Addy’s eyes widened at the sight of Hilary’s presence. Reflexively, he backed away, putting distance between himself and Usher. “Hilary.”
“What are you doing here?” Hilary asked as she approached. She looked at Addy for a moment before her gaze shifted to Usher, who was trying to hide his face from her. “Who is he?”
Addy blinked with a confused look on his face. He could see Usher trying to avoid eye contact with Hilary. Additionally, Usher continued to cover his face, even though he was wearing a mask.
“Hilary.” Addy approached Hilary at just the right moment, preventing her from getting closer to Usher. “What are you doing here? I thought you were on patrol.”
Hilary ignored Addy’s question. She continued to look at Usher as she tried to get closer. “Who is he, Addy? What were you talking about? Why do I get the feeling something is wrong?”
Addy shook his head in confusion. Usher, on the other hand, didn’t want to take any chances. He thought it was enough that Addy knew his identity; there was no need for Hilary to know as well.
“Hilary, listen to me. You-”
Usher glanced and didn’t waste the opportunity. When Addy held Hilary back and their attention was diverted, he left quickly without saying a word. His steps were quick and light, so by the time Addy and Hilary realized he was gone, it was too late.
Addy sighed in relief while Hilary did the opposite. She looked at Addy with a suspicious look.
“Who was he, Addy? What were you talking about? I have a feeling you’re hiding something.”
Addy grabbed Hilary’s hand and tried to calm her. “He was nobody, Hilary. Trust me. He was just someone passing by who seemed to be in a hurry.”
Hilary scoffed. “Can’t you come up with a better excuse, Addy?”
Addy couldn’t argue. But that didn’t mean he was going to confirm Hilary’s suspicions. Instead, he held Hilary’s fingers and said, “Let it go. There’s no need to discuss it. We’d better get back to the sentry post.”
Addy didn’t give Hilary a chance to protest. He didn’t let go of Hilary’s fingers. Instead, he tightened his grip and led her away. In the end, Hilary didn’t make any more objections. Addy sighed in relief.
On the other hand, Hilary didn’t refrain from debating Addy because she didn’t want to, but because she felt there was nothing left to question. Addy’s behavior, however, only confirmed her suspicions.
Hilary could clearly sense the oddities in Addy’s behavior lately. After all, they had been together for over thirty years, and she knew Addy well, including all of his unusual behaviors.
Addy seemed restless. He seemed uncomfortable, and his expression showed an unspoken fear.
This piqued Hilary’s curiosity and haunted her thoughts. But Addy didn’t answer any of her questions. As a result, her curiosity drove her to find out on her own, and eventually, she caught Addy talking to Usher.
In Hilary’s eyes, Usher was a very suspicious stranger. His completely hidden appearance and his avoidance of eye contact only fueled her suspicions. So, she had no hesitation in accusing Usher of being the cause of Addy’s recent strange behavior.
Still, Hilary didn’t want to jump the gun. She decided not to push Addy for a while. She thought she should wait for the right time to talk to Addy about it. She would wait, but unfortunately, fate acted faster and more unexpectedly. For that night, at exactly half past one in the morning, Addy woke her up in a hurry.
“Addy,” Hilary whispered as she rose from her sleep. She saw in the dim light that Addy was opening the closet and packing some of his clothes into a suitcase. “What’s going on?”
Addy replied without turning around. “Wake Vione. Tell her to pack quickly. We’re leaving.”
Hilary was stunned. “W-what? Leaving here?”
Addy held his breath as he closed the suitcase. Then he stood up and approached the stunned Hilary. “I’ll explain later, Hilary. The important thing is that we have to leave now.”
“But why?” Hilary asked as she got out of bed. She looked at Addy with a puzzled expression. “Why do we have to leave?”
Addy seemed troubled. He couldn’t answer Hilary’s question because he didn’t know the answer himself. The truth was, he didn’t understand the reason for Usher’s orders either. But what mattered to him was that the Alpha’s orders had to be obeyed without question.
“I don’t have time to explain, Hilary, but please.” Addy grabbed Hilary’s upper arms and looked at her with the utmost seriousness. “Trust me. We have to go now.”
Hilary was silent for a moment. She was sure it had something to do with Addy’s conversation with Usher. “Can’t you explain it to me, Addy?”
Addy groaned helplessly. “I want to, but I can’t. So please, trust me.”
Hilary fell silent again. An inner battle raged inside her. On the one hand, the lack of information worried her. On the other hand, she knew very well that Addy would never act recklessly, especially when it came to her and Vione.
In the end, Hilary gave in to her feelings. Ignoring her logic, she closed her eyes and nodded. “All right, Addy. I trust you. If you say we have to go, then we’ll go. We’ll go.”
Relief made Addy take a deep breath. He hugged Hilary and kissed her on the forehead. Then he said, “Wake Vione and tell her to pack as soon as possible.”
Hilary nodded and went to Vione’s room immediately. They hurried and left the house about twenty minutes later.
The car sped off into the dark night. The Munest family’s departure was accompanied by a tense silence. It was as if they were racing against time, though it was unclear against whom. One thing was certain: Addy knew that their time was limited. They had to get as far away as possible, as fast as possible.
Addy gripped the steering wheel tightly and pressed the gas pedal harder. But suddenly a blinding light appeared, forcing him to slam on the brakes.
Hilary and the past Vione gasped in shock. Their bodies lurched forward, hitting the inside of the car. But they didn’t have time to feel the pain. As they looked ahead, they realized that the source of the blinding light wasn’t a single car, but numerous cars-countless.
*