The voice cut through the office.
Dark, sharp, cold and absolutely daring.
Just like that day in the hall.
George gnashed his teeth, staying still while anger drummed in his head.
She was his! His!
No, she is not.
His wolf snapped at him. He heard Zezi call him quickly, like she was afraid of what would happen if he didn’t step away.
“George…”
The King was there, still looking at them calmly but the tightness in his jaws showed just how hard he was trying to still have the reigns of control.
“Take your hands off her.”
George stood up abruptly. A sudden fear had crawled over him. He felt cold. He immediately grabbed Mira and carried her in his arms. Before Zezi could stand, she felt a cold hand tight around her wrist while she staggered to her feet.
It happened so fast.
She was just kneeling on the floor right there a moment ago and now, here she was by his side. He was fast, faster than they were. So fast that her sight had blurred for a moment.
It was only then she noticed the woman who had brought her daughter in some moments ago. She was a little pale too, just like the rest of them but her aura held some calmness… some life. Not enough to grasp unto but enough to make a difference.
She gave Zezi a little smile but she looked away, not returning it.
They were all the same. They were all monsters!
“There is it, our Peace Treaty but don’t forget that once you break the rules, we will be coming for you.” She heard him say.
She looked around the room, her eyes landing on Mira. There were so many things she wanted to tell her. She looked up at George, his jaws were tightened. She couldn’t looked at him for long though, the King had pulled her out along with him and slammed the door shut. He immediately started walking and she had to fall into quick steps behind him.
“I have to say goodbye.”
She wasn’t sure if he heard because not once did his steps flatter. She tried to listen in on his heartbeat but she heard nothing. Then a smile crossed her lips at how ridiculous that was.
Had she easily forgotten that these were monsters without a heart?
“I have to say goodbye to my family.” She said a bit louder this time.
Black cars screeched to an halt some distance beside them and her heart raced.
The thought of leaving was absolutely different from it actually happening. She looked around to see her pack members everywhere, looking at her with gratitude in their eyes, pity too. But their gratefulness knew no bounds and she knew it. It was like they were thanking her for being their sacrifice.
“I have to say goodbye to the people I love.”
His feet came to an halt then. She staggered to a stop, her heart racing. For a while all she could see was his blood red robe, she could almost see the rigidness beneath the robe.
“No.”
With that he pulled her along till they were seated in the backseat of the car. She looked out hurriedly through the tinted glasses, her eyes searching for Aunt Alice, George or Mira. She really wanted to see them.
“You won’t find him. Stop looking.” She heard him say coldly to her and she almost jumped in her skin. She had almost forgotten that he was there.
“I just want to say…”
“No!” He sat up abruptly, and leaned closer to her. She could see his face now, every feature like she hadn’t see it before and admist everything, she found herself admitting that he was handsome.
An handsome monster, her mind snarled.
Then her eyes flew to his, those magnificent black orbs were flashing between black and blood red. Tiny black zig-zag lines ran across his face, like black ink spilling hazardously beneath his skin.
She should be afraid, terrified even.
And so she was. She sank back into her seat, wanting to get far away from him. Fear raced in her lungs and coldness creeped over her.
This was the face of a monster, one she had seen before.
Images of the vampires slashing through her pack flashed before her eyes.
She sank deeper into her seat, fear clear as day in her eyes. She could feel her lips quivering slightly. Her nails slowly turned into claws and dug into the seat.
He saw it, then he blinked. The black veins slowly disappeared and his eyes maintained its usual black colour. He sat back in his seat, his jaw tightened once again.
It took a while before she calmed herself down.
Throughout the rest of the journey, silence reigned.
*****
At a point they had stopped. She had wondered what was going on but she refused to ask. Why would she? She knew that she wasn’t going to get an explanation after all.
It got even more strange when they all left the car and started walking, going into a strange forest by the roadside.
Different unorganized thoughts ran in her mind while they did that. She stepped on a twig and almost lost her footing but she steadied herself right on time. She could feel his eyes on her at that time but she was determined not to look back.
As much as she could, she would try not to look at him.
Then they got to a cave. They went in, lit torches were hung on both sides.
Zezi’s heart raced. The problem wasn’t about seeing, her wolf’s abilities involved seeing in the dark and she could see just fine.
The problem was that this cave would be part of her obstacles when she wants to escape. She knew she was already a long way from home but now while they maneuver their way through this cave, she understood that it wasn’t only a long way from home anymore, but also a very complicated way away from home.
*****
It was a Castle, a huge one that she felt that it was possible for her to get lost in. It was as if they could sense her presence way before she even got there.
Of course, they could. She was different. She certainly was sure she smelt different.
While they made it up the stairs, the maids had welcomed them. They were now in the hallway with different doors on both sides. She just wanted to be shown where she would stay so that she could get away from him as soon as possible. Staying within such a close range to him muddled up her feelings and made her really angry with herself.
‘He is monster.’
She kept the sentence playing over and over again in her head. Allowing that night when she was fourteen to etch permanently into her mind. The pain, the loss, the grieve, everything.
She wouldn’t forget so easily.
“You are here quicker than I thought,” a voice chuckled behind them and she turned to see who it was.
It was one of the ladies that had been next to him that night. She had on a long gown with a shade of red that seemed way too sharp.
What was it with these people and red?!
She was quiet lean, tall and beautiful. She had long black hair and eyes that seemed to always have a tinge of humor in them.
Her aura was absolutely compelling yet there was something about it, a sort of darkness, psychotic darkness.
“What is it, Laura?”
“I had imagined that you would be ripping their throats apart by now. Do you know how much I was hoping that you would send us the signal.”
“Turned out they were not as stupid as I thought.”
“Maybe,” Laura shrugged.
“Well, killing them would have been fun.”
Monster! Zezi’s mind screamed. She clenched her fists by her side.
“But would it have been worth it.” Laura said to him with a sick smile.
“We’ve lost so much because of the…” Laura’s eyes seized up Zezi. “little inconvenience.”
“Is that so?” He drawled out calmly. Zezi looked up at him, it was so hard to understand what he was thinking or to even take a guess.
She looked back at Laura and she looked shaken, fear flashed in her eyes before she blinked it away.
“Definitely not,” She smiled broadly at Zezi. “Welcome home.”
Something about the way she had said it, made Zezi feel like she didn’t want her there.
Well, that made it two of them.
Zezi took a guess at who she could possibly be. A lover most definitely, probably a modest one since she hadn’t flung herself on him yet. If he was already with someone, then all she would have to do was convince the person to be on her side. There would be no need to give the person a motive, the person would already have it.
Seeing how Laura obviously didn’t like her presence, this should be easy.
A complete win-win!