Chapter 24: It's Too Late

Elton

I have secrets.

Everyone has secrets, but as a member of the Royal Family, I feel like my secrets are bigger than everyone else's. Sometimes, I feel like I am being suffocated by my secrets and that any day now, they will eat me alive.

That's an interesting choice of word, suffocate.

As soon as news broke out of my trifle with that insolent peasant, the world was in uproar.

I know I shouldn't have gripped his throat like that, but he just got on my nerves.

Two centuries ago, I would have put him to death just by the way he spoke to me. Alas, times have changed. The King no longer has limitless powers, and the people have a right to be heard. I know, right? What a crazy concept!

As soon as I arrived in the South Wing of Château Blanc — mind you, the whole time my sister was mad at me for what I did to Bradley — my father was already alerted to what had happened. First, he asked me if the allegations were true, and when I told him they were, he slapped my face violently. That will definitely leave a mark... for a few minutes.

"You fucking moron!" He snarled at me, livid. "You'll be disqualified from the tournament!"

My father was not amused by my behavior, let me tell you that.

"I was defending my sister's honor!" I argued in my defense, irritated.

"Why? Did he rape her?" He shot back, aggravated. Mom glared at dad for that inappropriate comment.

"Edwin!" She reprimanded him for being so callous with their daughter in the room. All four of us were in a private lounge near our quarters. It is sort of a living room, if this was a normal house. Emily was just as mad at me, but not for the same reason as him.

"Your sister had an innocent crush on a boy she saw competing in the tournament. That boy has, in the best case scenario, a month left to live in this castle before he washes out of the competition, if not sooner. Then he'll be back to wherever he came from. Why bother yourself with a peasant? Your focus should be on winning the competition and securing your place as the heir to the crown. Now all is lost!" Dad shouted, feeling desperation sinking in.

As soon as it was confirmed that my uncle could not have children of his own, a race started among his siblings to find out who would be the one to provide him with a male heir. The second person in the Royal Family to be married, Aunt Christine, only had two daughters. My mom was the next in line to be married; she had me and Emily. My other uncle, their baby brother, got married just last year and so far is still childless.

Basically, my mom and dad had all the cards on their hands to gain favor with the King and present me as the only male heir to the crown, one with Whittaker blood — which is what he wanted all along. At first, he loved the idea. He would groom me to be his successor, and my parents were okay with that. The crown would remain with the Whittakers, which was what the nobility wanted. Everybody was happy.

As luck would have it, I fell out of favor with the King because I did not display the same behavior that he did when he was my age. He received a few slanderous reports that left a sour taste in his mouth, and suddenly, I was not good enough anymore to be his heir.

It's all bullshit if you ask me, but I don't get a vote on the matter. No one does. That's the beauty of a monarchy, we serve at the pleasure of the ruling monarch, Lucius Whittaker III.

As if that wasn't enough, now he came up with this ridiculous tournament open to all Alphas just to make me 'prove myself'. Fuck him! When was the last time he ever had to prove himself? Oh, the arrogance... fuck my life!

Father is livid at me, fuming for having squandered the best chance I had of securing my position as the natural heir to the crown. Now, everyone will demand my disqualification. Our cell phones start blowing up with notifications of news reporting my altercation with Bradley. It had to be against the 'golden boy' who just so happens to be the son of a national hero.

My dad only read the first few lines of the article, and he was mad at me all over again.

"I'm sorry, okay? I know I messed up! I lost my temper!" I told him, trying to keep him from slapping my face again. It hurt like hell the first time around... Emily looked disappointed in me, which is actually worse. So far, we had a somewhat close friendship, but now she is furious at me.

"Nothing will be resolved today. Let's all go to sleep, and tomorrow we will think of a solution for this mess. Get ready to issue an apology, son." Mom interjected, noticing that we were all in pins and needles.

"An apology won't be enough this time. By tomorrow morning, the Crown's Press Secretary will be announcing the King's decision to disqualify our son from the tournament." Dad stated, deeply disturbed by this outcome.

"How do you know that?" She asked him, puzzled.

"It's what I would do if I were him. He already doesn't want our son to succeed him, now he has all the incentive that he needs to cast us aside from the line of succession." He argued, enraged.

It would be a travesty for a commoner to rise to the Crown of the United States. The consequences could be unthinkable for us. We could be destitute of any right we now hold. My father would certainly lose his title of nobility and his lands, all gifted by the King. We could be utterly ruined. Oh my Goddess, what have I done?

Tears come to my eyes.

Mom rushed to my side on the couch and comforted me while I wept silently. It is suddenly dawning on me just how much I messed up. This is a clusterfuck! Thanks for the tweet, Lance, you fucker! Way to ruin my life!

It is not so much that I cannot wait to be King; I just have to be in order for me to protect my family, my loved ones. Why did I have to choke that insolent peasant?! Oh, my Goddess... *weep*

"Now it's too late to cry, son. You'll be our ruin. Nicely done." Dad piled up, and mom glared at him, mind-linking him to go to their suite and leave me alone. I have messed up plenty in my life thus far. Every single time, my father had to intervene.

I had trouble in my boarding school when I was a teenager, and my dad intervened, ready with a donation check. I caused property damage, another check. The papers acquired a scandalous picture of me in a compromising position? Dad was there to pull strings and get the story squashed. All my life, there was nothing that my father couldn't save me from.

Until now.

This is the worst possible news. The worst possible outcome of the King's tournament.

The entire nobility was counting on me to win the competition, become the next monarch, and perpetuate our way of life through my rule. But if I get disqualified, then it's anybody's game. Anyone could become the next King.

Sure, some noble sons are competing in the tournament, but they were not prepared for this. Who is to say that they wouldn't wash out by the end? Who is to say that a low-born could not win the competition, besting all the other candidates?

This is a nightmare of epic proportions, and it hasn't dawned on me just how big the trouble I made for myself and everybody I know and love.

Here's the dirty little secret most history books don't tell you. The nobility is a class of people favored by the King. It's a class system. They keep the monarch safe, and in return, the King dispenses favors to his closest allies. That's what keeps him in power.

I mean, that is what used to be. Nowadays, monarchs remain in power through the command of the military forces — who answer exclusively to the King, via his Secretary of Defense — and power structures that have been in place for centuries.

Lucius is the son of the late King Leon. When he died, his son rose to power. People are born knowing that is how the government works, so no one questions it. He is the King, and we are his loyal subjects. That's it. He no longer needs the nobility to keep him in command — though they help, of course.

My point with all this is simple. Whoever becomes the next King can replace the entire nobility as we know it. Everything we own has been gifted by the grace of His Majesty and can be taken away at any point with a simple decree. The King can replace any Alpha of any pack he wants. He is the King.

My family and the families of all my friends could be ruined. Forever.

I confessed I hadn't thought it through until now, just how much we live by the grace of our uncle. My mother is a Princess, and no one can take that away from her, that is true. But that is about it. She does not get any land, title, or any right at all. She is granted a sum of money annually, but that is about it. Not even our residency in this castle is guaranteed. We could be easily evicted by the next monarch. Do you see where I'm going with this?

I cried myself to sleep tonight, thinking just how much I disappointed my family. For once in my lifetime, I think my father was being kind for having "just" slapped my face. I deserved far worse, though he is not the violent type. He disciplines by other methods.

I am 20 years old. I don't have the luxury of thinking like a teenager or a minor. I should step up and be the man that my family so desperately needs me to be. But now it might be too late.

A|N: What did Elton do to lose favor with the King?

All will be revealed in due time.

But for now, get ready for some groveling.

Love,

Léo.