Ronan’s POV
Scott gave me a hand with the washing of the dishes. No, nothing was broken during the process.
He left, after raiding my fridge, with a bottle of milk and some cans of tuna.
What a cat!
I napped a little after that and woke up certain of what I was going to do. Of what I wanted to happen.
I rolled out of bed and went into my bathroom to wash my face.
I made my way towards my brother’s room with determined strides.
I knocked on the door before letting myself in, not bothering to wait for a response.
Both Ryder and Malia were in the dining room and my initial reaction was anger though I hid it well.
“Ronan,” Malia said in greeting.
I smiled at her. “I’m sorry to disturb this meeting but I need to talk with my brother in private.”
I saw a flicker of curiosity in her eyes before she smirked and pushed back her chair.
She waved goodbye to my brother and I noticed the longing in his eyes as she brushed past me and left his chambers.
“I take it you remember now,” my brother said as I settled down beside him.
I nodded. “I want her back home. I was young and didn’t know better. I want my sister to return to the palace. It’s what mother would have wanted.”
He smirked. “I’m sorry but I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Come on, Ryder. I’m not going to hurt my sister,” I said.
He cocked an eyebrow. “You haven’t been to see her all this while. And don’t give me the excuse that you do not know where she is. You didn’t ask. You could have but you didn’t.”
I opened my mouth to say something but realised I didn’t know what to say.
He leaned back in his chair and his lips curled into a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
“Ronan, I think there’s something seriously wrong with you. Somehow in your head, you’ve blamed me for our sister not being here. You didn’t bother to ask about her whereabouts because somehow you assumed I wouldn’t want you to know, isn’t that right?”
“You’re talking bullshit,” I burst out. “You’re the one who something is wrong with.”
“Little brother, you’ve always tried to make me the villain in your head,” he said.
“And why would you think that?” I asked.
“Probably because a part of you is still hurt that our father preferred me to you,” he replied.
I scoffed. “You’re out of your mind, Ryder.”
“If you say so, Ronan.”
A part of me had always known that I was right to want to become Alpha. Ryder had just proven it with his words. I had stood by him all this while.
I had sacrificed my time and even the girl I loved for him and yet he still belittled me and accused me of always trying to make him the villain in my head.
I took a deep breath. “I’m not here to argue with you, brother. All I’m asking is for you to demand the return of our sister.”
“Well, I can’t do that,” he replied.
“You can’t or you won’t?” I asked.
He shrugged. “She doesn’t have to be here. It’s not going to improve our Pack’s economy in any way.”
I scoffed. Our economy was exceedingly excellent.
“Are you being serious right now? Don’t you care about what mother would have wanted?” I queried.
“How can you be so sure of what she would have wanted?” He asked. “I’m so sure she wouldn’t have wanted her daughter to grow up in a place tainted with her father’s and brother’s hate.”
“She’s very happy and is doing fine where she is. She’s not returning. This hate-filled place is not her home. It has never been and it will never be. Remember that she’s not even father’s,” he finished.
“I’m going to find her and I’m going to bring her home,” I said stubbornly.
He rose to his full height. “Ronan Hawkins, you do that and you’ll be banished,” he said in his Alpha’s tone and I knew he wasn’t bluffing.
I walked out of his room having one more reason to become Alpha. If I became…. no…. when I become Alpha I’d be able to freely find my sister and bring her back home.
I was too angry to return to my chambers. I knew I’d just end up destroying the furniture. I needed to cool off so I decided to go for a run.
I felt free and powerful as my paws pounded against the forest floor. I hadn’t done this in a while and I wondered why. I allowed myself to feel all the rage and frustration and I increased my speed.
I didn’t stop until I reached the river flowing through the forest. I changed back to my human form before diving in and swimming until my limbs turned jelly.
I was trying to pull myself up onto the bank when someone offered me their hand.
I gasped in surprise when I realized who it was.
“Margaret,” I said, panting hard, “what are you doing here?”
“I come here often. It’s quite peaceful,” she answered.
Then she grinned. “I thought you were going to swim all the way out of the country.”
I chuckled and then realised with mild alarm that I was naked.
I got up to retrieve my clothes and felt her eyes on me.
“What a shame. I was enjoying the show,” she said as I walked back to where she was sitting.
I plopped down beside her. It was already late and dark but the light from the moon provided illumination.
“Lucien wouldn’t be pleased if he heard you say that,” I said.
She snorted. “He has no right to be displeased.”
I regarded her closely. “Did something happen between you two?” I asked.
She shrugged. “It was bound to happen anyway. As men start to experience a midlife crisis, they tend to seek out younger girls to make them feel young again and distract them.”
I scoffed in disbelief. I didn’t think Lucien would ever do something like that and besides Margaret was one of the most youthful souls I’ve ever met.
“Are you certain that he is seeing someone else?” I asked.
“I wish I was wrong but I’m not,” she replied and I could hear the bitterness in her voice.
“Have you confronted him about it?” I queried.
She gave a harsh laugh. “He had the audacity to bring some other woman into our home. Our bedroom. I…..”
Her hard exterior crumbled and she burst into tears. I moved closer to her and wrapped my arms around her.
She clung to me and cried until she was spent.
She got out of the embrace and her eyes went to the tear stain on my shirt.
“Do not apologize for that,” I murmured.
She gave me a watery smile.
“Let’s get you home,” I said and got to my feet.
I frowned when she didn’t take my offered hand but instead remained seated on the floor.
“What’s wrong, Margaret?” I asked.
She shook her head. “I can’t go back there. I’d rather stay here,” she replied.
I heaved a sigh. “But you know you can’t. It’s not convenient.”
She scoffed. “You know what else isn’t convenient? Sleeping on the bed my husband desecrated.”
I was so exhausted and was about to tell her she didn’t have to sleep on the bed but on the sofa. Hell, there was even an extra bedroom in her husband’s chamber. I thought better of it.
“You can sleep in my chambers,” I said.
She looked up at me with eyes filled with gratitude. “Thank you so much, Ronan.”
This time she took my hand and we were soon on our way back to the palace.
We got to my chambers and I led her to the other bedroom. I asked if she had had something to eat and she shook her head.
After assuring me that if she was hungry, she’d whip up something to eat, I went to my bedroom and plopped down on my bed.
This time, my dream was bloody. It was a war between my brother and I. To my greatest annoyance, Malia was beside him.
We fought and most of our men died during the battle. Then all of a sudden, it was just us three. Ryder, Malia and I.
With a wicked smile, he brought out a knife and plunged it into her heart.
Her face betrayed her surprise and hurt before she fell to the floor.
I growled in anger and ran to her side. Hurt cut through me like a knife as I watched the life drain out of her.
“Why?” I shouted at my brother.
He shrugged. “You shouldn’t have let me have her.”
I was suddenly filled with white-hot fury and lunged at him.
I woke up panting hard. I was covered in sweat and my sheets were wet.
I rolled out of my bed and trudged to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
I had already poured water from the jug into a glass and was raising it to my lips when my eyes landed on it and the glass slipped from my hand.