Chapter 24 24
Third Person POV
"No"
"She wouldn't go so far," Adrian said to himself. He still didn't want to believe it and refused to accept it; it felt better to believe that his uncle had manipulated her into marrying him; that felt easier to accept.
"Is that what you really think, Adrian?" Draven asked Adrian; his voice was calm and low, without doubt or hesitation. He finally turned around, facing Adrian; he stood taller than him, more domineering and intimidating.
But Adrian stood his ground; he could let himself be intimidated every damn time he faced his uncle. Draven slowly walked past him as he spoke. "You don't believe me? That's fine," he spoke.
"Come with me." As he walked further away from the dark corridor where they stood, unwillingly Adrian followed his uncle, walking behind him at a given distance.
"Where are we going?" He asked Draven; he waited for a moment before answering. "To hear the truth," he replied.
'The truth?' Adrian thought to himself, He did want to know both their intentions, but that didn't mean he would trust everything they said; it didn't matter what their reanephews were; it was their actions that had hurt him.
Draven walked to the stairs as they led up to the rooms. Adrian knew the house well enough to know where they were headed. He began feeling a bit anxious; his heart grew heavier in his chest.
Soon they stood before a door. As Draven knocked, Noah, the family doctor, opened the door. His expression was a bit surprised when he saw Adrian standing just behind his uncle.
"Back already, Master," Noah spoke. He turned to Adrian. "Greetings, Master Adrian," he continued. Adrian nodded in return. He felt stiff in his chest and didn't feel like talking at the moment.
"Has she woken up yet, or she's still asleep?" Alpha Draven asked Noah. Noah looked between the both of them, sensing the tension, and slowly nodded.
"She woke up not too long ago; she's resting now," he said, unsure of how to handle the situation. Without waiting for permission, Draven walked into the room, his eyes locked with Hazel as she looked at him in surprise.
She looked like she was about to say something when Draven silenced her with a gesture of his hand. He then beckoned Adrian to come over. "Leave us for a while, Noah," he spoke sternly.
Noah gradually left the room without a word. He preferred to avoid certain situations, especially when it had to do with the alpha's family.
Adrian watched as Noah closed the door behind him; now he was faced with the exact people he had felt hate and rage towards, the people whom he wanted to question their motives and why they betrayed him.
"You may ask her your questions," Alpha Draven said as he took a seat close to a table by the window. He didn't seem necessarily bothered at all, just really relaxed.
Adrian felt an air of confidence about his uncle; he could feel the justification he felt that what he did was nothing more than a necessity. "What are you doing here?" Hazel asked suddenly, bringing Adrian out of his thoughts.
He slowly looked at her; he at least had expected a more gentle response, but looking at her, he could see the rage and hate in her eyes, how much she detested and hated him; he could almost taste it from the way she looked at him.
"I'm here to know the truth," he replied. He steeled himself; he couldn't let himself be a vulnerable mess, especially not in front of his uncle, who simply looked out the window, staring at a moonless sky.
"What truth? You want to know the details of how I had a miscarriage for you in prison, or the details about how you abandoned me there; even when I needed you the most, you took everyone's side but mine," she spat out hatefully.
He heard every word that was said; he hadn't been able to think about things from her perspective, but hearing it from her lips made him feel guilt on a deeper level, but still he couldn't show it.
He held on strong and shook his head. "Why did you marry my uncle? We were mates before you rejected me, going for my uncle right after? How could you?" He said as his voice raised angrily.
"How could I? Damn you, Adrian, I'll do whatever the fuck I want; I bloody did it for revenge," she shouted.
"Revenge against you for watching me bring kicked out into the rain, with absolutely nothing to my name; the only damn thing you could do was watch me from a window."
"I'll bring you all down if it's the last thing I do, Thalia, Mom and Dad, all of them; you all gave me a new reason to live again, and I intend to live life to the fullest," she said, her words cut deep, too deep to Adrian, who stood looking at her speechless.
But then he gritted his teeth in frustration, "If you wanted to have revenge you could with any other person, why did it have to be with my own uncle?" He shouted back at her.
"My own damned uncle who abandoned me for years comes back just to get mated with my ex-fiance; this isn't some novelty bullshit; there are some lines that should never be crossed, Hazel," he said, pointing at her.
She smiled at him ruefully. Adrian looked at her a bit confused; he didn't understand why she had suddenly begun smiling.
"Tell me, Adrian, how does it feel? The hate and frustration you feel, and most importantly, how powerless you feel right now. Yes, tell me about it," he said, giggling.
Adrian stepped back a bit; he was almost sure she had gone nuts or hit her head on something. "Are you okay?" He asked hesitantly.
"Am I okay? You're asking me that now, Adrian?" She sat upright; the strength that had left her came back, although some of it was just enough for her to express her frustration.
"Maybe you should have asked that question when my parents sent me to prison for a crime I didn't commit."
"Maybe you should have checked up on your pregnant fiance and not allowed her to get brutalised constantly, Adrian."
"And you also should have stopped my parents from leaving me there for an extra year, but no, what did you do, Adrian? Fucking tell me!" She screamed, her chest heaved heavily as she took in deep breaths.
"I..."
"You what?"
"You thought I would come back to you like a dog that lost its master, not knowing left from right or how to survive?, Well jokes on you bastard," she said as she began laughing.
"Alpha Draven, you were right; revenge is a beautiful feeling, and I'm just getting started," she said. Adrian looked at his uncle, who sat facing the window; his lips tugged into a smile, but he never turned back.
"And when I'm done with you, I'll come for my wretched family next, especially Thalia ; I'll make her pay for every bloody thing she did to me," she swore at herself.
"Don't bring Thalia into this; it's just between you and me," he spoke out, trying to defend her. He didn't know why, but after they had reconciled, he felt a deeper level of attachment towards her, and he would be damned if he let Hazel come near her or harm her in any way.
"Oohh, I'll bring whoever the hell I want to bring into this," she retorted. Adrian glared at her, his temper growing worse and worse. He couldn't do anything to her because she was his Luna, but he wouldn't also take threats from her, especially towards someone he cared about.
"Are you going to let her do as she pleases?" He asked Alpha Draven. Draven slowly turned around, looking at his nephew with calm, steady eyes, then he shrugged.
"A deal is a deal, nephew; it must be upheld, especially when it is at the expense of one's life." Draven spoke calmly.
"But I'm your nephew, Damnit," Adrian shouted, his fists folded into balls of fury. "And she's my Luna, the Luna of the pack; our promise takes more priority than how you feel, Adrian," he responded.
Adrian looked at his uncle, baffled, shocked even; he finally understood that the people his uncle and Hazel were targeting were the same people that he so desperately wanted to protect, especially Thalia.
He strengthened his resolve, choked down his guilt and remorse, and decided to not feel any towards them anymore. It all felt funny, too unreal. When last had he been this frustrated, driven to a corner, betrayed by those he cared about?
He couldn't remember; it was quite refreshing. He began laughing at himself. A low chuckle at first that turned into a hysterical laughter, he held his sideways as he laughed at his damn foolishness.
He finally turned back to Hazel. "Well, two can play that game," he said with a smile, then turned around and left the room.