I would have said no to Raul’s request if we were alone in the hallway, considering the topic I had just bashed Duke for, considering the fact he had been aware of the matter, but for the Lycan boys. Rachel had no place in my thoughts.
If I were to deny Raul his request, then the purpose of kissing him in the first place would be defeated. I couldn’t allow that. Not that I regretted the kiss though.
“Yeah, sure. I would love that.” I managed to say without gritting my teeth, even going ahead to clasp his hand in my mine, when what I wanted exactly, was to slap him for endorsing his family’s misconduct. He must have known my thoughts on him, because he instantly made an apology with his eyes. I diverted my gaze, I wasn’t going to forgive him that easily, not even with those cute eyes of his.
I made no comment as I and Raul walked past Rachel and Adam, not until Daniel called me, right after I walked past him and Noah.
“You must think me a joke, if you believed I was going to let you too walk away, from me, If you think I was going to let you walk away, with him. Didn’t you hear your speech? Do you want a family like that? You will keep fighting till the end of age! You won’t have peace of mind.”
Raul gritted his teeth, about to make a comeback, but I tapped his hand gently. He didn’t need to speak. I still had the power to take on the triplets.
“So, your family is better? Is that okay what you are trying to tell me?”
For a moment, I considered using their father’s betrayal of their mother as a bullet, but my significant other stirred then. For the first time since the fiasco started, she stirred. Without her speaking, I already knew that she was against me using that, so I shelved the bullet back. It wasn’t time to be used. I stayed silent, and waited for their reply.
“At least we don’t go around murdering women who said no to us. That is stupid, and doesn’t make sense.”
Oh. But you three did.
“Oh, but you three did.” I said, before my significant other could make a protest.
Oh well, we will have to deal with repercussions as they come then. It was already out of my mouth.
My statement got the attention of the triplets fixed on me, got the attention of Rachel and Raul fixed on me.
“What did you say?” That was Adam. He must have found his voice which my statement had knocked into the abyss.
“I have never pegged werewolves as dull in the ears. Are you just trying to buy time for yourselves to cook up a lie, or you just didn’t hear me?”
Noah cackled in unbelief, and folded his arms across his chest, incredulity written all over his face. “Now, I’m beginning to disbelieve what you had said about the Queen and her family, because if you can say this lie now, then it means that the former story had been a lie too. You just like antagonizing people. You love making enemies. Do you get off on that, being at odds with people?” He state, and Daniel shaking his head, took over.
“I mentioned the exact thing when I walked her home yesterday. Do you get off on being at odds with people, with the push and pull of fight and reconciliation? If that is so, you better hang your boots now, because there is no reconciliation for you and Duke, and we don’t take defamation lightly. Me and my brothers.”
Rachel offered her support with a nod. “I told y’all that she was lying! She is just a lying bitch!”
No one payed attention to her. All eyes were on me. I chuckled softly. “Do I get off on quarrels? If I do, I wouldn’t be on a smooth plane with Raul now, would I? Because dude gets me off on an hourly basis.”
Raul coughed then, but his hand didn’t release mine. I smirked, satisfied when I saw anger cloud the faces of the triplets again, anger that had been the same with the former outlook when they had seen us kissing in the hallway, before the whole fiasco with Duke.
Silence ensued after my comment, lasting for more than two minutes. They mustn’t have seen that comeback coming. Finally, Adam broke the silence. “What do you mean by the sentence that I and my brothers had done it before, had killed women because they had turned us down? Has any turned us down to start with?”
I cocked my head, and gave him a knowing look and a knowing smile, amazed that I didn’t squirm in my pants at the depth of emotion in his eyes. Had I gotten bolder, or was Raul a good support system?
Naoh scoffed. Of course, they know. I had turned them down, as Dora.
“Still explain…” Adam commanded, unmoved by my earlier diss.
I signed then, contemplating if it was worth it, if there would be any repercussions for saying this.
‘Well, you have started the roll, it would be cowardly that you back down now, not that they would even let you go. And since you have your powers at a higher level, you will able to hear their heart beats, and know if they are lying or not. Just like with Duke.’
She was right.
“Maya. Do you remember her?”
Daniel chuckled, shaking his head, just at the same time that Noah piqued his eyebrow, and Adam sighed deeply as if tired of my madness. That was okay, I will know if I’m plain mad by the end of my story.
“I told you that we hadn’t touched her! We bullied her, yes, but that stoped with our father’s decree, and with Adam taking a liking to her. She disappeared on us, we did her nothing…”
“That’s your own version of the story. Well, I will tell you mine.” I said, interrupting Daniel’s charade. “But before I go on, Noah, can you tell me why you bullied Maya? Daniel had mentioned that it was because he was bored, and Adam…” I chuckled here, unfazed by the fisting of Adam’s hands or the angry glint in his eyes.
Oh, he didn’t want them to know of this vulnerability. Too bad for him.
“Adam mentioned that he had supported the bullying to quench the feelings he had for her.”
Daniel barked out a laughter of unbelief then, a laughter which died sharply when he saw the determined anger that clouded Adam’s face. “She is saying the truth?”
Adam said nothing to his brother, rather his entire focus and anger was directed on me. I shrugged my shoulders. “So, Noah what is yours? I’m curious.”
Noah, who had been shocked by my statement of Adam’s feelings took a few seconds to get back his voice. But that was understandable. Who would bully a girl he liked just to suppress his feelings? Duke’s was different. He never liked Zande.
“Nothing really. I guess I was just as bored as Daniel.”
I willfully held back myself from fisting my hands like Adam did. I bobbled my head rather, and perused the three boys, instilling disgust on my face. “I see. Let’s get on with story then, as I know it. Adam, you had been right in your story, right up to the point where Maya had been put in the holding cell. Thereafter, was a pack of lies.”
I looked at Adam alone as I spoke, tightening my hand on Raul’s for support. I couldn’t let my cool facade fall now. It might give them a hint on who I am.
“You see people, whilst Maya had been in the holding cell, Adam had come for her.”
Adam shook his head slowly. Daniel and Noah darted glances between I and him.
“And he had led her out of the cell, into the forest. She had asked him where they were heading to, thinking that he was the same boy who she had given her virginity, whom she had given her heart to, but he rebuffed her to her surprise. An abnormal Adam. That’s what she called him. And when she had sensed something was wrong with this Adam-she had thought him an imposter-she tried to run away, but then she ran into the hands of the other brothers, Daniel and Noah.”
Daniel shook his head like his brother, incredulity shining on his face, but he didnt interrupt me.
“And then, they beat her, they slapped her, and made fun of her. When she asked them what she had done, Adam had said that it had only be a game to him; the caves, the sex, the waterfall-all a game to taste a wolfless girl.”
Adam’s eyes developed a sheen. He was teary? What a mess.
“They beat her until she passed out, and then they left her for dead. Don’t you three remember? Not even with my detailed explanations?”