The Alpha's Exchanged Mate
The Alpha’s Exchanged Mate – Chapter 56

Alexander’s POV…

I peeped through the window to see the thousands of people who gathered outside waiting for my speech. Truly I don’t know if I was in the right frame of mind to give out a speech. I didn’t even know exactly what I was expected to tell them.

A lot had been going on that I had no control over. A lot had been going on, which made me feel weak and helpless.

At this point in my reign as Alpha, I am not so sure about the decisions I am making, if it is for the best of the pack or mine.

Like for instance, the decision I made to still pretend to be crippled when I can walk just fine. At first, I thought I was doing it because of the bigger plan and the element of surprise. When the Sizzlers first attacked us, they had the element of surprise waiting for us down that tunnel and, of course, a cheating a*s Beta as their accomplice who betrayed us at the slightest opportunity he had.

If it was not for Caleb and some group of Omega who felt something was wrong when the Gamma wolves had not returned and had made no ambush, they took the first instinct to retreat from attack and guard the city gate at all cost. If not for that one decision, our city would have been tossed to the ground. If they had taken that step before the plan failed, they most likely would have been punished for it, but that was the major thing that had saved us. But when I started walking and still stuck to the whole act of being crippled, I began to question my motive.

Was it really because I needed to know the intentions of people?

When I was still active, and my wolf was still very much active, whenever two wolves were in their wolf form, I could instantly and telepathically connect with them. I could see what they were seeing and hear what they were saying. It made everyone conscious whenever they were in their wolf form. Because they might never know; whenever they wanted to discuss something crucial around the night howlers’ territory, they did in their human forms, which was in a way safe for them away from me but far from safe for them in terms of battle.

This was part of those things that informed my decision when it came to choosing Caleb as the Beta. Before he became aware of the impending state of my fake ailment, I would mostly observe him and how he would defend me openly.

There was this time we all went for a hunt in the inter-realm, and many of them were saying bad about my inability to rule due to my disabilities. Only Caleb defended me, and they even mocked him calling him my bitch.

But to me, that was the height of Loyalty. It made me know who should be in the front and back when setting the lineup during battles.

I normally put the disloyal ones at the front and the loyal ones behind. No, this wasn’t my way of being vindictive and making them suffer, but I can’t trust them to have anyone’s back, and that’s why I always put the loyal ones behind.

But now I stand peeping through the window, hearing the endless shattering and bickering. I could see the fears in the mother’s eyes, confusion in the children’s eyes, and loss of hope being bestowed on the father.

I want to blame them for their reaction and their lack of faith in me, but truly I have given them little to no reason to trust in me or the throne, and I didn’t even know what exactly to say to them.

It was going to be more like a conversation. Certain clans had sent out their representatives.

To each pack faction, there was a clan: the Gamma clans, omega clans, and Kappa clans. There were a lot of people there, and I know a lot of them had a lot of raging thoughts, and I wanted to make sure I had an answer. Edwina came to help me to adjust my clothes, and I could tell she had questions too.

“Were you able to write down a speech yesterday for yourself?” She asked, and I glared at the open window again.

“I am not sure if I did, I was at the study all night trying to write something but so blank all the way, I am not sure why? They are my people, I should be able to talk impressively with them in all truth but now I can’t talk to them,”

“Why can’t you?” She said, adjusting my royal shoulder pad.

“Because that would mean me lying to them, there is almost no hope for us to win the battle and that’s something I need to start accepting,”

She sighed, and I knew she knew that was true.

“Don’t say so, there is still hope, I am sure something will come up,” she said with so much feigning optimism.

“Are you even sure of what is coming out from your mouth, so you know the number of people that left the pack since when Alpha Bethel showed up in that coronation?” I asked her, but I knew I wasn’t expecting an accurate answer.

“No, I don’t know,” she replied calmly.

“Eighty people,” I replied almost immediately.

“That’s not that much, I still believe there is__” she was saying before I interrupted her.

“Do you know how many wolves left for the sizzlers after Ben escaped and joined the sizzlers?”

“No,” she muttered again,

“Seven hundred people,” and I could see her frowning. She was displeased by what she had just heard, ” do you want to say that is a small deal?” I asked her, and she shook her head, and then there was a knock on the door.

“Come in,” I called out, and then Caleb entered.

“Are you ready to address your people?” He asked

“Honestly, no, but do I really have a choice?” I said.

“No, you don’t, let’s go.”

He wheeled me out while Edwina followed behind us suitably.

I thought about the thousands of questions they might want to ask me and the fewer answers I have, but that was crazy for me to think I could do it on my own and when we climbed up because I would be addressing them from a high balcony, with a microphone. And I felt all the anxiety kick in. I have never been this anxious to address my own people.