Chapter 144

We arrived at the Everson pack house, which was apparently the largest pack house in the East—one of the reasons it was being used to host its alliances. It was huge; that wasn't a lie. It was also incredibly beautiful, and I could only imagine how breathtaking it would look in the morning.

Right beside the pack house stood a large, stunning mosque. People roamed around freely, smiling, dressed in decent long clothing. Some women even had their faces covered. Their skin was tan and glowed beautifully, and I noticed that most people here had dark hair compared to the people back home. At home, almost everyone had pale—snow-white—skin and lighter shades of blonde hair.

I unconsciously tucked a strand of my snow-white hair behind my ear. I had tried so many times to change my hair color when I was younger—black, brown, even purple—but nothing ever happened. I once cut it into a bob, and within two weeks it had grown to twice its original length. After that, I decided to just live with it.

Being here made me feel like a ghost. Snow-white skin, silver-grey eyes that looked almost transparent—just like my father's—and snow-white hair to top it all off. Already, some people were starting to stare. I quickly pulled on my hoodie and tucked all my hair inside.

Ayla noticed and smiled at me. "They wish they had your hair. You look magical."

I smiled back at her. She was trying to make me feel better, but the truth was I hated being the center of attention. I sighed as we entered the large pack house. The marble floors were stunning, and everything felt so colorful and different. Shades of red, yellow, gold, and purple filled the space. There were even people playing beautiful music on instruments—one of them a flute.

Alpha Rajeeve Mohammed and Ahmed Fernandez greeted us at the entrance with wide smiles. Alpha Rajeeve was a big man—some would even call him a giant. He greeted Asher warmly and welcomed us all to the Everson territory. We were then asked to join everyone else in the dining hall for supper on the first floor.

As soon as we walked up from the ground floor and stepped onto the first floor, a familiar scent hit me like a powerful wave. I gasped and stumbled back, my body colliding with Chase.

"Whoa. You good, Princess?" he asked, looking down at me with concern.

Ayla turned back immediately. "What's going on? Are you okay?"

I panicked. That scent...

He was here. He was in there, and I was not ready to face him.

"I'm feeling a little sick," I said quickly. "I don't think I'll be joining everyone for supper."

"I can take you down to the tents," Chase said calmly. "I'll let Asher know you knocked out early. Nothing important is happening tonight anyway—the meeting's tomorrow morning."

I was grateful for that. All I wanted was to get the hell away from that scent.

Ayla frowned. "I'll bring you supper. I'm coming with you."

"You don't have to do that," I said, feeling a bit guilty that she'd miss out.

"I said I'm bringing you supper. Full stop," she replied before walking away.

Chase smiled after her. I caught the admiration in his eyes. I knew he had feelings for Ayla, but they weren't fated mates, so it could never happen—unfortunately.

Chase led me down to the tents while I kept glancing over my shoulder like some wanted criminal. As his scent faded into the distance, I finally took a deep breath. When we stepped outside, the fresh air was a relief.

Why was he here?

Why did he have to be here?

I hoped—by some miracle—that he hadn't caught my scent, but I knew better.

Chase nudged me lightly. "You looked pretty nervous in there. You sure you're good?"

I sighed. "I just felt a little overwhelmed and jet-lagged. The whole supper thing and facing all those people... not today."

"Ah, our warrior princess feels overwhelmed," he teased. "That's a first."

I rolled my eyes playfully. "Shut up, Chase."

We reached a gated field where one of our men, Dylan, stood guard. Our tents were already set up inside the field. Chase showed me the tent I'd be sharing with Ayla—thankfully. Asher's tent was close to ours, which made me almost certain my father had put him up to it. He probably told him to keep an eye on me. Chase's tent was right behind ours as well; he was sharing with the twins.

"Thank you again for walking me here," I said with a small smile.

"Anytime, Princess," he replied.

I entered the tent. I didn't hear him walk away until about a minute later. I wasn't stupid—I knew that even though I was pursuing this path in the military, they still treated me like the Alpha's daughter. Always watching, always protecting, probably reporting back to my father too.

Still, I appreciated that within the military intelligence unit, our positions were earned fairly. We all had to work hard to climb to the top. If you didn't work hard, you stayed at the bottom.

Ayla walked into the tent carrying two plastic plates of food. "So I wasn't wrong about the tents after all."

I laughed. "You probably jinxed us, you bitch."

"Nah. You know I'm always right, and that's that," she said with a grin as she handed me my plate.

"Smells good," I said, looking at the chicken curry soup, rice, and a quarter grilled chicken.

Ayla was already digging in. "Tastes amazing too," she said through a stuffed mouth.

I joined her, though my mind refused to slow down. I forced myself to focus on the food because I was starving. If he really was here somewhere, I wasn't going to let the mate bond mess with me.

Not this time.