58. A Day of Reckoning
A Day of Reckoning
The road into Moonshire was nearly impassable. Carriages stretched as far as Matilda could see, their wheels crowded along both sides of the road while hundreds more traveled on horseback or foot.
News of David’s challenge had spread well beyond the borders of Night Falls and Moonshire.
Everyone wanted to witness the disgraced beta fight his way through the ranks for a chance at Prince Lykaon’s throne.
Their carriage slowed to a crawl as they approached the city gates.
“Gods,” Ezra muttered, peering through the window.
Matilda leaned across Luka for a better look.
People crowded balconies and windows overlooking the main road. Vendors had erected makeshift stalls, selling food and ale to spectators who had arrived hours earlier. A man stood atop a barrel near the gates, waving a leather pouch over his head.
“THREE TO ONE HE FALLS TO THE BETA!”
David’s eyes narrowed at the spectacle.
Matilda grinned. “They are wagering on you.”
“FOUR TO ONE HE NEVER REACHES LYKAON!”
“I heard him.”
“Should we place a bet?”
David glared at her.
“Perhaps not.”
Another voice rose from the crowd.
“Ten gold says David takes all four!”
Others joined.
“Five on David!”
“Seven!”
“Ten!”
David settled back against his seat, and by the time their carriage passed through the gates, his name was already traveling through the crowd.
“David!”
“The former beta!”
“He lives!”
David’s jaw tightened.
Matilda studied him, then asked, “Are you nervous?”
He hesitated to answer, glancing down to the bundle in the crook of her arm.
“No.”
She raised a skeptical brow. David lasted all of three seconds.
“I am terrified.”
Matilda nodded. “Good.”
He frowned. “Good?”
“You would be a fool not to be.”
David turned his attention toward the distant castle that he once called home.
“The match is brutal: four fights one after another.”
“I’m aware.”
“What if what Dr. Blackwood did isn’t enough?”
Matilda sighed, switching Denalia to her other arm. “What Dr. Blackwood did to you has nothing to do with why you’re here.”
“It has everything to do with why I’m strong enough to attempt this.”
She scoffed. “You were Lykaon’s beta before Dr. Blackwood ever laid a hand on you.”
David’s expression tightened warily.
“Listen, David. Not a soul in Moonshire knows this version of you. Until yesterday, they’d thought you had perished. They know the wolf who left Moonshire. They have no idea what came back.”
Matilda smiled when his expression shifted, her words finally getting through to him.
The crowd shouted when a horn sounded from beyond the castle walls. Matilda reached beneath her cloak and withdrew one of her knives, offering him the hilt.
“Is this for luck?” he asked, accepting the weapon.
“I don’t believe in luck.”
“Then why are you giving it to me?”
“When you’re exhausted and considering surrender, you will remember who trained you.”
David tucked the knife into his belt. “You’re an arrogant bitch.”
“Watch it!” Luka warned, voice bellowing in the confined space. Matilda sucked her fangs when Denalia jolted from her sleep and began to cry. Wordlessly, she handed the squawking babe to her father.
They continued their journey in silence until Ezra announced their arrival.
David sighed as the castle loomed ahead. “If I perish—”
“We will not speak on it,” Matilda interrupted.
“If I perish,” he continued, “I want you to know that I am glad I failed to kill you.”
She refrained from rolling her eyes. “That is remarkably touching. You truly have a way with words,” she drawled sarcastically.
“I agree.”
“Then agree to this. You are not dying today, David.”
Without hesitation, he replied, “We shall see.”
***
The fighting grounds behind the castle had been transformed into a spectacle.
Luka stood beside Matilda near the edge of the royal viewing platform, taking in the thousands who had gathered around the enormous dirt ring below.
Temporary stands had been erected to accommodate the masses, yet they had proven insufficient.
Spectators crowded the surrounding hillside, perched atop stone walls, and filled every balcony overlooking the grounds.
Vampires, humans, werewolves, and creatures Luka could not readily identify had traveled from across the surrounding kingdoms to witness what many believed would be David’s second death.
Vendors moved through the crowds selling ale and roasted meat. Men shouted wagers over one another while others argued about how long David would survive.
Luka’s attention settled upon the four wolves standing inside the ring. They stood several paces apart, each appearing remarkably pleased with himself.
The gamma was the youngest, though there was nothing slight about him. The delta beside him was broader, scarred across one side of his face, while Moonshire’s current beta possessed the enormous build Luka had come to expect of Lykaon’s highest-ranking soldiers.
And then there was Lykaon.
The prince stood at the end of the line with his hands clasped behind his back, surveying the crowd as though his victory had already been secured.
“They look confident,” Ezra observed from behind him.
“They should enjoy it while it lasts,” Matilda replied.
Luka grunted, keeping his eyes on the wolves.
A horn sounded, and he was grateful Denalia was blood drunk and slumbered like the dead. The thunderous crowd surrounding the ring gradually quieted.
Lykaon stepped forward.
“Citizens of Moonshire!” he announced, voice booming across the grounds.
The crowd erupted, and Lykaon allowed their cheers to continue before lifting a hand for silence.
“Today, we gather to honor one of the oldest laws of our people. Any wolf cast from his rightful rank may return and challenge those who succeeded him. Should he prove himself stronger, his place among us shall be restored.”
Lykaon began walking slowly along the perimeter of the ring.
“David was once Beta of Moonshire. He stood at my side, fought beside me, and bled for this kingdom. And then,” Lykaon continued, “he betrayed us.”
Matilda stiffened beside Luka when boos rolled through portions of the crowd.
“He is full of shit,” Ezra muttered.
“Today, David returns believing himself worthy of more than the position he abandoned. He has come not merely for the rank of Beta, but for the throne of Moonshire itself.” Lykaon smirked when the spectators erupted in outrage. “But Moonshire does not fear the challenge of one disgraced wolf.”
Luka watched David from across the grounds. He stood alone near the entrance to the ring, seemingly unmoved by the thousands shouting against him.
Lykaon turned toward his three ranked wolves.
“I offer my blessing to my gamma, my delta, and my beta. May your strength honor Moonshire. May your victories remind every wolf watching that rank is not bestowed through arrogance or entitlement.” His gaze found David. “It is earned through blood.”
Matilda scoffed. “I cannot wait for David to beat his ass.”
“Tilda.”
“What?”
Luka suppressed a smile.
“And should our former beta somehow survive the warriors standing before me…” The prince slowly removed his cloak and handed it to an attendant. “…I will gladly meet him in the center of the ring.”
Luka leaned closer to Matilda.
“How are you faring?”
“Ask me five minutes from now,” she responded.
Another horn sounded, and an elderly official in ceremonial robes entered the ring carrying a staff bearing Moonshire’s crest.
The spectators went silent.
“By ancient law, David, former Beta of Moonshire, has invoked his right to challenge the ranks above his standing and claim the throne.”
The official struck his staff against the earth.
“He shall face Gamma Soren first, followed by Delta Garrick and Beta Loic. Should he defeat all three, he shall earn the right to challenge Alpha Prince Lykaon for rule of Moonshire.”
The booing resumed as soon as David stepped into the ring.
Scattered cheers fought against them.
The official continued.
“Each challenge ends when one combatant yields, loses consciousness, becomes physically incapable of continuing, or dies.”
Matilda’s hand slipped into Luka’s, and his fingers immediately closed around hers.
“Weapons are permitted; however, no outside interference shall be tolerated. Between challenges, David shall be granted ten minutes to recover. He may refuse the next challenge at any time, thereby forfeiting his claim and ending the tournament.”
Luka frowned. Ten minutes was inefficient. Even with David’s altered physiology, it would be difficult for him to regain his strength in such a narrow window.
The official turned toward David.
“Do you understand these terms?”
“I do.”
“And do you accept them?”
David looked at the gloating contenders before his gaze traveled toward the royal platform. He met Matilda’s eyes. She gave him a single nod of reassurance.
It was enough.
David had not accepted the challenge for power or a throne. He had returned to reclaim the life that had been stolen from him, and Prince Lykaon’s death was the only way he’d be truly free.
“I accept.”
The official raised his staff.
“Then let the challenge begin.”
Gamma Soren stepped forward. “You should’ve remained a ghost.”
“You shall be one when I’m finished with you,” David promised.