betraying the werewolves in Forest.
Knowing what I know now, I did not think it was a wise thing to do. The werewolves had suffered enough.
Can’t these people just employ Lycans to do the job? Why must they buy slaves?
I did not need anyone to answer the question for me. I already knew their reasons.
Slaves had no rights. They could be overworked without consequences, which was free labour in the long run. It is any business
owner’s dream to have free labour as their workforce.
I did not feel like dealing with the matter immediately.
It wasn’t something to be quick about, so I pushed the papers aside, cleared my desk and faced Qusack and Abraham.
“How is the letter sorting going?” I asked, and Qusack looked at Abraham, who held two old letters.
“We are still working on them, Alpha,” he said, his hands shaking. It was clear I wouldn’t like whatever was in the letters.

“Based on what I have read so far, whoever was keeping those letters was busy compiling evidence against certain people,”
Abraham said, and I was attentive.
“Do you want to read it first, or do you want me to tell you what is in it and then read it afterwards? Either way, Alpha, you have to
read these letters,” He said, raising the letters in the air. I could see his hands shaking.
“I implore you to react wisely and not draw conclusions from them. Qusack and I are still investigating the situation, and we are
hopeful that we might find something that would make all this a mistake,” he said, and I was curious. “Tell me, Abraham. I will
read it after,” I said. “One is a correspondence between Leon
Kowalski and your mother before she married your father. It is a carbon copy of the original he sent to her.
The other is a letter between Fredrick and your mother while married to your father after Leon’s death,” He said, and my heart
began to beat fast. Fredrick had made some statements the night he had come to see me in the room in Snow. I was afraid I
would find worse things about my mother. I braced myself for it.
“Leon wrote to your mother to plead with her to marry his half-brother. He tells her Mathias is to be King instead of him, and he
knows

Fredrick would want her for Aleksander because he wants her to be married to a king. He indicates Mathia’s mistress is pregnant
but tells your mother she won’t be an issue. He doesn’t state why, but he implores her to get ready to be the queen of Forest
because Mathias won’t mate with the werewolf.” He said and sighed.
“Based on the content of the letter, I am of the impression Leon wanted your mother for your father and ensured it happened.
Nothing here states why because he is cautious that the letter can be intercepted. Still, it indicates the union between your
parents was masterminded by Leon. The troubling part of the letter is that it is also a love letter to your mother. Stating she would
do this if she truly loved him.
He tells her they can be together this way since Fredrick would rather she marries an actual king instead of a prince. He said he
would rather she is his brother’s wife than Aleksander’s wife, as Fredrick had already planned.
It is a sick and twisted request of a desperate man, wanting to be with the woman he loves by all means,” he said, and I was in
shock.
This also explains the continued affair with Leon after she was married to my father. It had nothing to do with living in Olive’s
shadow. It was a deliberate decision before marriage.
“And what was her response?” I asked, and he sighed.
“Still combing through the archives. This is a carbon copy of the original letter. She must have received the Original in Snow, so
we are bound to find the reply in the archives if the person storing the letters deemed it worthy of storage,” He said, and I
remained calm.
“The second letter?” I asked, and he nodded.
“Fredrick warned his sister to ensure King Mathais signed the unity law. He threatens to expose her promiscuity to King Mathias
if she fails to do so. According to the law, if he exposes her and it is proven, she will be executed for infidelity. He had a
stronghold over her,” Abraham said, and I looked at Qusack. My mother was caught in the middle of it.
The fact that she tried to distance herself from it all disgusted me.
Right now, I could not vouch for her. I did not plan to confront her until we had enough evidence.
“This does not mean she worked against your father, Alpha. She might have influenced him to sign the unity law after Leon’s
death to get back at the werewolves for killing her lover. She seems more like someone blackmailed by her brother for a while.

We saw what happened at the committee. How afraid she was and the fact she was speechless.
I will implore you to be patient. Let us dig some more,” Abraham said, and I nodded.
Confronting my mother about it would be
useless because I doubted she would tell the truth. One thing she was honest about was that Fredrick wanted her to marry
Aleksander.
The fact that she married my father to be with his brother was sickening.
Even if she fell in love with him after, it was still wicked and cruel.
I had a clear picture of my mother by now, and I planned to guard myself where she was concerned.