490- Lupus Noctis
POV Thalyndra Moonclaw:
"And if we don't find out the password?" I asked, interlacing my fingers in front of my body, feeling nervous for the first time since we entered the alpha's office.
He looked at me, pondering the possibility.
"Pretty obvious—we'll force our way in or set it on fire," Myrion replied.
"The entire hotel?" I turned to him with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes, why not?" Edric growled.
"You're forbidden from playing with fire, pup!"
"Come on, Dad, it's not like you care about those Merchant sons of bitches. And the hotel isn't even that important, no one will miss it." He pouted.
"I maintain my order," he reiterated, resolute.
Myrion shrugged, resigned, but I saw in his eyes that despite his father's explicit orders, he would set the place on fire with or without the patriarch's consent. And from the look Anton gave his brother, he fully agreed with that.
"Fine," Myrion replied.
Edric sighed, noticing the lie in his son's tone of voice, knowing very well who he was dealing with.
Vladren laughed and shook his head.
"I'm going to the city. The sooner we find this out, the better for us, after all, no one wants the hotel to catch fire." He winked at Myrion.
Edric gestured to him before turning to his children.
"I don't need to say it, but I still can't help worrying about you. I know you're more than capable, but please, take care of yourselves. The Merchants are old and cunning wolves," he advised. "I could go with you, but I believe I would hinder the plan—one of them might recognize me immediately."
Anton nodded.
"Our best advantage is that they don't yet know what they're dealing with."
"Exactly! So be smarter than they are."
Myrion stepped on the head that was on the floor, resting his foot on it.
"What do we do with this?"
"Bury it in the forest." He gestured with disdain.
"We?" he retorted, pointing at himself.
"Weren't you the ones who tore it off? The fun is over, now you need to clean up the mess."
"That's a fucking injustice! Besides defending our territory, we have to deal with the mess too?"
Edric smiled, showing a neat row of white teeth.
"I'm glad, pup, that you're learning to handle things so well. Leadership isn't always easy and peaceful; getting your hands dirty is necessary, most of the time," he mocked.
Snorting, Myrion bent down and picked up the head. He shot a look at Anton.
"You're coming with me, I'm not digging a grave alone."
Anton approached me and placed his hand on my chin, all under his father's watchful eye.
"Go home, take a shower, and rest. We'll have answers soon," he advised.
I nodded, agreeing with him.
It was the best thing to do. I needed to stop and think about everything that had happened, everything I had heard. And being alone was the best choice in those moments. Besides, the blood that had once given me pleasure had begun to disgust me. I needed to smell the sweet scent of soap.
Without waiting any longer, I spun on my heels and walked out of the office. Feeling his gaze on me.
...
I woke up feeling much better, with renewed energy. I dreamed the entire night about the Merchant I had killed, dreams mixed with nightmares. I also saw my parents. They smiled at me, serene. I tried to reach them, but the more I ran, the further they drifted away.
It was longing, I realized as I opened my eyes in the middle of the night, my body sweaty and my face wet with tears. It never stopped accompanying me, although it might go unnoticed at times, it was always there.
I ran down the stairs, hurried, my stomach growling loudly with hunger. I hadn't come down when they called me for dinner; the desire to simply exist was greater than my basic needs.
I found Anton, Myrion, and Aurelka sitting at the table.
"Good morning!" I greeted them.
"Good is me, the morning just tries to keep up," Anton replied, leaning back against his chair, resting one arm on the backrest in a relaxed posture.
I blinked slowly, looking at him with boredom.
"One day, I want to have all that self-esteem," I mocked, pulling out a chair and sitting down across from him.
Myrion laughed.
"Don't worry, the more you hang out with us, the more you'll learn about it."
"It's not like I can't already tell," I retorted. Aurelka rolled her eyes and placed her hand on my arm.
"I heard about yesterday, are you okay?" She licked her lips. "I mean, about the discovery you made about your parents' death."
I nodded, confirming, feeling my heart compress at touching on the subject again.
"After all, how did you know he was there that day?" Myrion asked, shoving a piece of bread into his mouth.
"The painting they mentioned belonged to my father—it was in his library. He was the one who introduced me to the artifact and its history. The moment he opened his mouth to reveal it, I knew. Then I caught his scent and was certain of what I needed to do."
"They're auctioning off one of the artifacts they stole from your father?" Aurelka whispered, pursing her lips in a grimace.
"Yes, they are. Just as I imagine they've already gotten rid of the others. My father kept many relics that were taken by them on the day of the attack."
"Oh, that's so dirty!" she shot out. Myrion growled.
"That's why I don't regret one bit having ripped off that bastard's head. In fact, I can't wait to go to that auction and have fun with some more of them."
"Neither do I," Anton agreed, through gritted teeth.
I served myself some coffee and put some eggs and bacon on my plate, in silence. I knew they were paying attention to me, trying to identify any sign that I might be sad.
"Do you want to help at the school?" Aurelka asked, breaking the silence.
"You don't have to do it forever, but you could just go and tell some stories to the pups. I think they'd like to have a different day and hear new tales."
I had already thought about that possibility a million times. At the same time that I rejected the idea, a part of me pushed me to accept it. Teaching was my dream; that's why I was in college and studying so diligently, because one day I wanted to become as good a teacher as my father was. Still, I was afraid… afraid of not being good enough.
"No pressure, Ferinha," Anton said. "Go, meet the pups, have some fun with them. You'll find they're as interested in legends as you are. And it'll be good for them, to have someone experienced in the subject to teach them new things."
Aurelka bumped her shoulder against mine, laughing.
"Come on! It'll be fun," she insisted.