"Wait! You need to tell me, what exactly transpired between the two of you?"
Lacey urged and Hunt shrugged. He wiped his sweaty hands on his jeans and looked away.
"It's a very long story..."
Hunt said as he tried to dismiss Lacey's words but she wasn't having any of it. If something had transpired between them then she needed to know. At least it'll help in shedding some light between whatever might have transpired between Hunt and Aidas.
"We have all the time in the world Hunt. You can tell me."
She insisted as she wrapped her hands around his arm, she tugged at his arm while he remained quiet.
Hunt let out a defeated sigh.
"I suppose I have to start from the beginning then..."
"Yes. I'm all ears."
"Eight years ago Aidas and I were friends."
"And not just any type of friends, we were close, very close. We met while working on an inside job the Council had for us. We had to defeat a rogue witch who was performing blood sacrifices in the City."
Lacey didn't know what the witch he was talking about, but she didn't want to interrupt him, she was sure it was one Council thing or the other which had to do with Supernaturals.
"We became very close naturally. And we even worked hand in hand. By then he was already King of the Night Court and my father was ready to pass on the Alpha title to me."
"So what happened?"
Hunt sighed as the memories flashed quickly. He had pushed them into the back of his mind for the longest time. How could he even forget them? It was all so messy, the thought of it, the thought of everything that happened.
He kept it secret for so long.
He never talked about it, his family didn't and neither did his pack. It wasn't as if they even knew the full story.
What transpired between Aidas Vladimir and Hunt Adler was a terrible misfortune.
And there was only one person to blame really.
"My brother, Ruhn... He's what you'd call a late bloomer. He didn't shift until he was nineteen. It was very unusual."
"And before that... There was already tension going on."
"Tension? Between who?"
Lacey asked and Hunt shrugged.
"Aidas's older brother was Lucien Vladimir. They were only a few days apart and they didn't share the same mother. If you must know, Vampires cannot procreate, so the closest thing they have to procreating is turning a human into a vampire."
Lacey's eyes widened. She thought that was something of legends, something that had been written with the books since there were so many flawed logics and truths when it came to vampires.
Like how must humans believed that they couldn't walk in the sun had been largely untrue too but Aidas had mentioned it did give them mild discomfort and they were more of creatures of the dark than day. And also the part about how garlic repelled them and mirrors, all false but were still what she and most people believed all the same.
"So, Aidas was once human?"
Lacey asked and Hunt nodded.
"Yes... Back then it was quite common to turn children. Although now it's against the law."
"Aidas's father took in two pregnant human women. After their children were born he gave them his last name and turned them when the time was right. Back then, it was the only way vampires could have kids of their own."
"Turning a child into a vampire was as symbolic as siring one."
Hunt added and he paused as he looked at Lacey who looked a little bit too eager to hear the story.
Nevertheless, he continued.
"Aidas and Lucien grew up together. They were as thick as thieves. But Lucien was quite the vampire."
Oh who could forget Lucien Vladimir?
He was even worse than Aidas himself, the cocky insufferable bastard. Hunt thought as he shook his head.
"He was wild, he was erratic and whatever he wanted he always got."
"And what did he want?"
Lacey didn't know where the story was heading, she just wanted to know what was so important that made Hunt protect someone else at the detriment of his friendship with Aidas.
And most importantly, who.
"You know how these things work... Lucien liked a girl, my brother liked the same girl. And Lucien was stupid enough to taunt my brother for it. He humiliated Ruhn in front of the girl. I didn't even know he had a crush on a girl back then."
Hunt shook his head. He had been so focused on his friendship with Aidas back then that he had neglected his brother when it mattered the most. Ruhn also never mentioned a word about Lucien's constant taunts.
"Five years ago, the night my brother shifted for the first time, there was a party at my house. A party in honour of me being Alpha. Every known Lycan and werewolf attended. I managed to extend an invitation to Aidas because he was my best friend. Aidas's obnoxious brother Lucien came along with high hopes that the girl would be there."
"My brother made his first shift later that night in the woods, when I heard his howl, I left as soon as I could.
The bloodlust can be very uncontrollable in the first shift."
"I had to be there, I had to assert my dominance as his Alpha to make sure he wouldn't kill anyone and the bloodlust won't completely rid him of common sense."
"The first shift is always the hardest."
There was a long pause. Then the realisation hit Lacey.
"You got there too late?"
Hunt closed his eyes.
"Too late."
"While prowling around, Ruhn had seen the girl and Lucien together. The rage, the jealousy, the bloodlust my brother must have felt... Lucien was not spared."
"And you took the blame for it?"
Lacey exclaimed and Hunt nodded.
"Why? Why would you? Aidas... He would have understood.."
"He wouldn't!"
Hunt snapped as he ran his hands through his hair.
"Death is the only revenge in the Supernatural world. If Aidas knew my brother Ruhn killed his brother he would have his heart out of him in a heartbeat."
"But... But... If he didn't kill you, that means he wouldn't have killed your brother if he knew."
Hunt shook his head as he caressed Lacey's cheek.
She didn't understand, yet.
"He wouldn't. The only reason he didn't kill me was because I was already Alpha."
He answered softly and Lacey relaxed.
"If he had so much laid a hand on me, the entire Lycan pack would rise up against him. Wolves too."
"It would have led to war between our kinds..."
"Unfortunately, that same grace does not extend to my brother. So I had to take the blame and he has hated me ever since."
"But you were best friends! Didn't he ever think about that? That you would never do anything to hurt him that way?"
Lacey hated to think that was the reason Aidas hated Hunt. Because if Aidas truly once thought of Hunt as his best friend, he would have known Hunt would never do such a thing to hurt him.
"Well, it was understandable... He thought I killed Lucien because of the girl..."
Lacey scoffed.
"Why would he? That doesn't even make any sense..."
"Because it was Lila!"
"What?"
Lacey whispered softly.
"She was only about nineteen or eighteen then. I didn't even know her. I never met her then. At least not until that night when she held Lucien's dead body to her chest and cried while my bother ran away..."
"The moment my eyes met hers... We both knew..."
Oh. That was the reason why they were never close.
The reason why they never liked each other regardless of the fact that they were mates.
It explained a lot. For Lacey. At least to her it explained why Lila and Hunt were never in love and why she had been so eager to leave.
"She was in love with Lucien... And your brother was in love with her?"
Hunt laughed.
"Oh... My brother was merely infatuated with her I assure you, I doubt he properly remembers what happened that night. It was the bloodlust and anger that made him kill Lucien."
"But Lucien... Lucien she must have loved."
"And Aidas? He really believed you killed his brother because of her?'
Hunt shrugged.
He would never forget the way Aidas had looked at him, with the blood on his clothes. If only Aidas knew his bloody clothes were as a result of him trying to pry his enraged brother off Lucien.
He would never forget how he lunged at him. For days Hunt received blood threats. Aidas was determined to make him pay, one way or another.
And he was determined to hide the truth for as long as it meant Ruhn would be safe.
There was a deep silence as Lacey walked towards her window blinds. She was so conflicted on what to do.
On one hand she felt the need to mend their friendship and whatever went wrong between them.
On the other hand, interfering might make things worse.
"Do you love him?"
Hunt's voice jolted her out of her thoughts and she turned, surprised.
"Love?"
She laughed nervously and Hunt nodded.
His expression was oddly serious.
"Why would you think that?"
She shrugged as she folded her arms nervously.
Hunt sighed.
"Because before me there was him. And I know something must have transpired between you two."
"The way he talked about you when you were missing... His desperation to find you and protect you..."
"So?"
Hunt chuckled.
"Believe me when I tell you this... Aidas Vladimir cares for no one but himself. But the way he was so eager to find you... It makes me think otherwise."
She quickly glanced away, Hunt's piercing green eyes were trying to find hers and she was reluctant to let them.
"Do you reciprocate his feelings for you? Because I know he has feelings for you."
Lacey sighed.
"Why do you care? Whatever happened between us is all in the past now. It won't repeat itself."
She assured Hunt as she walked up to him.
She pushed back the hurt she had felt from the last time she saw Aidas. He didn't want her. He was staying away from her because he believed he would hurt her.
"Really?"
He asked and Lacey nodded.
"Whatever I had with Aidas Vladimir, believe me, it's over."
Her lips spoke the words but her heart knew the real truth.