While I won’t comment on what I think about you resorting to using a very outdated misnomer to address me, I also find it important to remind you that you are a widow, and a slave at that. It would be a wiser option to treat people like me with respect,” said Vladimir, narrowing his eyes at me. We had barely been in each other’s orbit for up to two minutes, and I already felt like I shouldn’t have been there with him. I couldn’t stand his guts already. If Daven had been suffocating, this man was oppressive.
I took another sip of my wine, wishing that I had gone for something alcoholic to take the edge off the rough emotions I felt. “I very much like to give as much as I receive, Mr. Vinci. So to what do I owe this pleasure?”
He lifted one wicked brow. “I only came to see for myself the woman that was causing so much . . . ruckus in Moongrowl. The maiden that stole my brother’s failing heart.”
So he had been aware of his brother’s ailment? Interesting. “Stealing is putting very lightly what actually happened. But I won’t dwell too much on that. I know that’s not the only reason you’re here. Your children have made sure of that.”
“My children are a little . . . rough around the edges, but all that will be fixed soon. The weight of responsibility always sharpens dull, young minds. Of course, my brother was not fortunate enough to have spent as much time with his own children. Was deemed unfit to take care of them after the loss of his beloved wife.” The way he said ‘wife’ made it clear that he didn’t consider me as the new owner of that title.
But it was fine, it was a title I didn’t want to own.
I finished up my wine and dropped it at the counter behind me. The waiter picked up the cup and refilled it. I thanked him, but didn’t pick up the cup. Vladimir’s eyes burned into the side of my head as I looked away.
“Is that all you have come here to say?” I asked, too tired to even continue. I was sick and tired of people always trying to make me feel less of a person. If my father hadn’t been slaughtered and my pack taken into slavery, things would have been far different, and I wouldn’t have had to constantly accept nonsense and disrespect from people.
The thought of that sent a shard of pain through my heart as for a brief moment, my father’s face filtered through my mind. I missed him a whole lot, and it was unfair to his memory that I hadn’t even been given the chance to mourn him properly.
I had to make a pyre for him, my mother, and my brother as soon as I had the chance to.
“No, not at all. But then, I never had much to say in the first place. I’m feeling very generous today, Lucy, so I’ll give you a little word of knowledge.” He picked up the glass of wine that had been filled for me, looking at me straight in the eyes as he put the cup against his lips and drank. He licked his lips when he finished. “Moongrowl is at the centre of something terrible that is coming. It needs a leader who will be able to brave the storm and lead it to ultimate and lasting victory over its foes. It will not survive in the hands of three clueless boys and a . . . slave from Bloodbath.”
“I think those are enough words of wisdom, Mr. Vinci. I hope you enjoy the rest of the festival,” I said, waiting for him to leave. I narrowed my eyes, trying not to let my irritation show. A person was more formidable when they could keep their emotions in check.
“Ahmad was a fool to let you lead. But that’s not a bother, because it will all be sorted out soon.” He placed the glass down on the counter behind me, and flashed a devious smile that was anything but good-natured. “Enjoy the rest of the festival, Lucy Harris of Bloodbath.”
He leaned in closer, teeth flashing like a viper. “It would be best for you to act like the nobody you are and stop trying to be important.” His words brushed over my ears, although his lips didn’t, which I was glad for because I was so repulsed by his presence that him touching me would have sent me into a frenzy.
I stayed still taking in his words but refusing to give him any verbal or non-verbal response.
As he walked away, clearly content with himself, his words continued to swirl around in my head like a broken record. I watched his retreating back, seething with anger that emerged deep from my insides. His words had been clear, obvious threats, and he didn’t even try to hide them. He claimed that things were going to change soon, and I could bet that he meant that he was going to be the one to take charge of the pack. I just sensed it through his words, but I didn’t have enough knowledge about how power worked in Moongrowl. Was it even possible for him to become the next Alpha of Moongrowl after his brother’s death? Or was he just bluffing to get me all riled up?
Either way, a line had been crossed, and from now on, I had to be incredibly vigilant to avoid any trouble and avert crisis. But first, I had to find the triplets amd inform them of the thinly veiled threats their uncle had just spat on my face. They might have known what to do and how to solve the issue.
I searched the hall for them, but they were nowhere to be found. Worry started to cross my heart and my mind, because it was very strange for them to not have attended the festival, especially after all the effort they had put into it.
I came across Rosa, who was alone, although her eyes kept shifting here and there every passing moment as though she had been caught in the midde of something bad. Her cheeks were flushed, and there was a heavy look to her eyes.
Ignoring all the signs, I asked her the only question running through my mind. “Rosa, have you seen the triplets?”
She blinked, coming back to her senses. “Yes, I saw them earlier, like the time we arrived, but they were distant from us. I also thought you might’ve seen then.”
“No, I did not see them. Do you have any ideas about where they could be? I have something very important to tell them and it can’t wait.”
“Did something happen, Lucy?”
“There’s no time to explain it to you right now. I’ll tell you later. I need to find them now.”
The last time I saw them they were heading for the exit of the hall. Maybe they had something important to do outside.” She lifted her shoulders as she offered the suggestion.
“Thank you,” I told her, and started making my way to the exit of the hall.
I hadn’t gotten very far when someone gently grabbed me by the arm, stopping me in place. Before I even turned around, I could already smells his perfume, and it filled me with a little relief.
“Lucy,” said Shaun, turning me around to face him. There was a frantic look in his eyes that I had never seen before to such an extent. I usually thought that nothing could faze him, but right now I could see that I had been wrong.
He looked incredibly worried, and something told me that it had to do with his brothers.
“Shaun. Where and Scott and Seth? I have something to tell you three. It’s about your uncle.”
At the mention of his uncle, his eyes narrowed, but he didn’t ask questions like I had expected. “I know it has something to do with that man. But right now, I need to find my brothers. I haven’t seen them since we first came into this hall. I’ve searched everywhere, but it’s like they just vanished.”
At his words, another wave of worry flooded through me. “Have you checked outside the halls? Maybe they went back to your room?”
He shook his head and ran a hand harshly through his hair, ruffling what had once been perfectly styled. “No. They’re not there at all. I tried to track them with their scent, but their scents are all over this palace. The strongest concentration of their scent is right here in this hall. But I just can’t find them.”
“Where on earth could they be?” he asked, looking around the hall, and it was so obvious that the love she shared for his brothers was indeed great. He didn’t seem at ease at all, and he didn’t try to hide it.
I liked that he was being vulnerable with me. It showed that maybe he had started to trust me, and I hoped he really did, because I had started to trust him too.
I placed a hand on his shoulder, and pulled him close to me, not caring at who was looking at us. Even if all I did was breathe amd merely exist, people were going to talk, so I didn’t care if they spoke about us because in the end, his own reputation would always be spared.
It didn’t matter if I was painted out as a villain or someone wicked, as long as the triplets were spared from the same vile comments. The realisation of this pattern of thought towards Shaun and his brothers sent a shock through me-I cared about them deeply, and was willing to sacrifice my own image to help them.
“We’ll find your brothers, Shaun,” I told him gently, giving his shoulder a gentle squeeze. “We’ll find them. They couldn’t be very far from here.”
“Something just doesn’t feel right about al this,” he said, coming closer to me. He had to lower his gaze to keep eye contact with me, and I had to lift mine, but in this case, I didn’t care at all. “They wouldn’t have just disappeared.”
“I know.” An idea slithered into my mind as I remembered my conversation with Vladimir. “I think I might have a little idea concerning what could have happened to them.”
I told him about my conversation woth his uncle, and the way he had been so open about threatening me. I made sure to tell him in full detail about what had been said, and left nothing out. Hopefully, Shaun was able to piece together aspecta that I wasn’t able to.
By the time I was done talking, Shaun’s eyes were flashing with his power. “That bastard. I’ve given him enough chances, but here he is threatening war against us. I should have never let him come here to settle.”
Before I could ask him to explain why, he took me by the arm and started leading us out of the hall.
“I have an idea,” he said, gracing me with a serious look. “Let’s just hope that I’m right.
Before we made it far, a woman talking to a man in our path suddenly dropped to the ground, same as the man in front of her.
As we stared at the scene in confusion, someone screamed, and we turned around to see that people in the hall were falling to the ground like logs of wood.
“Goddess,” I whispered, watching as chaos unfolded.