Asher
I sat in my study with my head thrown back on the chair as I slouched on it. My fingers tapped against the polished mahogany table. I closed the file in front of me. It was not making any sense to me as my mind kept replaying the discussion I had with Robin earlier.
Letting out a sigh, I straightened myself and propped my elbow on the armrest.
It was way past midnight already, I could no longer hear the loud chatter of everyone. It seemed like everyone had probably retired for the night. But I haven’t or rather still couldn’t. I was still in my study. And I haven’t moved a muscle from my position. I had instructed Robin and a few of my warriors to follow me to the east border of the neighboring pack where Robin had seen my dead mate and also informed them that we would leave for the search as early as the first light of dawn.
After what seemed like forever, morning invaded there was this growing restlessness and fear that enveloped my heart, with each passing second it kept increasing. I pulled my gaze to the sky, dropping the quill pen in my hand.
I stood up and went to the cabinets to pull out a wedding picture of me and Emily and tucked it into my pants pocket.
I sighed, making my way out of the castle as I joined Robin and two of my warriors at the stables. They were waiting for me. I got on my horse and we started our journey to find Emily.
We passed through a small village and our horses rode past the crystalline pillars standing on both sides of a long bridge. For a moment, the fresh yet cool winter breeze plucked at my hair. I lifted my face and inhaled deeply.
We moved closer on our horses, coming to a halt in the middle of an agora.
I tilted my head to my left, where Robin was, “Is this the exact location?”
He nodded. “She was a few feet away from me talking to someone and they seemed to know each other very well,” he said as we all came down from our horses and fastened it around a tree.
I pulled the picture out of my pocket and stopped in front of one of the merchants. “Have you seen this woman around here before?”
Immediately the man recognized me, he began to shiver uncontrollably like a leaf caught in a maelstrom. I could see his shoulders moving up and down, and he seemed to be on the verge of having a panic attack.
I had become used to these reactions from villagers now, I wasn’t proud of it. The death of Emily had turned me into a ruthless monster, though I wasn’t proud of my actions but that was my only way of staying sane.
I leaned forward and shoved the picture into his hands, “Look closely, have you by any chance seen someone that looks like this or maybe share a close resemblance with her?” I queried, not caring to hide the desperation in my voice.
For a long dreadful second, the man was silent, regarding the picture carefully, and then he shook his head. “My king, I am sorry but I have not seen this woman or anyone that looks like her.”
I stared at Robin and he only shrugged his shoulders at me. I turned my attention back to the merchant.
“Thank you for your time, you can leave” I dismissed him and the man bolted out faster than I could blink.
I looked around and there were many people in the agora left to inquire from. If Robin had seen her here then there was a big possibility that someone else must have seen her too.
We asked a few more people and every single one of them gave the same answer as the first merchant. No one had seen anyone that looked like her.
“I swear brother… I saw her… She was here.” He tried pointing at the exact spot we were standing. I could see he was becoming nervous and I understood why. He didn’t want to seem like a liar in front of me. But it was weird that no one else saw what he had seen.
Could it be that he had seen a ghost?
I sighed, running my fingers through my hair, frustratedly before turning to them,” We will stay for about an hour longer and then we will all return back to the castle.”
Robin stared at me for a moment, he seemed lost in thoughts and somehow his eyes flashed with some emotions I couldn’t decipher,
“I noticed you have been avoiding Kayla, after the report yesterday. You know you can’t keep her in the dark forever. She deserves to know the truth.” He gave my shoulder a small squeeze, leaving me alone on the train of my thoughts.
His words struck me. I despised it all, but he was correct and I couldn’t help but wonder what it is about Kayla that makes Robin defend her at any given time, he wasn’t like this with Emily. In fact, he never meddled in anything that had to do with her.
I hated the overprotective manner in which he held her but I bottled up my emotions.
I swallowed a hard lump that stood in my throat just at the thought of telling Kayla, there was a possibility that Emily was still alive. How would she react to it?
I knew I had been avoiding her and I knew Robin was right. I can’t forever hide the truth away from her, she would get to know about it someday but I don’t think now was the right time for it.
I groaned, rubbing my palm against my face and suddenly I felt like quitting and forgetting about this search and going back home to Kayla.
All I wanted at the moment was to hold and caress her, hear her moans, and sniff her alluring aroused scent again.