The Alpha's Temptation

Alrakis paused a while as everyone looked at him with anticipation.

"What?" Taiyi asked him impatiently.

Alrakis tapped his chin. "How about you ask King Izo to stop the export of every material that comes out of the Jade Sea to the lands of Araniea for a few days?"

Taiyi rolled her eyes. "How will that solve our problem, Alrakis?" she said, her voice drawling.

"How long does the effect of this potion stay?" asked Alrakis.

"This depends on the quantity of the plankton in it." She picked up the scroll and said, "This is the maximum that can be consumed as reported by the healer, and if one consumes more than this, they may get a paralytic attack."

"Calaman\'s horns!" Alrakis rasped. "And that old bastard has been taking it continuously?"

"He is…" Taiyi sighed. "The effect of the potion lasts for no more than ten or twelve days. After that the effects start wearing off and the body starts coming back to its original shape and features. However, as and as the body changes back, there is a lot of pain associated with the part that is changing back. For example, if the eye color changes after drinking the potion, the person won\'t be able to read properly or maybe not even be able to see well."

"Gods above!" Tania gasped. "No wonder I used to see that Menkar would often get sick."

Eltanin\'s brows creased. "How often was this?"

"Every ten to fifteen days, but—" she rubbed her neck. "—I am not sure. Even though I was his slave, he never called me when he was sick. I was rather not allowed to enter that wing of the monastery."

"Interesting!" Eltanin said. Then he gave a mischievous smile to his mother. "And you have brought all his bottles?"

Taiyi laughed as she relaxed and placed her feet on the table. She played with the scroll in her hands. "I hope those were all the bottles he had and haven\'t got others. It would be interesting to note his reaction when his effect wears off."

Alrakis couldn\'t help feeling proud of his wife. He walked to her and placed a kiss on her forehead. "You\'ve always been interesting, love." He sat next to her and intertwined his fingers with hers.

"Haven\'t I?" she said seductively to her husband.

"So what do we do now?" Eltanin interrupted, staring at his parents\' joined hands. Why did he suddenly feel like he should in between them? He got up to fill his flute and when he came back, he chose to sit in between them. He was not used to sharing his father. Even with his mother.

"I will ask father to put a halt on trade with Araniea," Taiyi said as she made space for him. "I hope he agrees!"

Alrakis frowned at his son. His pup sometimes behaved like a spoiled toddler.

"Why won\'t he agree?" Eltanin growled. "He has to! I rarely ask him for favors!"

"Well, let\'s hope, okay?" Taiyi shrugged. "Now I am very tired and I think so is Tania."

"Do you want me to call a maid to massage you?" Alrakis asked.

Taiyi raised her eyebrow. "No. I would rather—"

"Can you both just stop?" Eltanin growled and closed his ears. "You are sounding pathetic!"

Taiyi jerked her head back.

"Father, I need to talk to you!" Eltanin announced.

Tania narrowed her eyes at him. Even though she had found her parents after so long, she wasn\'t this possessive. She got up and said, "Then I will take your leave. I am very tired…" She gave a sensuous look at her mate.

Taiyi got up and said, "Would you like me to come with you to your room? Because I think the men want to talk through the night."

"Sure, mother," she replied softly.

As soon as they started going out, Eltanin said loudly, "Wait!" He got up and said to his father, "We will talk tomorrow." Saying that he strode to his wife, scared that if she slept with his mother, chances were that he wouldn\'t be able to see her for the whole night. They would simply lock him out of his own bedchamber. "I feel very tired, suddenly." He stretched his limbs. "I need to sleep!" He sauntered to his wife and curled his arm around her waist. "Come love. You look very tired."

Tania turned her head over her shoulder and gave a knowing wink to Taiyi. She walked with her husband back to her room with a winning smile.

---

For the next few days, no one went to the dungeons where Nora and Kypho were lodged. Kypho would demand to come out. He would shout and snarl and curse the guards to set him free. His cell was next to Nora\'s, separated by thick iron bars. He would look at her and feel repulsed. She had become a shell of her former self. She would talk to herself, mumble incoherently.

"There are spirits, wolves…"

"Will you stop speaking, bitch?" Kypho would shout at her.

"I see you Jaka…" Jaka was her wolf. "Are you happy?"

Kypho would snarl. It had been a week. He had marked the days, scratching every sun dip on the wall with his claws. He knew that the effect would soon wear off. He knew that once the effect wore off, he wouldn\'t be in a position to make a deal. He didn\'t know why he was sent to Prince Ileus. But the moment he gazed into his golden eyes, he felt… entranced. And the next thing he knew was that he had this tremendous headache. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in this dungeon. After that no one had visited him.

He was sick of sleeping on the damp hay. They had given him a torn blanket. When a guard came to give him food, he grabbed his collar and said, "Go tell your king that I have information that can be very beneficial to him! I am ready to make a deal with him."