Shadows of Destiny

The Dark Side Of Fate By Karima Sa’ad Usman Chapter 126

~Tamia~

I was glad when Sylvester returned home. I felt him snuggle into bed with me in the early hours of the

morning, and the fact that he was home with me made me thankful. It was hard to express my fear.

I woke up early and snuck out of bed. Sylvester was still asleep, so I decided to let him rest.

I freshened up in the bathroom and headed out to speak to Stephanie, Katya and Nicole about the

wedding plans.

The truth was we couldn’t continue to put it off; we needed all hands on deck, and those were the ones

available.

Due to my last experience, I did not want to trust the planner without having people there to watch her if

she wasn’t getting it right.

I knocked on Stephanie’s door, and it took a while for her to let me in.

I stepped in and could pick up Jake’s scent in the room but kept it to myself. So much for being just

friends with the Alpha.

Stephanie seemed to be getting her groove back. I maintained a stoic face and went to sit on the

couch.

“Good morning, Luna,” I said, and Stephanie smiled at me.

“Out with it, Tamia; I know you smell him,” she said, and I laughed, then made a lip-sealing gesture,

and she smiled at me.

“What can I help you with?” She said, knowing I must have needed something to show up in her room

the way I did.

“I need you to help plan our wedding; of course, Katya and Nicole will help, but since we are too

occupied to do anything, I was hoping you could do it for us,” I said, and she beamed at me.

“I get to plan my sons’ wedding; why not?” she said, and I was thrilled. I got off the couch and hugged

her. Stephanie was slightly off, so it hit me that Jake might still be in that room. I decided to take my

leave.

“Do you mind telling Katya and Nicole on our behalf? Katya should be happy; it’s her wedding, too,” I

said, and she nodded, wanting me to leave the room badly.

I got to the door and touched the knob.

“Tell Alpha Jake that he should make sure he rounds up and make himself available in Sylvester’s

lounge before the lord wakes up,” I said, and Stephanie sighed.

“Oh, Tamia,” she said, and I giggled and opened the door. I stepped out of Stephanie’s room, still

giggling. Done with it, I returned to my bedroom to rest.

I went to lie down, and soon I fell asleep too.

I woke up later, and it was almost noon. Sylvester was awake, and he was getting dressed.

“You are finally up,” I said, and he giggled.

“You are the one that was sleeping, Green-eyes,” he said, and I shook my head.

“I woke up, freshened up and returned to bed,” I said, and he looked at me and smiled.

I got off the bed and handed him a paper with the list of names on Amanda’s flash drive. I handed it to

Sylvester, and he glanced through the content.

“Those are the list of names we got from the flash drive. Maybe we can use it to question the

prisoners,” I said, and he sighed.

“For now, I won’t be able to question them. They have requested to be brought before the council. A

request I have deliberately denied according to our plan,” He said, and I was surprised.

“Of what use are they if we can’t question them and get to the bottom of this?” I asked, and he nodded.

“Very useful. Their arrest would force the council to reach out to me. I would deny their request, and

they would reach out to the regional Leaders to vote me out of office because this is a tyrant behaviour

I shouldn’t partake in. On the contrary, the regional leaders, who are now my allies, would raise a bill

for reasons known to them that I should be installed as king. There will be a back and forth, and the

elite families will be asked to resolve the problem. Once I become king, we can question them as we

see fit,” He explained, and I understood that was part of the plan already, but we needed to be ahead

no matter what. Some of these people would want to talk, but I did not want to push it, so I held my

tongue.

“Very well then, what would we do while we wait for the council to reach out to you?” I asked him, and

he smiled at me.

“It has been a long time since we spent quality time together. Today I want to spend time with you. Go

hunting in wolf form, have a picnic, and make love under the stars,” he said, and I beamed at him.

The idea sounded so irresistible that a moan escaped my lips. It was most welcomed.

“I see you approve,” he said, smiling at me, and I nodded.

“First, I would go to the lounge to catch up with everyone, then we will start our day,” he told me and

pulled me close.

He searched my eyes for something and then smiled.

“Soon, we will be free of these people and live in peace,” He said, touching my tiny bump and kissing

my neck.

I could not wait for him to sink his teeth and complete the bond. We did not need the blue moon, but it

was worth the wait.

Sylvester left the room to head to his lounge while I searched for my friends.

“Where are you?” I linked Avery.

“Having a tea party in the eastern garden. Linda and I were bored and decided to hang out with the

girls. Katya and Nicole are here too. Your sister-in-law is the life of the party, Tamia. She and Katya are

bonding well. Oh, lest I forget, Stephanie is here too, and she reeks of Jake Brighton,” she added. I

giggled, remembering Stephanie and Jake.

I wonder how Sylvester would take it. I was happy for both of them. They were having fun amid all the

craziness.

I went to the eastern garden, and the party was alive. People were gossiping and laughing.

I also realised that they knew what had happened to Lilly. I wondered who had told them.

While some girls felt she was misled, others felt it served her right. They figured she lied about many

things, especially her relationship with Sylvester, and they did not wish her well.

Seeing how many people hated her, even her sidekicks, who were always with her. I guess loyalty

wasn’t part of their friendship.

After spending two hours in the garden, Kappa Wilson linked me that Leo wanted to see me.

I did not know how to feel about it, but I obliged him.

I excused myself from the party and returned to the mansion to meet Leo.

He was waiting for me in the hallway close to Amanda’s room.

“Is everything alright?” I asked him, and he nodded. His eyes were expressionless, and I knew he was

mad about something.

“What is the matter, Leo?” I asked him, and he put his hands in his pocket and stood straight.

“Amanda wants to say goodbye to Annika before she leaves,” He said, and I frowned at him. Surprised

that they couldn’t work it out.

“I know what you want to say, Tamia, but please save it. It is best this way,” He said, knowing I would

talk him out of it.

“What about the babies?” I asked, worried for the unborn children, and he sighed.

“I offered to be there for them, but she said no,” he said, and I knew Amanda might have said that out

of pride. Alphas were proud.

“And you let her?” I asked him, and he nodded.

“I did, Tamia, and I do not regret it. I should have rejected her on the balcony that day, and none of this

would have happened. She was the beginning of my downfall. It won’t work.

If I keep her, I will always see her as the reason my life crumbled.

I need a clean start, and she does too. I want to help with the children, but It seems she would try to

use them, and I do not want to give her that room, so I have rejected her. If the children ever desire to

know their father, they will come looking for me. I have a lot of issues to handle, and Amanda can’t be

one of them,” he said with a final tone, and I knew his mind was made up. I was also confused that he

felt no pain, but I kept it to myself, wanting our conversation to be short.

“She had the opportunity to come clean, and she never did. She could have given me the flash drive

when I confronted her, but she refused. I would be careful around her if I were you, Tamia. The woman

is dangerous and cannot be trusted. I can’t believe that I threw away my life for her sake. What I did

was stupid, and it would haunt me for the rest of my life, but I want a breather for now. I want to take a

break from the love department and re-evaluate my life and self-worth. One thing I know is that I will

never risk what I have for something fleeting again,” he said with misty eyes, and I hugged him.

He bent his head on my shoulder and wept.

“I am sorry, Tamia.” he wept bitterly, and I let him hold me.

“I forgive you, Leo,” I said, but I knew he would need time to forgive himself. We broke the hug, and he

wiped away his tears.

I Linked Kappa Wilson to join me so we could escort Amanda to see Annika.

I entered Amanda’s room, and Leo walked away. He did not want to see her. For fated people, his

hatred for her was so intense that it was almost palpable.

I saw Amanda weeping on the couch. She looked as if she was utterly heartbroken. She looked at me

with her swollen eyes but remembering what Linda and Avery said and Leo’s mistrust towards her, I

had my guard up.

“I heard you want to see Annika before you leave,” I said, and she nodded.

“He rejected me, Tamia. He rejected me,” She said, and I did not know what to tell her.

“You shouldn’t have refused his help, Amanda, but I won’t ask you to. Come on, I do not have all day. A

driver is waiting to take you to the airport. You can have five minutes with your cousin, that is all,” I said

sternly, and she nodded. She stood up and placed her hands in her pockets.

We exited the room, and Wilson and I escorted her to the dark dungeons with heavy security. I noticed

the food served by Luna’s in-service, and the prisoners seemed well cared for. I wondered when

Sylvester planned on moving them to the council prison. I guess I will discuss it with him later.

We went to where Annika was being held, and Amanda went to her. Their hands touched through the

bars, and Annika was in tears.

“Amy,” She said to her cousin, and Amanda began to cry.

“I am sorry. Annika, I should have kept..” she started, and Annika interrupted her.

“It is not your fault. I failed myself. I made the wrong decisions and failed,” She said, and I did not feel

an ounce of sympathy for them.

“They will bring you before the council. Just tell them,” she said to Annika, and Annika nodded.

“Once you are free, come find me,” Amanda said, and Annika nodded. I hated spoiling their hope, but

Annika would not be free because a council won’t oversee their trial; I would oversee their trial as

queen. I wanted to laugh, but I held it.

I knew they were mind-linking each other, and we did not have the full information of what they were

discussing, but I noticed that Annika began to weep seriously. I could only guess what Amanda might

have told her.

Amanda was crying too, and it was time for her to leave.

“Say hello to her for me,” Amanda said to Annika, and I felt it was a strange conversation. Maybe

Amanda knew Olga too. Too bad they won’t be getting out of this free of charge.

“Uncle will burn,” Annika said, and I figured they both hated Ramsey. What a dysfunctional family.

I asked Kappa Wilson to have a Kappa watch her just in case her hands were dirty because her

conversation with Annika was a bit off.

We left the dungeons, and Kappa Wilson led her to the car while I joined Sylvester in the western

garden.