Chapter 38

Derek

The news of the separation between Diana and I had reached the clans. And my father had sent us both a summons to show before him. I knew this was going to happen. And I hoped that Diana would truly stick to her story and not mess things up.

She had assured me back then when I refused the divorce that she had a plan. I knew Diana was not stupid even though she was more cunning than smart. Nevertheless, she must have expected this and integrated it into her plans. Since I haven't heard anything from her family, I figured she must have taken care of them as she promised.

Even though I wondered about what her motivation was, I didn't really care. Maybe she was fed up; maybe she'd realized that the marriage was fruitless; or better still, she'd found someone for herself. All I was concerned with was nullifying the marriage.

As I got closer to the general living room at the estate, I began to think about my freedom from Diana. It was finally going to happen and I would be totally free of her after so many years. I remembered when my father told me about the marriage for the first time.

"...Sometimes, we have to make sacrifices for the sake of the clan because the interest of the clan is what matters the most…" Those were his words to me that day. He didn't make it look like I had any other options apart from what he and Diana's father had agreed. Back then, the two families weren't as strong as this within the clans.

I knew Diana had also not been left with many choices and she had also agreed to the marriage out of obedience to her father but what changed for her was that she eventually fell in love with me. That particular aspect didn't change for me. I never loved Diana and I would never do. I had known that even before I met Roxanne. Now that I have Roxanne, I was certain that it was Roxanne that I truly loved with all my being.

"Morning, father." I greeted him.

Diana was already present in the room with him. She looked at me with timid eyes, then she quickly turned her eyes away. I didn't care about anything today, other than the fact that I want to be rid of her and the marriage.

"So, tell me," father began, "What are you both trying to do?"

Diana let out a sigh before she spoke, "It's of my own free will, sir. I told Derek that now that our families' positions are stable in the clans, there was no need for us both to pretend that we love each other. I want this to happen."

My father shot me a suspicious look, then faced Diana, "Are you sure about this?"

"Certainly. Moreover, I couldn't tolerate him falling in love with a human girl while we are still in the marriage. It's evident that there's no such affection between us both. Why not let each other free?" Diana said. Looking at her, one couldn't argue that she didn't mean what she was saying. She sounded so convincing.

Father sighed and shook his head. Since the sex tape was everywhere, I knew he had seen it too, and there was no point in denying it. He must have drawn his own conclusion. It didn't matter now. All that mattered was finalizing this divorce so that everyone could go on their way.

"What do you have to say, Derek?" he asked me.

"Nothing, father. It's just as she explained." I replied.

"Well, if this is how you both want it then it's all right. But Derek, make sure you draw up a settlement for her after you're done with the papers."

Diana cut in, "There wouldn't be any need for that, Sir. All that I want is to get done with the process as soon as possible."

Father was left speechless, "Okay then," he said, and dismissed us both.

As I went back to my car with a resounding joy that I was now free of my restraining marriage, Dennis came out of another car to meet me on the way.

"There's news, boss," Dennis said discreetly.

"Talk to me." I directed him back into the car.

Once we were in the car, he began, "The man you sent me to look into turned out to also be a member of the Savaria family. He isn't just any member, he's a very important and noble man in the family. He holds a position similar to what your brother holds in the clan."

"Interesting…" I said out loud, giving Dennis a nod of acknowledgment. "Good job, Dennis. Anything else?"

"Nothing, boss."

"Keep digging, and keep me updated about any new information." I got out of his car, went into mine, and drove away.

On my way back home, I was so damn sure that the man from the company was the one who attempted to assassinate me at the house. It made a lot of sense and now this was becoming a more interesting drama that I was really looking forward to.

I doubt if Roxanne knew the true nature of the man she was moving with. The vampire must have seen the video of Roxanne and me having sex and decided to kill me as a reaction. Now, I was really looking forward to meeting him again. It's interesting, though, that a vampire is disguised as a friend of Roxanne's.

I got back to the house to find Roxanne missing. She had run away. How did the men guarding the house allow that? I became furious.

"I want everyone looking for her!" I instructed the men.

Lucas

I hadn't been able to get across to Roxanne ever since that last time. At first, I thought she was ignoring my calls and texts because of the sex tape. But now, I was beginning to realize that she might be in danger.

Her friend and former roommate, Rose, had also tried to contact her with no success. I had gone to see her the previous day to ask about Roxanne. That was when I found out that she had moved away from the dormitory and she was now living somewhere off campus.

I couldn't imagine how she must be feeling with everything that was happening to her, especially the sex tape saga. If she was in danger, then I needed to find her as quickly as possible. First, I had to find where she moved to. I got into my car and in a bid to start tracing her based on Rose's descriptions.

Just then, I received two text messages on my phone. One was from Roxanne. And the other was from the housekeeper back at the family mansion. It carried an emergency header so I opened it quickly.

The message revealed that the elder of the white wolf pack that we have under siege was murdered. This was really bad news. The person responsible for his death was a friend of mine from our clan. In light of this news, the wolves have started killing more vampires than before. The man was a very important member of the wolf clans and news of his death was certainly going to cause a lot of problems. That's if it didn't finally bring about a war.