| CHAPTER 33 : SCREAMS EVERYWHERE |

After freezing our bodies, Ace had warlocks carry us to the basement where they put us in cells. Right when the cell doors were locked, Katia, Levi and I were able to unfreeze from our positions.

Levi strode towards the door and tried jerking them open.

An electric sort of zap went through his body as he shook like a rattle. He jerked away from the door, sharply inhaling.

"Motherfucker." He cursed under his breath.

"What's gonna happen now?" I asked, wrapping my arms around myself.

He sighed, turning to face me, "We did know that we were gonna get in trouble. So here it is," he waved his hand around, referring to the cell, "the trouble."

"Ace is going to call King Alpha," Katia said, a worried look etched on her face.

Levi visibly gulped, his shoulders slumping.

"This is not going to go well," Katia said.

"How was Ace able to stop us but not his other warlocks?" I asked.

Levi shrugged, "He's old and powerful."

I gave a nod, slowly drifting into my mind.

So Ace is a big and old powerful warlock and he wants me to get him Lucretia's crown?

I mentally scoffed. Weiner.

A few seconds ticked by before Levi spoke up, "So...what do we do?"

"I have no clue," Katia said, sighing.

"How about we try teaching Ez on how to put up and put down her barrier on command?" Levi suggested, raising an eyebrow.

"My barrier?" I furrowed my eyebrows,

"Yeah so that you know which wolf to zap and whom to not," he raised his gloved hands, "these gloves are kind of uncomfortable to wear around all day."

"Erm okay." I said, flexing my hands, "so what do I do?"

"You have to will the barrier to go down," Katia said, "you have to imagine yourself safe and calm."

"Safe and calm, got it." I said and straightened my shoulders, squeezing my eyes shut, "Okay so now I'm super safe in a cell locked with a hybrid and a werewolf and there's no danger anywhere so I don't need this barrier." I said under my breath.

"You have to imagine it and will it from inside, Ez," Katia's voice instructed in a flat tone.

I gave a nod and imagined myself in the place where I most felt the safest. In my small dingy apartment, on my bed, under the blue covers, where I spent all my weekends just lying around. I imagined the comfort and the smell of it, of how it makes me feel safe and comfortable.

I felt it immediately.

The barrier going down.

It felt like being rushed under a waterfall, with the water pulling down the barrier as it cascaded down my body.

My eyes snapped open.

Katia and Levi were watching me with calm and waiting faces.

I blinked a few times, moving my shoulders.

"Did it work?" I asked.

"Only one way to find out," Levi said, pulling out one of his gloves. He moved towards me and held out his hand like how a gentleman does, "If you may?" He mocked a tone.

I raised my hand, hesitant, then slowly touched his hand at first. When Levi didn't seem to be zapping or vibrating, I placed my hand in his slim and hard ones with a huge grin.

"It worked!" I exclaimed, jumping, like a kid who scored A.

Katia and Levi smiled.

"Now that's done," Levi pulled his hand out of mine, "we can all sit back and wallow until Ace decides what to do with us next."

"You just had to ruin my victory," I said, giving him a flat look.

He shrugged, smiling at me and sitting on a beaten bench. He stretched out his long legs in front of him with his arms crossed behind his head.

"I think I could do some wallowing too," Katia said and moved to sit beside Levi.

She slumped down on the beaten bench, placing her elbow on her thigh with her chin on her hands.

I just slid against the wall, letting the silence engulf us all.

I still don't get what Ace wants with Lucretia's crown if he's already so powerful than the rest of his warlocks. Maybe even more than King Alpha too 'cause last time when King Alpha was about to kill me, Ace was able to freeze King Alpha and then teleport me to his office.

It doesn't set well too that he let his tower's name be 'Derek' towers.

A sigh came out of my lips.

My mind wandered back to the mansion's library, or Saludom's library, whatever. King Alpha's parents were both taken by Derek and Rowena according to Katia.

My eyes flickered to Katia. She was still in the same position, lost in her thoughts too.

Katia is King Alpha's twin sister. But they don't look exactly the same.

Then there is Alexandros who died. I remembered the vision I had of a small King Alpha, pulling out a dagger from Alexandros' lifeless body.

This all wouldn't have happened if King Alpha's father, Wallace, wouldn't try to kill Derek's child.

And now Derek wants Lucretia's crown...and Ace too.

Unless...

No, this couldn't be. I shook my head. It wouldn't be laid out too easily. King Alpha would have known this sooner than I did.

But what if it is?

What if Ace is Derek?

Ace said it himself that the face he has on right now isn't his but a disguise. He wants Lucretia's crown. He also loathes King Alpha. The similarities between Derek and Ace are too much right now.

My eyes flickered to Katia again.

I blinked a couple of times.

"Katia?" I spoke.

She turned her head towards me, "Hmm?"

I furrowed my eyebrows, "Is-is Ace Derek?"

Her eyes widened and Levi too turned his head towards me with a shocked questioning look.

"What?" Katia asked.

"What if Derek is hiding himself in the face of Ace?" I asked, "There are too many similarities between them."

"Ez," Katia spoke, looking worried as if I'm stepping on fire, "Ace is not Derek," she said with a confirming tone.

"But what if he is?" I pressed, "Ace wants Lucretia's crown like how Derek did."

She looked shocked, "How do you know that?"

Before I could reply, the cell doors rattled, making me jerk in my place.

Levi and Katia snapped their attention to the doors and stood up from their place. I stood up straighter too as the cell doors clanked a bit before sliding open.

A warlock stood there, holding the door open. Behind him, someone else stood in the shadows.

I didn't need to be told who is standing in the shadows. Those glimmering blue eyes could pierce me anywhere.

King Alpha stepped into the cell, looking furious as his eyes roamed over us three. The cell seemed to shrink two sizes smaller with his huge body inside. Katia, Levi and I probably looked like three small kittens facing a big bad wolf.

"You people," he spoke in his deep voice, "are in deep shit."

We all gulped.

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"What were you thinking?" King Alpha asked as Katia, Levi and I followed silently behind him.

None of us answered him.

We were walking down the hallways, following King Alpha as he strode in front of us with tense muscles. He wore a white V-neck with casual jeans. The muscles in his arms rippled as he walked. Even if he was doing nothing, I still felt very intimidated by him being only three feet away from me.

Katia was walking in the middle with me and Levi on either side of her.

"Levi," King Alpha spoke, "you're gonna have to give me one hell of an explanation once we get back to Saludom."

Levi looked tensed. Even more, he seemed to be trembling.

Should I pipe in and say this was all my fault?

I didn't want Levi to get into a serious problem because of my wanting to meet Collin.

Before I could open my mouth, someone passed by me, bumping my side and almost sending me falling back. Before I could fall, an arm shot out and held me straight.

Darkness flashed in front of me despite my eyes being wide open. It happened so quickly within a breath. I could feel pain...blood...screams. Screams everywhere. Men screaming. Woman crying. Pain. More pain. Darkness no one has ever seen. They're dying. They're all dying. Swords ripped through hearts. Anger. Bloodlust. War-

I came back to my senses with a gasp, stumbling back.

The hand that was holding me straight fell as I stumbled until Katia placed her hand on my arm.

I looked up at the man who bumped into me, who made me see dark things no one wished to ever see.

But before I could get a proper look at him, he apologized and walked away. I stared at his retreating back, breathing hard.

"What's wrong?" it was King Alpha.

I stared at the man some more.

Who was he?

Levi and Katia were looking at me with furrowed eyebrows.

I shook my head, standing straighter, making Katia's hand fall from my arm.

"Nothing," I said inhaling, "He just bumped into me out of nowhere."

King Alpha gave me a frown before turning around and continuing walking. I could tell he knew something was up by the way his muscles tensed more.

I didn't even know what happened all of a sudden.

Levi and Katia gave me worried looks before dismissing it and continued walking after King Alpha.

The huge glass front doors of the towers came in view, and we headed there. A reception desk was placed at the front with a girl wearing a green suit and blonde hair sat there, attending phone calls. Beside her, sitting on a chair, I recognized a man.

Ace.

He wore a grey suit with his shaggy hair combed and neat.

He spotted us walking towards the door and stood up, heading in our direction.

"I hope you train your wolves to remain in their place next time," He said to King Alpha in a strict tone whilst giving him a pointed look.

King Alpha stopped and turned around to face him with a raised eyebrow.

"Thirty of my warlocks are deeply injured," Ace stated more irritably.

"Then you should train your warlocks to fight better," King Alpha responded.

Ace gave him an irritated look, "Next time, I won't let you have your wolves back if I find them roaming around my territory next time. All you'll get is their dead body."

"Hmm I think those were my lines when I caught four of your warlocks trying to steal my dagger," King Alpha said.

"Oh, right the dagger." An evil smile came to Ace's face. "Strange that you carry the one thing that can truly kill you everywhere you go."

"Strange that you're still here talking to me," King Alpha said.

"I was just here to remind Ezlynn of our little deal," he said and grinned in my direction.

"That you want garbage in exchange for her brother back?" King Alpha snorted.

"Garbage?" Ace scoffed, "I want Lucretia's crown."

My body froze as three pairs of eyes snapped towards me: Levi's, Katia's and King Alpha's.

King Alpha's mouth was pulled into a hard line as he squared his shoulders, his jaw tensed, "What?"

"But I wasn't going to give it to him." I reasoned quickly. It wasn't as if I was lying. I was still contemplating whether to steal the crown or not.

"Don't waste my time," Ace snapped impatiently, "Get me Lucretia's crown or forget your brother."

King Alpha marched up to Ace, anger and tension rolling off him in waves. The hall room suddenly seemed dead silent and freezing as King Alpha stood directly in front of Ace's face, "the hell you want with Queen Lucretia's crown?"

Ace didn't flinch, didn't even blink. If I were in his position, I would have turned in the other direction and ran.

"You don't want to know," Ace replied, matching King Alpha's intense glare.

"Don't do this," Katia pleadingly whispered. I'm not sure to whom.

"Oh please do tell, why do you want Lucretia's crown after leaving us werewolves to dust?" King Alpha growled ignoring Katia.

"You really want to know?" Ace asked, standing up to King Alpha's height, "Fine, I want to bring Leona back."

All the anger faltered off King Alpha in a second as he stumbled back, genuinely taken aback. His mouth parted open as he now stood frozen as if someone put a bucket of ice water on him.

Katia too looked shocked, as her mouth hung open.

King Alpha quickly regained himself, "You can't do that." His voice sounded strained as if he were holding back emotions.

"Of course I can," Ace gritted his teeth, "I want my love back that you killed." He spat, "you killed your mother and now I want her back."

King Alpha's body tensed further along with mine.

I couldn't keep it in me, the question, so I opened my mouth, "What are you talking about?"

Ace turned to face me, "Oh he didn't tell you?"

King Alpha's face darkened, "Don't," he warned.

"He killed his own mother," Ace spoke angrily, "My wife."

"Wife?" I asked, confused.

"He didn't tell you that too?" Ace was smiling evilly now, looking at King Alpha who seemed like he would kill every single one of us, "I'm his father." 

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Date: 18 August 2021