HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY INDIA :D

Firstly, Thank-you for all the birthday wishes and understanding why the update has been delayed. I am sorry for that again!

My fever has been down for a while now but turns out taking paracetamol for 3 days can bring my fissure problems back to the surface ☹ I had known for a while it was coming but it just got worse these last 2 weeks and I am on a course now but if things don't improve I have to get a minor surgery done!

Drink lots and lots of water lovelies. That's the remedy to avoid almost everything bad about health!

Now back to the story... Chapter 15 is dedicated to @Radha_of_Krishna :D

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BANANA:

Banana's give you energy. It's a respectable source of Vitamin B6 which helps our body maintain a healthy nervous system and produce red blood cells. They are also rich in the mineral potassium that helps maintain a healthy heart and control the blood pressure which in turn decreases our anxiety level. For us women, the iron content in banana helps fight anaemia.

Banana also has a high fibre content that eases digestion and makes one feel full for a long time, which is why banana is often eaten early in the morning. Besides this, there are several other benefits of banana for skin and care. The inside of a banana peel is used to treat acne while applying a mashed ripe banana on the face can instantly moisturize dry and dull skin and help the skin glow. Also, a paste of ripe banana and yoghurt can strengthen the hair.

____

"Mine.
The word was a declaration. It rocked him to his very foundation. It was a truth he'd kept hidden for far too long. Caleb didn't know anything about love, or loving anyone, but he knew... Livvie was his."
― C.J. Roberts, Seduced In The Dark

____

CHAPTER 15 – SHE IS MINE

King Stanislaus was not in a good mood. He was fuming as he sat on his throne and faced Gideon's father, Alpha Joshua Croft.

"Nothing? Your men have nothing?" Stanislaus demanded.

"No" Joshua lowered his head. "Nothing so far. My men have decided that if they don't find anything on Gideon within this week, they are going to start looking for him in Scevola. It's where Ash is from and they assume Gideon might be held a prisoner there."

"That is if he is still alive" Stanislaus hissed and Joshua closed his eyes in pain.

"Gideon has always been loyal to you—"

"I know that and his loyalty will be well rewarded if he is found alive" King Stanislaus spat.

"Did you find anything on that girl who had been there?" Joshua asked carefully.

"Xanthos is going to report to me this afternoon. I talked to him last evening and he had sent me pictures of the warehouse. There was nothing" Oliver, Stanislaus's assistant, answered.

Stanislaus turned his head and directed his glare towards Oliver, "Show me the photos" he barked.

Nodding, Oliver stepped forward and showed the photos of the warehouse. "He sent me this late in the evening yesterday. As you can see Ash had it cleaned up."

"How the hell did he get access to that site again?" King demanded, pushing at Oliver's wrist, unable to look at the pictures. "The place had been sealed for investigation."

"Ash has money Sire. He thinks he can do anything with it" Joshua growled and Oliver nodded.

"Did Xanthos or Grayson mention anything else? Did they catch any girl's scent?" the king pressed.

"I spoke to Xanthos early this morning and he told me there wasn't any woman's scent in the area. It's been two weeks Sire and I think, the scent has faded by now" Oliver lowered his head as he pointed out the last bit.

"Do you think I forgot that bit?" Stanislaus asked in a highly offended note. "I know how long it has been. My son has been in a coma for two weeks now."

Joshua refrained himself from pointing out that Gideon had been missing for the same amount of time. Gideon's mate Minerva had called him early this morning and had informed him that Ash did have Gideon captured in his island mansion. Joshua wanted to take his whole pack there and rescue Gideon but he couldn't because Gideon had asked him not to.

Minerva had also shared with him; the video Ash had made of Gideon asking his parents not to worry about him and not to attack Ash. Gideon just asked them to trust him and Joshua completely trusted his son to do the right thing, always.

Which is why, standing in front of King Stanislaus, he blatantly lied.

"If we get the girl, then there is a chance that we will find out what happened that day" King Stanislaus growled, curling his plastic fingers to form a fist.

"But what if Ash has kidnapped the girl?" Joshua enquired.

"Or what if that girl worked for Ash or Johnny?" Oliver said and the king frowned at his assistant.

"She did not work for Ash. She was a nobody. Alex had shared with me that bit before he..." unable to finish the sentence, the king slammed his fist down the armrest of his throne seat.

"True. If she was someone her family would have stepped forward" Joshua pointed out. "Oliver, may I ask you to start with checking the police reports on any missing girls from the past two weeks?"

Oliver looked at the king, who nodded his head in agreement.

"There is no need for that," a loud, confident voice said and Joshua turned his head to look at Ajax Hynson standing at the doorway that led to the courtroom.

A tall, bearded, muscular man in his mid-thirties, Ajax's grim face bore no smile as he strode ahead, dark brown eyes fixed on King Stanislaus. Standing at the foot of the stairways that led to the throne seat, he bowed his head respectfully for his king.

"Sire," he said, brown eyes turning dark. A fierce fighter, Ajax was ruthless when he crushed his opponents and there was no wolf in the Kingdom of Aelius, who had dared to challenge him until now... until Ash bragged about killing Ajax's younger brother, Alex.

When the king raised a couple of fingers, Ajax looked up again.

"As I said, there is no need for any of you to trace police records. I had it done and the girl we are looking for isn't in their book" Ajax said, crossing his arms behind his back.

"Then who is this girl? How did she just go missing?" Oliver said out loud, the king's thoughts.

"There's a possibility she might have escaped when Johnny was kidnapping Saint" Joshua supplied. Lysander had already informed him that the girl king was looking for, Cyane was not to be messed with and that he had to ensure the king did not get to her.

"Johnny wouldn't let a beautiful girl go just like that" Ajax said, one corner of his lips curling upwards disdainfully.

"How do you know—"

"She has to be beautiful if she caught Crown Prince's attention" Ajax broke in before Joshua could finish. One corner of the king's mouth tilted upwards as he nodded his head in agreement.

"So, if Johnny had taken her to the warehouse then why wasn't she there when Xanthos entered the building?" Oliver asked perplexed.

"Johnny escaped... he might have taken her with him" Joshua said.

Ajax looked the king directly in the eyes and said, "Either that or Xanthos is lying."

The king's green eyes hardened like emeralds as he glared at Ajax, "Xanthos has no reason to lie to me."

"Okay, Xanthos might be lying. But what about Karl? He worked for Alex, why would he lie?" Oliver asked. "There was a gap of four hours between the time of Crown Prince's kidnapping and his rescue. So much might have happened by then. They might have moved the girl away."

"Possible. She was human and she was no match for so many wolves" Joshua agreed because Lysander had assigned him with one task and that was to divert the King's attention away from Cyane.

Compressing his lips, Ajax stared grimly at the king.

"Only Saint can tell us who she is" King Stanislaus pronounced quietly and Oliver nodded in agreement. "You can leave now" he added looking pointedly at Joshua and Oliver, who bowed their heads and left the room.

Stanislaus got up from his throne and slowly descended the eleven, narrowly apart riser height stairs that led to the Imperium Throne. Once he was sure they were the only ones in the room, he turned to look at Ajax.

"The Crown Prince is not the only person who has seen her" Ajax began.

"You still think Xanthos is ly—"

"Johnny has seen her and he is the only one who can tell more about her" Ajax finished.

"He wouldn't do it for me. No matter how huge the amount" King Stanislaus proclaimed

"Alex had been sure it was only Johnny who had kidnapped Saint" Ajax stated.

"It had been Johnny. He wanted Crescere and I refused. He threatened to hurt my family and I had assigned guards for Saint. However, Saint escaped from their watch and... well, he went out with his friends. Johnny got a chance and he used it" The king shared reluctantly.

"You knew something like this would happen?" Ajax questioned, brown eyes turning black as night.

"Yes" the king admitted flatly and the silence lingered until he broke it again. "Johnny has used Ash's name several times before and I expected him to attack me again, using Ash's name. I wanted to use that opportunity to regain the trust of my people" Stanislaus confessed without any shame.

"Which is why you sent Xanthos and Gideon along with Alex?"

"Alex was to personally get rid of Johnny while they would get rid of the others."

"It all went downhill when Ash attacked" Ajax growled.

"It went downhill when Johnny hurt my son" Stanislaus spat. "Saint was unable to save himself and now, Xanthos is getting the credit for saving his life."

"But on the other side, Ash is being blamed for kidnapping him" Ajax pointed out with a smug expression.

"Yes. But it will last only as long as Johnny keeps his mouth shut. Johnny would want to get the fame and you need to shut his mouth before this goes out" Stanislaus growled cunningly.

"Have Xanthos do it!" Ajax stated flatly and Stanislaus frowned. "You made sure that dog jumps as high as you tell him to, then you make sure he gets rid of Johnny as well."

"No. People hate Johnny and if Xanthos kills him then he'll get—"

"What is more important to you? Xanthos's two minutes of fame or your reputation?" Ajax hissed glaring at Stanislaus, who promptly compressed his lips. "If Johnny talks, then your name is going to go further down the hill. I pay a lot of money for you to be on that throne, so you better listen to what I have to say."

"Did you dare to threaten me?" Stanislaus snarled.

"Yes. I just did" Ajax sneered and then stepped closer to Stanislaus. "My brother was killed because your stupid, unfurnished plan got failed. My father was killed because of your daughter. I have lost the only two people I really cared about and now, I have nothing to lose. But you... you do Sire." The insulting way in which Ajax spat out the word Sire made Stanislaus shake in rage but he refused to give in to it because Ajax was right about one thing... he did pay a lot of money to keep the palace afloat.

"I will make sure Xanthos gets rid of Johnny" Stanislaus conceded, secretly swearing to get rid of Ajax once Saint was crowned the king.

"Only after he gets the required information about the girl from Johnny" Ajax growled.

"What if Ash has taken the girl?"

"Ash has his head above his shoulders." Unlike your son... Ajax refrained himself from saying that bit out loud. "He wouldn't let a woman get to him."

The day he gets, he would be taking his first step towards his downfall. But no... Ash was clever and always several steps ahead of them. However, Ajax was fed up with it. No more games. He would kill Ash in his own game.

"You think the girl is with Johnny?" Stanislaus asked.

"That girl poses no threat" Ajax growled.

"No threat? Saint had kidnapped her. If she talks... then my name will be on par with the Zeke's and the moment I fall, Lysander will take over the kingdom. Is that what you want? For your father's murderer to sit on the throne?" Stanislaus sneered and Ajax moved to stand in front of the king's face with a feral snarl.

Growling repeatedly, he bared his fangs at the king, "Get rid of the girl then!"

"I will only after I find out who she is" the king declared.

"Is there no other way to find about her? No one else had seen her?" Ajax questioned with a scowl in his unsmiling face. Stanislaus shook his head, "If Xanthos or Karl hadn't seen her either, then that means she had been gone from the building by the time our men had gone in. Only Johnny knows the truth and it is up to Xanthos now to make sure Johnny spills out the truth."

"Xanthos is going to do it for me." There was a smug look on King Stanislaus's face as he said those words. "But what are you going to do?" King sneered, "I might have sent your brother to the battlefield but he was not killed because of me. Ash wanted you."

"And I have come. He won the first round but the next one is mine" Ajax declared fiercely. "He is not in Scevola or anywhere in your territory. He is in his fucking island. All his men are there and in two days I am going to turn his whole island into a burial ground."

His pack wolves are all ready to go after Ash and once everything is set, he is going to attack Ash.

King Stanislaus scoffed and Ajax glared at him, "You think I haven't attacked him there?"

"Your pathetic men didn't make it past the coastline, but I will" Ajax swore.

"I am not sending my men there" King hissed.

"I do not want your men. None of them is as capable as Xanthos and—"

"Forget it. Xanthos is not going anywhere near Ash until he fulfils my vengeance." There was a dark, scary look and a malicious grin in King Stanislaus's face as he stared into the distance, thinking of Xanthos's near future.

"Something you can get done anytime you want. You have been wasting time" Ajax blurted out.

"No. I have been waiting for years for the right moment and believe me when it does come to my victory will taste even better" King Stanislaus said with a cruel grin.

"When will your right moment come?" Ajax asked.

"When Saint is crowned the king and I know for sure there is no more threat to the throne" Stanislaus finished in a calm voice.

"Even if you get rid of your enemy, there will still be a threat to your throne. Have you forgotten a little fact that the palace is up in debts?" Ajax reminded.

"Have you forgotten the fact that had I not killed your uncle that day, you and your brother wouldn't have survived to see another day?" Stanislaus countered and Ajax inhaled sharply.

When their father Anthony Hynson had been killed by Lysander Zeke, their greedy, malicious uncle had plotted to get rid of Anthony's sons and become the Alpha himself by setting fire to their family home. The brothers had run towards the palace for protection in the middle of the night. King Stanislaus had saved the boys by killing their uncle and had then declared Ajax as the next Alpha of the Hynson pack.

"The debt you owe to me is greater than the debt that I owe to the bank" Stanislaus grinned and then turned to leave, but paused and turned right back, "That reminds me... have you paid the hospital bill?"

Gritting his teeth and suppressing his fury, Ajax nodded.

"Thank-you" Stanislaus flashed his pearly whites and sauntered off.

As his wolf fought within him, wanting to be let out and tear Stanislaus to shreds, Ajax marched out of the palace. About to get into his car, he noticed the ambulance being directed towards the rear entrance of the palace.

He knew every dirty little secret of King Stanislaus but the only reason he couldn't expose him for the bastard that he was because the king knew all his secrets too. They had each other's back and to survive they needed each other because their enemies were getting stronger day by day.

He followed after the ambulance and noticed the doctor and the nurses helping James Winthrop get onto his wheelchair.

King Stanislaus's eldest son, James Winthrop was a product of an affair. When married to his first wife, the former queen, Stanislaus had an affair with a palace maid. The child born from the affair had been physically disabled since birth. Stanislaus had been ashamed of the boy but when the affair had become public knowledge, he had been forced to keep his son within the palace walls along with the maid. A month later, the boy's mother had committed suicide but Ajax knew it was murder.

James Winthrop had been born with Amyoplasia disorder from knee down and hence did not possess the ability to shift into his wolf. Both the factors had been too much of an embarrassment for King Stanislaus and so for years, he had hidden his son from the public eye. James had a room in one corner of the palace and had a staff to take care of him, but he was never allowed to come out of his corner. The only time he did come out was when he had to visit the hospitals for surgeries or check-ups.

Once James was taken in, Ajax called his doctor, "Why was he in the hospital for a month?" he demanded in an irritated voice because he was the one paying the hospital bill.

"He underwent another knee surgery. We wanted to keep him for another week or two but when he found out what happened to Crown Prince, he insisted on coming back home" the doctor said in a worried voice.

Two more weeks in the hospital? The bills would have piled up even more and Ajax was done paying their bills.

Nodding once, Ajax walked back to his car.

He would deal with the Winthrop family later. First, he had to get rid of a pest named- Acheron Zeke.

•••

Cyane changed her skin to that of Elliot's as she walked down the street, with her head bent low in the crowded street. While running away from Xanthos, she had picked up a trouser and hoodie from someone's balcony and after she had changed her clothes, she had also changed her appearance.

She was in some market of sort and Cyane had never been to one before, so she kept looking at different shops as she walked past them. There was traffic police at one end of the market, managing the crowd and as Cyane moved closer to him, she changed back to her skin.

There was so much crowd and people were so busy in their world that no one noticed what she did.

"Excuse me" she called standing next to the officer, who was wiping the sweat on his forehead with a handkerchief.

"Yes?" he asked her.

"I lost my phone and I... I have no way of contacting my friend who is also here somewhere," she said looking at the crowd. "Can you please give me your phone?" she asked politely.

"Sure" the cop smiled and passed over his phone.

"Thanks" Cyane grinned and called Yolanda.

"Yolanda..."

"Cyane? Why do you keep calling me in different numbers? Where are you?"

"I... I don't know," she said looking around. "What is this place?" she asked the traffic officer.

He furrowed his brows but gave her the name. "I am in Brigade Market."

"Brigade Market? Why did you go that far?" Yolanda asked more to herself.

"I..." Cyane didn't know what to tell to her. How much could a person lie?

"I will ask Lysander to come and get you. You have to tell me what happened with your fiancé" Yolanda ordered and Cyane slumped her shoulders because she felt guilty of lying to Yolanda.

"Okay," she said instead. "I am near a jewellery isle."

After deleting Yolanda's number and handing the phone back to the traffic officer, Cyane wandered around the market. Her stomach growled and she was really hungry, but she had no money to buy anything for herself and she simply refused to steal money. Stealing clothes felt bad enough.

As she was looking around, she felt eyes on her and then noticed that the traffic officer was looking at her. Tensing, Cyane moved from there but he followed. Hiding behind a tent shop, she changed skin to that of Elliot's again.

Someone grabbed her shoulders from behind and forced her to turn and face them. "Oh! I am... I am sorry. I mistook you for someone else" the traffic cop raised his hands and then walked away.

"Look around, she is wearing brown hoodie and jeans. Has dark hair and pale skin... looks no more than twenty" the officer murmured holding the speaker close to his mouth and Cyane frowned, wondering why he was after her.

"Don't see anyone like that. What did the girl do?" the speaker on the other side asked.

"Nothing... she just seems lost. Can you believe she didn't know what this place was called?" he continued and sighing, Cyane changed her route.

"Need something for your girlfriend?" a man asked and she turned to look at the shopkeeper holding a stunning piece of gold-plated dangling earrings.

"These are so beautiful" Cyane gushed and snatching it from his hands, she held it near her ears to see her reflection in the mirror only to come across Elliot's face in it. Her eyes widened and she looked up to see the shopkeeper staring at her with a weird look.

Clearing her throat, she shook her head. "No thanks" she muttered and dumping the earrings next to the mirror, she continued walking. She was in a man's skin now and so, she had to act like one.

When she reached a stationery shop, she picked up a sketchbook and a pencil box because she knew she had to start making plans for the Iron Fort. However, when the shopkeeper told her how much it was worth, she quietly kept the book back down because she had no money with her.

As she stood scanning the area to look for Lysander, she absently leaned against a wooden pole attached to the tent. As it stirred, the owner frowned at her and muttering an apology, she turned to look at the items on display. Her fingers ran through the lockets and earrings clipped to the festoon. They were beautifully carved and Cyane's fingers twitched because she missed carving.

Back in the palace, she used to carve something or the other and it had been months since she had touched her tools.

Suddenly, she flinched and when she looked up, she saw the rusted iron locket. Hissing in pain, she enclosed her fingers with her other palm while the shop-keeper stared at her worriedly.

"Hey? Are you okay?" he asked.

"Great" she groaned.

"Did you take something from there?" he demanded and rolling her eyes, Cyane walked away. Her knee wound was not yet healed and now, there was another.

This day just kept getting worse. She already felt bad about leaving Xanthos and now this...

She inspected the fresh wound and noticed that the sensitive skin of her finger pads had turned fiery red. When she looked up, her eyes collided with the bright red eyes of a man.

Red eyes? Her brows furrowed in confusion as she took in his scent and noticed that he had no scent. It was like ice.

He tilted his head sideward to watch her with a suspicious frown. He had deathly pale skin... almost grey and he looked like a human but Cyane had a feeling, he wasn't human.

What was he?

Judging by the way he was watching her; he too was trying to figure out what she was. Good luck with that one buddy... she thought smugly. She looked like Elliot and no one could know it was her as Elliot. Well, no one except for her family and this man was no family.

Shaking her head, she turned but stopped when she saw another pair of red eyes. This time it was of a young woman. Her heartbeat increased in her chest and Goosebumps appeared all over her skin.

Something wasn't right...

The woman approached her and Cyane stood in her spot... waiting. It was a crowded area and if anything happened, people would come to interfere. She was sure of that!

"Boreís na me voithíseis?" The girl asked for help in Greek and at finding someone who spoke her mother tongue, Cyane's eyes brightened and she smiled as all her worries faded away.

"Nai... me ti ?" she agreed immediately.

The woman then told her that her seven-year-old son had gone to men's washroom and hadn't come out yet. She requested Cyane to please go in there and look for her. Nodding once, Cyane walked with the woman towards the men's washroom which was right around the corner.

She hated going to men's washroom but she also wanted to help the woman. As she braced herself for the uncomfortable sight and smell, she wondered why the woman approached only her when there were so many men around. How did the woman know she spoke Greek?

She stopped, about to ask that question but suddenly a man appeared out of nowhere and wrapping a hand around her throat, he pushed her against the nearest wall. Shaken from the impact, Cyane blinked for her head hurt badly. The old, chipped wall paint fell around her feet in a litter.

"Quick. Get it" another man roared and Cyane's eyes flew wide when they brought an iron rod towards her.

Reacting quickly, she kicked the man holding her throat, while the other person slammed the rusted iron rod against her arm.

As her arm burned, the sleeves of her hoodie were torn and Cyane cried in pain because it hurt. She fell to her knees clutching her arm as her blood dropped on the ground.

The guy with the red eyes, the one she had seen earlier, crouched in front of her and then pressed his fingers on several drops of her blood, spilt on the cold, hard cement.

Cyane watched in disgust as he pressed his blood-stained fingers on his lips and moaned, before licking his fingers clean.

"It's a fairy" one of them shouted and Cyane gasped wondering, who these people were. They all had red eyes and oddly pale skin and they smelled like death.

The man then stood and took on the iron rod from one of his friends while a few others made sure no one came close to the area around them.

"Reveal yourself" the man commanded and hit her back with the rod again.

Her wings came out on their own accord as she screamed in rage and their eyes widened in recognition.

Bright, translucent, and purple, they were big and wide like an angel's wings. The man was able to recognize it which meant he had studied about her kind.

"It's the princess" the man, whom she had seen earlier, whispered and as she turned back to her self, Cyane watched him in shock.

He recognized her... who was he? Who were all these people? They weren't wolves or witches or humans. Who were they? Were these the other creatures? The one who had killed her parents?

She knew in her heart that these were the creatures Bardo's men had been talking about. She just knew it! She had been wondering and now.... now she knew who her enemies were. Who wanted her dead!

Her heart thumped heavily and sweat coated her forehead. She needed to stay strong because there were too many of them.

"Get her" he yelled to his men and as they moved closer, Cyane unleashed every iota of energy she had within her.

As the energy spread in a wave around her, they flew back and Cyane used that opportunity to stand up. It was difficult because her back hurt.

When she managed to stand upright, she spread her wings wide and then bolted high up in the air, not caring if anyone had seen her.

___

Octavus looked at the drops of blood in the ground and grinned.

The princess might have flown away, but she couldn't fly high and far away because she was bleeding and she needed time to recuperate.

He had caught the scent of her blood around the afternoon in the main city of Aelius... in one of the buildings in an area filled with werewolves. He had looked around the area for her but couldn't find her.

Defeated, he had then sent a team to find her human friends. Hoping she was with them.

However, since her blood had spilt to the ground, he had been able to trace her scent and he had been following it till he came to the market. She had been nowhere to see around until he noticed that guy flinching after touching an iron locket.

He had immediately known that the guy was a fairy and he wanted to know if he was from Sylvan clan. However, to his surprise, it turned out to be the girl he and his brothers have been looking for years.

She might have flown away but she wouldn't be gone for far and when he finally had her, he would take her back to the cave so that she can summon the creature that would help his mother wake up.

•••

Xanthos was a quiet person.

All his friends knew that he didn't like to talk much. However, his eerie silence on the drive back home made them uneasy.

He had been exceptionally quiet since the moment they lost Cookie.

Miki was ecstatic and he let it show by playing loud music in the car and singing along. Brody was confused and all Grayson knew was that Cookie had lied to them about being mute and when caught, she had escaped.

When Xanthos parked his brand-new SUV in front of the old, rickety building he lived in, they all got out.

"Hey? What about lunch?" Miki asked. Ignoring him, his friends continued upstairs and Miki followed with a low growl.

He didn't get why they were so quiet. They knew nothing about her other than the fact that she was a liar. But his friends were behaving as though they have lost someone important. He couldn't believe they would get attached to a girl they knew only for two days.

They need to get laid. They all seriously did!

Especially Xan because Miki had known that from the moment, Xan had seen Cookie, he had been infatuated with her. Granted the girl was beautiful, but she was also a liar and a kicker and a robber.

Well, maybe he could forgive her for stealing his food but he couldn't forgive her for lying to his friends who were foolish enough to trust her in the first place. He had known from the start that there was something different about her.

She might look delicate but she possessed a strength that made her stand out. It reflected in her eyes and the only reason he recognized it was because he had seen them in the eyes of the nuns from the convent where he had been brought up. Their ever-shining, hopeful eyes exhibited their optimistic view of the world and at times, when he felt low, he liked visiting the convent. No matter how rebellious and rude the children were, the sisters in the convent always saw the good in them and were positive they were going to change and be a better person.

Cookie's strength might not be the same kind as the sisters, but she did have a certain je-ne-sais-quoi that made her appealing and given some time he might have figured that out but now that she was gone, there was no need for him to do so. He was just glad to be rid of her!

When they reached Xanthos's apartment on the fourth floor, Miki badly wanted to pee. However, his friends hovered over the living room, lost in thoughts.

Xanthos stood in front of the window of his living room, staring at the city outside. He did that when he had to do some thinking.

"She ran away and you guys couldn't catch her?" Grayson asked perplexed and noticing the hidden insult lying in that question, his friends growled in warning. "Though a half-breed she is still a human" Grayson chuckled.

"She was running in a public area and we couldn't reveal ourselves there" Brody defended.

"Plus, she was climbing walls and jumping through railings like... Tarzan; like she did that day in the woods. Lady Tarzan is a circus artist or was trained to be one" Miki added with a grimace.

Cookie's scent still lingered in the house and he made a mental note to buy a room freshener for Xan's apartment. He needed to get rid of that scent fast and quick.

"But we are wolves" Grayson stated flatly. "She is no match for us!"

"Unless she is not a human" Brody said quietly and while Miki and Grayson shot him a stunned look, Xanthos did not turn his head from his favourite view.

"Please!" Miki scoffed moving towards Xanthos's bedroom so that he could go to the washroom. He was tired of talking about Lady Tarzan. Why couldn't his friends just let it go? Why waste time talking about her when they had a hundred other things to do?

"But she just jumped from one building to another without any support. Everyone cannot do that" Brody pointed out.

"She is a human" Miki stressed turning his head to look at Brody. "She just happens to be very well trained in parkour," he said and pushed open the bedroom door.

About to enter the room, he paused and stared at the scene in front of him with wide eyes. His first thought was that a burglar had entered Xan's apartment, but then everyone in the area knew who Xan was and no one dared to offend him. No one would have the guts to steal something in his apartment and to be honest, apart from some guns, there wasn't anything valuable in this part of the apartment.

So, what then happened to his once pristine bedroom? Who did this? Lady Tarzan?

"That might be possible. I have seen these videos online of these guys doing parkour and they are so amazing. If you are very well-trained than you can do crazy-ass stunts" Grayson said with a grin, "Miki is right. She is a human—"

"She is not a human" Miki blurted, still staring at Xanthos's bedroom, his urge to pee completely vanished.

That sudden change of tune earned Xan's attention and he turned to look at Miki, with a frown in his face.

"What do you mean?" Xan questioned sharply.

"Look..." Miki gestured towards his room.

Brody and Grayson, who were standing nearby were the first to move and when they saw the bedroom, their eyes rounded in disbelief while their jaws dropped company.

Narrowing his eyes, Xanthos walked ahead, carefully assessing his friend's reaction before turning to look at his bedroom. His sharp intake of breath when he saw the mess did not go unnoticed.

The double bed, that had once taken the centre stage in the bedroom was now in pieces the size of a little spoon. The mattress is torn apart to bits and pieces while small rolls of stuffed cotton fibre were scattered all over the room along with the broken furniture. The cupboard door was also missing... probably broken along with the bed.

The only thing intact was the glass window and the washroom door along with the ceiling fan. Everything else in the room was broken into pieces so tiny that it was not humanly possible to do such a thing in such a small amount of time.

"Your bed... where is your bed?" Brody cried in shock.

Xanthos stepped into the room and watched the broken furniture pieces. It looked like his room was hit by a tornado, destroying everything in its path.

"What is she?" Grayson whispered more to himself as he picked up a piece of wood that could have belonged to the bed or the table. "One of us was always around when she is there and none of us had a clue what she had done to the room. We didn't hear any noise, didn't get any doubts... how... what is she? How could she do this? This is beyond restoration. No human or wolf can do this."

Xanthos scoffed as he pulled at the torn piece of blanket clinging to a broken shard of wood. Considering restoration was next to impossible and the only sensible thing to do was pile them up to throw in the bin or use the broken wood for the fireplace.

"She is a witch. She had you all bewitched under her spell" Miki hissed, kicking a huge roll of cotton fibre, sending it bouncing and flying across the room.

"Or she is a—" Brody paused when all his friends gave a startled glance.

"The fairies consider us to be beneath them, they do not come to this part of the world" Miki dismissed easily. "She is a witch!"

"What do you think, Xan?" Grayson questioned when Xan stood up.

"I think I need a new bed" Xan sighed heading to the door, but Miki blocked his path.

"You can't just dismiss this... she is—"

"Mine" Xan stated through gritted teeth and Miki sucked in a breath when Xan's blue eyes turned dangerously dark, while his whole body shook in rage.

"She is mine and I will find her at any cost" he swore, before walking away and leaving his friends completely speechless.

The Hound had found his new prey and now, nothing in the world could stop him from going after her.

****

There it is! Finally, Xanthos acknowledged what we have known! But... what do you think is going to happen to Cyane now?

Please share in the comments 😊

I am sorry for not being able to reply to all the comments in the previous chapter. As I said, I was unwell and couldn't keep up. Sorry again! Will try to reply now...

Next update on 23rd August.

Stay safe!