*Seven vears later*
"Alpha Ryan, your attention is needed in the meeting room. The Beta has arranged for a meeting with some of the pack elders.
Ryan sighed then nodded at the maid who immediately scurried out of the room, leaving him alone in it with just his thoughts.
Alpha Ryan. Alpha. Was he even worthy of that title!
Seven whole years had gone by. Seven years after the elders of the pack had decided to still have him as the acting Alpha despite his inability to find his mate.
He still remembered that day like it only happen a couple of hours ago. He was called into the meeting room with tons of the pack elders all seated with his couple at the farthest end of the table.
It was a long discussion with Ryan's heart feeling heavy throughout and when the conversation finally ended, they concluded to give him a chance to still find his mate.
The sigh of relieve he heaved that day was second to none. For a moment, he decided to not worry.
The pack elders had simply assured themselves he couldn't find his mate yet because he was still in shock about his parents' death and decided to be patient with him.
But he didn't need to be told, they were finally running out of patience.
After all, it had been seven years.
Seven years of torture. Seven years of pain. Seven vears of anguish.
Seven years of him roaming the pack and the woods every single day with the hope of him bumping into his mate one day. He so desperately longed for that connection they talked about. Any connection to make him feel less of an unworthy Alpha than he was feeling.
But apparently, the moon goddess wasn't on his side.
Days turned to weeks and weeks into the months and finally into years and Ryan was yet to find his mate.
He hated it so much and rather unfortunately, the häte wasn't limited to just him. Every single member of the pack knew he couldn't find a mate and them just all collectively decided to run their mouths nonstop about it.
Rumours flew around and he knew every single one of it had something to do with him-indirectly or directly. The pack was slowly falling apart, the nearby packs were threatening to attack, and the members of the pack were all struggling. And when the root cause of their numerous problems were about to be found out, it always ended up being Ryan and his curse.
He was cursed and they had all chosen to believe his curse was the reasons things were falling apart in the pack. He couldn't blame them though as he thought so too himself. After all, what was the use of an Alpha of the Silver Night Pack who couldn't find his mate, not to talk of providing a future heir fo continue the legacy of the pack?
"Ryan? Ryan!"
Almost jumping, Ryan was jolted out of his thoughts to meet his younger brother, Declan standing behind him, an extremely worried look on his face. Seeing his brother put on a fake smile at his sight, he folded his arms and shook his head. "What were you thinking about, Ryan? I've been here for ages now."
"It's nothing." Ryan tried to convince him but it was useless. "I was just thinking about pack matters.
That's all."
"Pack matters?"
"Mhm mhm," Ryan nodded and quickly tried to change the topic. "What are you doing here anyways? Adam called a pack meeting with the elders. Didn't you hear? Aren't you supposed to be there?"
"He did?" Declan scrunched up his nose. For some reason unknown to Ryan, his brother and their cousins were no longer on good terms ever since the night he was supposed to be officially titled Alpha. "What's it about? And no, I wasn't invited. I guess to him the Alpha and the Beta being present is more than enough already."
"Don't be ridiculous," Ryan gave Declan's shoulders a light squeeze. "As long as it is pack matters, it concerns you. Now come with me, will you?"
"I'm sorry dear brother but I can't. I have somewhere I need to be and I'm afraid it's urgent."
Knowing he could never convince his brother when his mind was all made up, Ryan nodded and freed him from his grip, turning to give himself a final glance in the mirror.
"Alright, you don't have to come with me. I'll just go alone."
He did exactly that and the second he opened the door to the meeting room, he felt his heartbeat quicken. There was obvious tension in the air and he didn't need to be told either something had gone wrong or something was about to go wrong.
"Alpha Ryan," one of the elders acknowledged his presence as he walked in. "You are here."
"I am," he nodded, walking towards the empty seat reserved for the Alpha. "Beta Adam, what's this meeting about?"
"Well," Adam's voice was cold and calculating. "We need to talk."
"We?" Ryan repeated, giving all the elders quick glances. They all had mixed expression on their faces- some despair, some pity and some of them, sadness.
"What is going on?" Ryan immediately spoke up again, feeling a knot form in his stomach. "What is this about?"
Short silence fell between the elders and they all exchanged glances, like they were indecisive about who was to take the lead. Their actions however only made Ryan anxious and impatient, prompting him to speak up again. "I left important pack matters to come to this meeting. It's either one of you all speak or I leave to return to more pressing issues regarding the pack."
"Exactly," his cousin, the beta finally spoke up. "We are here to talk about the matters of the pack."
Ryan's stomach churned. "The pack?"
"Yes, Ryan," Adam replied, Ryan unable to dismiss how Adam referred to him without his Alpha title.
"It is no news to you and every single member of both the council and the pack as a whole about how the pack is doing. The pack is failing and you know it. Nothing is going well. It's like no matter how much we try to evade it, we only plunge from one problem to another."
"What are you trying to say?" Ryan could feel a sense of dread creeping up on him. "You're right about the situation of things in the pack but you should also know I'm trying my best to manage things. As the Alpha-"
"Well, it seems like your best isn't enough."
"Excuse me?"
"Look around you, Ryan" Adam dared to not only raise his voice but also himself from his seat.
"Look around you and tell me what you see. What you hear. The people of the Silver Night pack are begging for help. Things are falling apart and they are wailing. They are suffering."
"And do you know what's common between them all?" he continued. "The fact that they all think you are responsible for every single calamity that has befallen upon the pack!"
"Adam!"
Ryan felt his heart drop to the ground as Adam uttered the words he had never expected him to say.
Truthfully, he had heard it all but never did he imagine anyone would be bold enough to say it directly to his face.
"It might sound insulting Ryan but it is the truth," he continued. "As the Alpha of the Silver Night Pack, you are supposed to have your Luna by your side. The blessings you receive from the moon goddess for sealing your mate bond is supposed to spread towards the entire pack so it can flourish.
But for you, there's no mate, no blessing. So tell me, how's the pack supposed to flourish when someone like vou rules it?"
"We need to put the pack's best interest first, Alpha Ryan," one of the elder's finally spoke up. "We cannot keep on gambling with the future of the pack like this. It is too risky. For you, for us and even the generations to come."
"Please try to understand us, Alpha," another elder spoke up. "Though we believe you aren't really cursed, it is hard to prove it to the rest of the members of the pack. Things are in critical condition and we can only trace all of this misfortune back to you."
"We need a strong leader, Ryan. One that can take care of the pack and lead us to a future we can envision."
Ryan could feel his heart sink as he dared to voice out the words in his throat. He wished he could deny all of the allegations against him. He wished he could beat his chest confidently and deny it all but he couldn't. They were all the truth without even the tiniest ounce of a lie. "So you've all come to a conclusion, right?"
"Alpha Ryan-"
"And what is that conclusion?"
He looked at his cousin, hoping he would speak up this time. For some reason, he just wanted to hear those words from him. Whatever they might be.
But instead, another one of the elders spoke up, Adam's eyes immediately gleaming with triumph.
"We have decided to have your cousin, the Beta, take up your position as the Alpha.
Ryan couldn't believe what he was hearing. He didn't want to believe it. He knew the curse was a huge possibility but he had always tricked himself into not letting it define him. He had worked hard to be a good Alpha. To be fair and just but suddenly, all of that was taken away from him because of something he couldn't control.
"You can't do this?" Ryan breathed out, his voice shaking with anger and disbelief. "You can't have someone else take over the Alpha position like that. My father was the Alpha!"
"I am your cousin," Adam spoke up, his voice now calm. "We're still family remember. And don't get us wrong, we aren't dismissing you because we think you aren't capable. It's just what needs to be done for the sake of the pack. I have my mate and have a child. Don't you think it's best I rule the pack? You want the pack to be safe, don't you? It's what your parents would also have wanted."
"Ryan, we're sorry but we have no choice."
Ryan felt like a heavy weight was suddenly placed on his chest. He couldn't breathe, he couldn't think. He was losing everything he worked so hard for.
He looked around the room, seeing the faces of people he thought were his friends, allies and even family. All of a sudden, they longer seemed that way They suddenly only seemed like strangers, who were more than ready to cast him aside.
"I don't have a choice but to accept your decisions, do i?"
He felt defeated and devastated. He felt alone but knew no matter how terrible he felt, nothing was going to change.
Everything he had worked for and wanted was going to slip right out of his fingers if he didn't act fast.
And what was worse was the fact that he didn't even have any idea on what to actually do next.