Ethan P. O. V
“She finally fell asleep.” I was complaining.
I plopped down on one of the benches in my room when Danny showed up out of nowhere, first aid kit in hand. He started patching up my wounds after tossing aside my shirt.
It stung like crazy when Danny began stitching my wound with a needle. No numbing. I’m used to it, but it still hurts. Danny never bothered to check in on me; they just focused on sewing it up, trying to stop the bleeding and hoping I’d pull through.
“So, those are Christopher Gale’s men?”
“You don’t believe me?”
He shook his head. “No, Christopher Gale totally caught us off guard. We just discovered he’s in this little town, but it looks like he’s been watching the dorm for ages. We really missed the beginning.”
“We didn’t miss anything, Danny. She’s already mine. She sealed my fate, my mate.”
“Are you positive? What about Miss Lucy? Isn’t she-”
I chuckled a bit at that. My laughter cut off my words, as did his hand stitching up my wound. Danny gave me a look I couldn’t quite place. He seemed surprised and curious, but his lips wouldn’t form the questions. He was scared of me.
“Lucy is my queen, but this woman is my fated mate that the moon goddess picked for me. Even though she’s just a means to an end for my claim to the throne.”
“Still, no matter how important she is to you, she won’t ever be your Luna, right?”
I shook my head. “No way. She’ll never mean anything to me. Not now, not ever.” I said, staring at the ceiling.
After that, Danny kept stitching up my wound. While putting away the first aid supplies, he opened a drawer, pulled out a box of cigars, and handed me one.
“What are we going to do about that church? Once Claire Halle comes to her senses, she will be even more of a mess, especially with her whole family gone.”
“What about the sisters in that dorm?”
“They were obviously dead when the explosion happened, just like the other kids. Only the sister who was killed right in front of Claire knew where the men were and tried to call the police, but she couldn’t get through.”
I was worried when I heard that, but Christopher Gale is way more unhinged than I am. If people see me as a jerk, he’s on a different level of messed up.
As I puffed on the cigar Danny handed me, I savoured each sip I took. The smoke curled around the room, and I realized this was way more enjoyable than getting my hands dirty.
“But you should probably stop celebrating this right away, Alpha.”
“Why not?”
“We need to start figuring out how to handle whatever Christopher Gale throws our way. He’s not just a power-hungry Alpha; he’ll stop at nothing to get what he wants.”
“Do I seem like that to you?”
Danny shook his head. “If you want to be compared to him, maybe you should think about offing someone important to you, like Chen Lien or Miss Lucy, who’s done so much for you.”
I shook my head and smiled. “Nope, that’s not what I’m after.”
“Then, if you had that woman, would you go after everything you desire and stand up to the werewolf king?”
“Are you serious? I don’t want that kind of power. Being admired and adored like a king? No thanks that would just weigh me down. I’d rather be the one people fear than have to compromise my self-worth in front of them.”
I saw a grin on Danny’s face. It was one of those smiles that felt off-like he was complimenting me and teasing me simultaneously. It made me want to laugh, but I knew it would boost Danny’s ego if I did.
So, I quickly got up, headed to the closet to grab some other clothes, and told him to give me space.
Once alone in the room, my mind started racing with everything I needed to discuss with Claire. There was so much to cover about the dorm situation and the chance that the police might dig deeper into all the incidents.
But if the Alpha Pack catches wind of what really went down, it could escalate beyond just a police matter-leading to a full-blown war. But do I really want to let that pointless war unfold?
Seriously, it’s just absurd. There’s no way anyone would actually want to kick off a war over the destruction of a small church’s dorms and the loss of a few nuns. If I were in their shoes, I wouldn’t even know what to do, especially with the Alpha Pack possibly seeing me as a threat now that they realize the advantage I offered isn’t as significant as I claimed.
“But hey, I guess people think they can profit from the chaos I’m creating,” I mumbled.
Leaning against the wall by the window, I glanced over at Claire Halle’s room, which I set up for her. I have a feeling she’ll be freaking out any minute now.
“I really hope those sleeping pills Danny gave her will keep her out until morning,” I thought, keeping my gaze fixed on the window, which was wide open without any curtains.
The room was dim, the nightlight glowing softly. In that kind of atmosphere, it’s no surprise anyone would drift off easily. Still, I couldn’t shake off this nagging worry that made me uneasy.
He’s supposed to be my destined partner, but I don’t have any feelings for him. Yet, with everything going on, my anxiety was playing tricks on me, making it hard to leave her alone in that room. So, even though part of me told me not to, I pushed myself to check on her.
Before heading to Claire’s room, I ensured my cigar was out. When I arrived, I found her sleeping peacefully under a mosquito net, all snuggled up in a blanket, with the heater keeping the room warm.
The night was chilly, and Danny knew better than to let a woman freeze during such a long night.
I pulled back the blanket on the bed and looked at her lovely face, but it wasn’t looking too great. Her once radiant complexion was pale, and she seemed scared, with traces of memories scattered across her features and tangled in her hair. She really looked like she was going through it.
“Why did the moon goddess bring me to such a silly woman like you?”