The Switch
Astrid’s Point of View
“Astrid!” Papa called me, his voice echoed in my head as it was like a thunder. “Come back here!”
“Stay away from me, Papa!”
I rushed home, hot tears pooled in my eyes because of the stung of pain, as well as terror, built inside my chest and it seemed that I could not do something to shoved those emotions away. The fact that my own father would choose to sell me to the Alpha of the Crimson Moon pack made me feel worse.
I should not be the one who he should sell. It must be Atasha! I was not the cursed werewolf, but she was…
How on earth did my father get into contact with Alpha Gregory, anyway? How did he know that the Alpha wanted me to come in their territory and make me his son’s slave?
“This can’t be!” I shouted as I shook my head, pulling my hair in frustration and muttering curses at the same time. “No, this can’t be happening… this is not what I planned. They can’t take me!”
I went to the center table and shoved the things on it, screaming in anger.
Who do they think they were? Who were them to ruin my plan? Why the fuck were they targeting me now?
“This is not what I had in mind when I started this whole thing. I have no intention of being dragged away and sent to the Crimson Moon Pack! Over my dead body!” I shouted, my chest was moving up and down out of anger.
The door slammed open, and the next thing I saw was my father storming in, eyes full of desperation and madness. I stared angrily at my father's pale face, which was dripping with sweat bullets from his brow to his chin.
“Astrid, you have to listen to me!” he commanded, seemingly using his power as my father to order me around. It was as if what he was asking was that simple!
“No way, Papa!” I let out a shriek as I stepped back. “Do not come near me!”
“This is for the sake of our pack, Astrid! Please, listen!”
“I don’t give a damn about the freaking pack you belong to!” I said, shaking my head as I stared at him in disbelief. “I don’t understand what has got into you, Papa! What exactly are you thinking about, Papa? Do you hear what you are saying?”
“We have no other choice, Astrid. This is the only way for this war to end! Please help our pack! I am begging you! You are the only person who can save it!”
“Like I said, I don’t care about the pack, Papa!” I sneered through my gritted teeth. “Why would I save the pack who wronged me from the start? You must be out of your mind! And didn’t you realize that I’ve given everything I had only to save you and Atasha?”
“We can no longer be saved, Astrid! If you come with them, Alpha Gregory will put an end to this endless war between two packs!”
“That’s why you are going to sacrifice me? What the hell?!” I screamed. I snatched the vase from the table and slammed it to the ground, which created a loud noise. My breathings were ragged and my brain seemed already fogged. I could no longer stay focused… Why did it turn this day? I screamed my heart out once again, too frustrated with the situation.
My hand picked everything it got contact to and threw it in front of him. In order to make sure that my message that I opposed to his request was clear, I grumbled furiously at him.
“Stop it!” His voice sent shivers down my spine. “I witnessed what you and Alex did. You helped Alpha Gregory to find Linda! And he wanted you! Did you know that he decapitate your mate, Astrid? He fucking killed Alexander just to get you and he would never hesitate to do the same with the rest of us!” he was crying out as he explained everything. My eyes widened when he got on his knees in front of me to plead.
However, what made me bewildered was the thing he told about Alexander. It was as if my heart stopped beating, a big lump was blocking my throat, making me unable to breathe. It felt as though my heart was shattered into pieces, much like the vase that I had thrown on the floor earlier.
I shook my head in disbelief. Alexander is not dead… He can’t be… He would come back… No…
My father was only telling me lies…
“You are lying. Stop fucking lying in my face, Papa! Alexander is alive! There is no way in hell he would die without my permission! Take it back! Take those words back!” I broke down in my direction.
“Let's put an end to this war, Astrid. I don't want anyone getting their hands dirty in this mess! I understand what you did, and I know that you set Linda up on this, but we are powerless to change Atasha's condition. She was, without a doubt, the one who brought this dreadful fate upon the pack!" My father’s tears were dripping onto the cold hard floor below him.
I sighed and shook my head in disgust. Even though it had been my intention to protect us from the danger, I ended up being assigned to the Crimson Moon Pack instead…
And Alexander…
He could not be dead…
“Have you possibly lost your mind? Papa, I am not the one who was cursed here! It was Atasha! Why do I have to sacrifice myself?!” I said, fuming mad. “And please, tell me that you are only lying about Alexander being murdered by that filthy Alpha of the Crimson Moon!”
“I have no reason to lie!”
“You have! You want me to come with the Alpha that’s why you are telling me lies right now. Do you think I am that foolish to believe you? I am not like your second daughter!”
The strong bond I had with Alexander seemed to be giving me such pain that I could not shove aside. No matter how I tried to convince myself that I should never care about him, given that I had only used him to fulfill my plan, my heart was still yearning for him. Our bond was strong to the point that I could die for him…
And this news my father dropped before me made me want to kill the Alpha...
“It was something I witnessed with my own eyes. I spotted Alpha Gregory assassinate your mate! He asked me to track you down or else he would kill me too. Alexander told me not to inform Alpha Gregory about your whereabouts because he wants to turn you into a slave," he responded.
His words were followed by him standing up and grabbing a chair, before sitting down in it. Out of frustration, he placed both of his palms against his eyes and then yanked his gray hair out of his head.
“Could you tell me what Alexander told you? What are his final words?" I asked him, my gaze fixed on his miserable expression. I was drawn to his tear-streaked face as he sobbed.
“When I was there and came across Alpha Gregory, I tried everything I could to defend and save your mate for I know how important he was to you. I tried to fight the Alpha! However, Alpha Gregory was the most powerful among all the Alphas in the werewolf land. No one will ever be able to compete with him.” Shaking his head, he let out a huge sigh. “I did everything we could. Alexander gave everything he had, but he persisted in risking his own life in order to save mine.”
Despite the fact that I was not meant to cry but instead celebrate at this point of my life, I could not stop myself from crying.
It was the strong bond that we shared that had me completely depressed and disheartened. Perhaps this was the difficult pill to take. I began to question whether this was really worth it in the first place.
However, the devil that swallowed my heart and my eyes in my view of the world was so powerful that it became clear that I needed to move forward if I didn't want Alex's death to be in vain. There was no way his sacrifice would go to waste. All the way to the end, I would be determined to persevere.
“His final words were to protect you at all cost. He sincerely loved you and wanted you to be so happy…”
My heart fell, and I cried hysterically. I was fighting back my tears but I could not stop it. I fell on the floor, yelling his name in agony.
For the first time in my life, sorrow poured out of my heart and soul.
How could I move forward without him?
I could never…
"Please, let’s put an end to this conflict, Astrid," my father said as he rose to his feet and hugged me tightly. “If you want Alex's sacrifice to not be in vain, you must submit to the Crimson Moon Pack immediately!”
“Clearly, that is not what Alexander wanted to happen, Papa!” I pushed him and stepped away from. “I will never submit myself to the Crimson Moon pack! I will never let anyone to enslave me! Please… please, Papa. Do not trade me away. I don’t want to leave Alexander… he’s my mate!”
But my father only looked at me in deep horror. The way he looked at me clearly told me that he thinks that I was crazy.
“He’s dead, Astrid!”
“No, he isn’t!” My mind could not accept it.
I cried… wailed… a struck of pain could not leave my heart. All I did was cry in despair when I felt a hand slap me on my face. That strike made me silent… numb and for a moment I felt that I was near my death as well.
“Stop it, Papa!” a familiar voice of Atasha made me come back to my senses.
She ran toward me and hugged me tightly. I gasped for thin air.
“What the hell are you doing? We are in the middle of a hopeless fight!”
“Who told you to come out of your room, Atasha?!” Our father’s loud and angry voice boomed in every corner of the house.
“Atasha!” I called her. “Please help me! The other pack wants to take me. I don’t want to with them. I’m scared!”
“What? What are you talking about?!”
I swore to myself that everything would not go in vain… Atasha would become a slave of the Crimson Moon pack, not me….
With this in mind, I began acting like a weakling. I cried in her arms, ensuring that she would be convinced… knowing Atasha, I knew she would not let me submit myself to the rival pack. She had to volunteer herself and replace me.
Papa and Atasha started fighting. At first, I was enjoying it but minutes passed, I felt my head aching.
It was only when I looked up that I saw the Dark Lord behind my father. He was looking at me intently while his long filthy fingers were touching my father’s shoulder.
I shut my eyes. Out of fear, I pretended to be unconscious.
“Let me do it, Papa,” Atasha said bravely.
“What did you say?” Papa asked, sounded so confused.
“We have the same face. I bet the Alpha wouldn’t be able to tell who is who. He doesn’t know that Astrid has a twin sister, does he? So, I’ll go instead of her.” Atasha started sobbing. “And please, don’t make things more difficult for her! You know how it felt to lose a mate when our mom died in war. For once, be a father to my sister. From now on, you only have one daughter to take care of.”
Great! She fell into my trap!
