Alpha Azarel was the one who had held me captive; he was the one who killed my mate. He was the one I had been running from.
My gaze drifted around the study. This was the same place Alpha Azarel and Victoria had abused time and again. My entire body broke out in a cold sweat and I started panting; overwhelmed by the sudden barrage of emotions and memories.
My chest grew stuffy as all the air in my lungs got sucked out. I couldn’t stay here any longer. Scrambling to my feet, I zapped out of the house stopping only after I reached the meadow I frequented with Cassius.
My steps faltered, and I came to an abrupt halt; my gaze drifting over the meadow restlessly. This place, this was the meadow next to Layman’s cliff. No wonder I felt a connection when I saw it for the first time.
The moon shone brightly, bathing everything in a dim silvery glow. The chirping crickets, rustling grass, and screeching bats created a deep, dark symphony; a perfect reflection of my thoughts at the moment.
I walked towards the cliff with slow and deliberate steps. Peeking down the valley, I wondered if I would die if I jumped; probably not. I hadn’t died when I was just a weak werewolf. With the added powers of being a vampire, it was impossible to die from just a fall.
I sat down on the edge, my feet dangling down. The cool breeze struck my face; stirring a hornet of memories and thoughts.
To think like a person as sly and conniving as Azarel existed in this world. How could he pretend to be so generous after putting me through years of torment?
I had to admit that he was a great actor. I had almost fallen into Alpha Azarel’s trap again.
“Miraya!” Cassius’s voice sounded behind me. “I knew you would be here.”
My breath hitched,, and I spun around. Concern flitted across his features. “Why are you sitting so close to the valley? What if you fall down?”
“It’s okay, Cassius. A simple fall can’t hurt me.” I shrugged as I turned my back to him.
He walked up to me and placed his hand on my shoulder. “I know you have these superpowers, but please move a bit away from the edge, Miraya. Seeing you in such a precarious position is making me antsy.”
This was the first time I wished he had left me alone. My head was a big muddle, and I needed some peace and quiet. Shrugging his hand off, I stated in a bland voice, “Go back, Cassius. I want to be left alone.”
He didn’t listen to me. Instead, he knelt beside me and asked in a shaking voice, “What is wrong, Miraya?”
“Everything is wrong, Cassius! My life, my fate, you! Everything!” I snapped, giving him a shove. I put a little too much force into the push unknowingly.
Cassius stumbled, his body swaying dangerously. My heart plummeted to my throat as he tethered on the edge of the precipice.
I jumped to my feet, grabbed his arm, and tugged at it. He circled right around the edge before slamming into me. It all had happened so fast, yet the moment seemed to last an eternity. The dread, the horror I felt was way more intense than the panic I had felt the day Denver died.
I dragged him a few meters away from the edge. My eyes raked over his body and I asked in a shaky voice, “Are you okay?”
His lips pressed into a thin line and he nodded, “I am fine.” His intense gaze bore into mine and he gulped, “Am I really a part of the problem, Miraya? If my existence bothers you so much…. I….”
My heart clenched with guilt seeing his distraught expression. “I didn’t mean that, Cassius…. I… I was so upset about everything that….. There is nothing wrong with ‘You’.” I threw my arms around him and buried my head in his chest. “You are the only good thing left in my life.”
“I am relieved to hear that….” He said with a nervous chuckle. His arms wrapped around me; drawing me closer. “I was afraid that I had disappointed the most important person in my life.”
My body went limp in his arms and the strain that had formed in my chest ebbed in the form of a deep sigh. “When I saw you stumble, I realized that my life was meaningless without you.” My voice became choked as I continued, “If something had happened to you today….”
I pulled away and looked into his eyes. “I don’t want to live in a world where you don’t exist, Cassius.”
His hand moved to my waist, and he drew me closer; his lips curving in a sweet smile. “For me; you are my entire world, Miraya. You are the beginning and the end and everything in between.”
A soft chuckle left my lips. “You are becoming better and better at this.”
“Better at what?”
“At being glib-tongued.”
“Oh… I thought I had become better at something else.” His expression suddenly turned serious. “That means I have to practice more.”
My eyebrows furrowed. “Practice what?”
He drew closer and bit my lower lip, “I need to become more proficient in other matters lest my girlfriend gets bored and dumps me.”
My face flushed and my heart fluttered at his statement. This was the first time he had tried to flirt with me in this manner.
He lifted me from the crook of my knees and spun me around. It filled me with a strange sense of exhilaration, and I giggled. He spun me around a few more times and by the time he set me on the ground; I was grinning.
He brushed the back of his knuckles along my jaws. “Are you feeling better now?”
“Thank you,” I whispered before placing a kiss on the corner of his lips. The light-hearted moment was exactly what I needed to pull my head out of the dark sea of grief that was threatening to engulf me.
He held my hand and led me to a nearby boulder. Sitting on it, he pulled me into his lap. His arms wrapped around me, cocooning me in warmth. Resting his head on mine, he said, “Now tell me why you were so upset.”
With a long, deep sigh, I started narrating everything that happened after I drank the potion….
***
“That bastard!” Cassius roared as he got to his feet, pulling me along with him. “I am going to kill him!”
His eyes flashed in anger and he started stomping in the direction of the packhouse. I caught up with him before he could go far. “Blind Anger is not going to help, Cassius.” I grabbed his arms and forced him to look at me. “To defeat someone as sly as Alpha Azarel, we need a plan that is slier than him.”
His expression deflated, and he nodded. “Sorry, I got carried away. It is just that….” A frustrated sigh left his lips, and he smacked his palm. “I feel so useless…. Why couldn’t I have been a dragon or something? Then I could burn that rascal to ashes!”
I chuckled and kissed his lips. “Dragons are a bit far-fetched even for our supernatural world. It has been eons since dragons were spotted. They are just a part of legends and folklore now.”
“Do you want to say that dragons don’t exist?”
“That is the general belief. Even Zorek, who is the oldest vampire, hasn’t seen a dragon in his lifetime of five thousand years.”
“Just because nobody has seen a dragon doesn’t mean that they don’t exist.” With an arrogant toss of his head, he added, “I am going to find a dragon and request him to teach all these wimps a lesson!”
The expression Cassius bore was very strange. It was difficult to say whether he was joking or it was his blind conviction. Anyway, I didn’t get time to dwell on that.
The great Alpha Azarel arrived in his coach looking for us.
“Miraya, Cassius, you are here.” He stated as he got down from the carriage and gave us a curt bow. “I was so worried about you.”
His voice dripped with so much sweetness that it made me sick. An intense wave of irritation swelled within me and I couldn’t stop myself from asking, “How do you do it?”
“Do what?”
“How can you remain so sweet-spoken and kind all the time?”
He lowered his gaze and massaged the back of his neck. “You are flattering me, Miraya.”
Damn that bastard! He could even pretend to be shy and flustered.
“If you don’t have anything in particular to do, we should head back to the packhouse. The Vampire King and a representative from the Illumus Coven will be here shortly, along with Alphas from some prominent packs.”
“We don’t want to go to that damn place again.” Cassius laced his fingers through mine. “Make arrangements for us to return to the city.”
Alpha Azrael’s eyes flashed red and for the first time, I caught a glimpse of his real self. However, he managed to regain his composure quickly. “Is something wrong, Miraya? Did someone offend you or Cassius?”
“How can someone offend me when ‘You’ are present in the packhouse?” I had to struggle hard to keep the sarcasm out of my voice. Forcing myself to smile, I continued, “Cassius was just worried because I couldn’t sleep last night.”
“But, Miraya!”
I shot him a warning glare and almost gritted out, “We should go back now, Cassius. This meeting is very important for my future.”
With a sigh of resignation, Cassius nodded. Compared to him, I felt strangely at ease. Alpha Azarel was at a disadvantage here. As far as I played this right, I could win and teach him a lesson at the same time.