Alpha Bane''s POV


    "If I could have your permission, Alpha King," I appealed to Aurora''s father. It was true that I could speak as I wanted but courtesy demanded that I did that since I was in his Pack. "This news is a very important one and I''m certain that everyone here would appreciate it."


    "Go ahead, Alpha Bane," he replied with a nod. "You always have my permission."


    I nodded my head to show my appreciation for his gesture and then I turned to Aurora to give her one final stare. She was looking at Sophia at the time but the moment I turned to look at her, she did too. It was as if she was aware that I''d look that very instant. It felt good too.


    "Thank you everyone for granting me this audience that I can speak freely to all of you with you all listening with rapt attention. I do not take this for granted," I began. "I''m grateful to everyone who came from far and near to grace this asion. This festival is nothing without dignitaries like you. Again, I thank you all."


    I noticed some uneasiness with Aurora and I turned around to look at her. She was all sweaty and I wondered why she was so bothered. Perhaps, she must have had a feeling that I was going to say something drastic based on what happened thest time and she was right. I just needed her to know that I had everything under control.


    "Please, be calm for me. I got this," I said to her, as she tried tomunicate with me with her eyes. She looked so curious to know exactly what my announcement was all about but I just smirked. She was going to find out, just like everyone else. Scratching a package that will soon be open was always of no use.


    I looked back up at the people at first, and then I turned and looked at Sophia before clearing my throat.


    She, too, was very nervous. It was almost as if she knew what I wanted to say; like she was begging me to hold back. But it was all toote. She made me do it. If only she had acted a bit more responsibly. If only she had just allowed Aurora to have a wonderful festival without trying to embarrass her.


    All those didn''t matter anymore as my mind was made up. I just wanted nothing more than to get it all over and call her out for who she truly was...


    "A traitor!" I screamed, turning back to face the crowd. "That''s what Sophia is. She''s a very big traitor. All these while, she had feigned ignorance concerning the fact that she was not the true child of the Alpha and Luna of this Pack. Yet, she knew everything."


    The whole ce went cold and people began to look at themselves in shock; just the way that I wanted it. I took it as a cue to continue with my speech knowing that everyone was keen on hearing what I had to say. Perhaps, everyone but Sophia.


    "She had been aware of the truth all this while. She knew that Aurora was the true Princess of the Pack, but she chose to keep it to herself, and even nned with Mrs Scott to ensure that it was so. She''s nothing short of a selfish and heartlessdy in whom no repentance can be found!"


    As soon as I got done with the speech, I turned around and locked gazes with Sophia who was visibly shocked.


    Princess Sophia''s POV


    I was in shock. Alpha Bane saying all that he said in the presence of everyone at the festival was something that I never expected.


    To me, it was the height of wickedness and insensitivity. If there was ever a bad time to say something like that, it was at that point.


    I felt like jumping up and disappearing from there through the roof or just bing invisible. Anything to keep me out of everyone''s sight was perfect for


    me.


    But it was never an easy feat to get what you wish for. It was the same for me. Everyone stared at me with very disgusting faces and I began to think about what I had to say to get myself out of that mess.


    Yet, it wasn''t just what he said that left me puzzled; it was the fact that he revealed a secret that he should not have known. I wondered how he managed to get his hands on that piece of information.


    That was when I remembered what happened thest time I went to see my mother. "Donald," I murmured inaudibly. He was there the previous night when I went to my mother and I didn''t think much about that.


    I should have asked him a few questions then, just to know if he heard the


    conversation that I had with my mother. If I had suspected that he knew something, even in the slightest way, I''d have more readily found a way to get rid


    of him before he''d speak to the Alpha. Such a snitch he was!


    I let out a hiss, convinced that I was done for. If he heard all that I said to my mother, it was almost going to be impossible to convince everyone that they were telling lies. I folded my hands in shame and just looked on. I had to hear all that they had to say.


    "She went as far as going into the dungeon where her mother, Mrs Scott, has been locked up for a long time, asking her to take a poisoned portion so that her secret will be protected," Alpha Bane continued, showing no mercy at all for me, nor any sign that he was going to stop. "What kind of daughter treats her mother that way? What child will ask the mother to kill herself so the truth can be concealed? Sophia is a monster!"


    He just wouldn''t stop. He kept going on and on about all that he knew. What was more painful was that he kept his gaze fixed on me and I didn''t know why. I always felt it was disrespectful to look one in the face and say things like that. Everyone was shocked. I heard murmurings, springing forth from the crowd as people pointed fingers in my direction at will. I turned to my friends too. Surely, they were supposed to be by my side. It was they, who should have stood by me.


    They didn''t. They scowled at me too, just like the rest. At a time when I needed them the most, they chose to abandon me. I hated them immediately. I never expected such from them.


    I opened my mouth to talk but the words just won''te out, no matter how hard I tried.


    "That''s not all," Alpha Bane went on, very keen on tarnishing what was left of my image and reputation. "She, with the help of her mother, did a spell to replicate Aurora''s scent so that she could be mated to me. With that, she was able to fool me into thinking that she was my mate and not Aurora. How cruel!"


    There was an uproar as soon as he said those words. If the festival wasn''t being held in my Pack, they might have attacked me or anything like that. Thankfully, it


    was.


    Alpha Bane took two steps toward me and stopped to ask, "Can you deny that all that I just said isn''t true in the presence of everyone here? Can you boldly say that I''m telling lies?"


    I just stared at him with my mouth wide open. I had nothing to say.