Chapter 59 59
Third Person POV
Draven left the comfort of his home as he stepped outside. It felt cold, but the chills were still manageable; the cold had no effect on him. Without Noah by his side, he felt a little off, but he ignored the feeling.
Noah had a different mission to handle, and I couldn't distract him from it. Draven got into his car and started the engines. He had to go to Elder Frey's house to discuss with him.
The same elder Frey that had been the beta of the pack when Draven’s father had been alive and was the Alpha of the pack. Now that he was old and retired, he was still an important part of the pack.
Without wasting any more time, Draven drove off in the direction of his house; he didn't live in the pack but rather outside. It was his own house and property; he also had some investments and shares in the Rune company.
Draven drove with the thought of Hazel in his mind, how scared she was about going back to her parents house for the ball party. Draven had half the mind, so he declined the invitation and went, but this was something beyond him; he just had to be there.
After a few minutes of driving, Draven reached a black gate with a duplex inside the estate; there were gardens and a car park with lots of space to move about. He just realised that it may be for children, his grandchildren.
He parked and found his way out of his car to the front porch of the house. He knocked the door respectfully and heard a few footsteps coming towards the door.
By the sound of the steps, Draven assumed that it had to be Elder Frey himself. The door opened to reveal Elder Frey. It had been years since Draven had seen him, but he hadn't aged that much by any comparison.
Although he knew Elder Frey should be in his seventies. "Alpha Draven, it's been a long time; how have you been, or rather, where have you been?" Elder Frey began his long line of questioning.
Draven had expected it already; he was familiar with the kind of person Elder Frey was. "I've been taking care of my business," Draven said sternly.
"Oohh, no need to get so riled up, Drave ; I see you still have quite the temper," Elder Frey replied.
"But in any case, congratulations on your marriage; it was a shame I couldn't make it," he finished as he opened the door wider, gesturing Draven inside.
Draven simply nodded and began walking inside the duplex. He found a chair in the living room and sat down comfortably, placing his hands on his laps. He looked at Elder Frey as he walked towards him, noticing how agile the old man was.
He still had a sprint to his steps. Draven wondered how he would be like in the past seventy. "Would you like some tea? Coffee or Water?" Elder Frey asked, but Draven respectfully declined.
It was his policy to not take things from people he didn't feel comfortable with, and Elder Frey was certainly not one of them. "I came here based on the invitation you told me about," Draven said sharply, setting the mood for the conversation.
With Elder Frey understanding what he meant, he walked into the living room and took a seat opposite Draven. "Yes, that was why I called you here, but it's much more than that," he began softly.
"You see, they want to settle things amicably between the two families," Elder Frey stated. Draven looked at him with renewed understanding; he knew what they were getting at, and they wanted to avoid it at all costs. He smiled to himself.
"What exactly do they want to settle?" Draven pushed the question even further; he needed to confirm his thoughts anyway, but he watched Elder Frey and his body language.
"I'm sure a know The Labrinths and their daughter had a little misunderstanding back then that led to her leaving." Elder Frey hesitated, unsure of how to deliver it to him.
"And now that she's become a prestigious Luna of a family pack, they want to be blood, to clear up the misunderstandings," he smiled at Draven.
"Misunderstandings you say." Draven scoffed lightly but nodded his head. "It's not in my pace to accept or reject the invitation.”
“The Rune company will come for the party, but I don't know about their daughter; she can't be forced." Draven said quietly; he knew what the implications of what he said were.
Quite simply, Draven wanted Elder Frey and the stones to understand that linking Hazel’s problems to the Rune company wasn't going to work.
They were trying to lessen their responsibility for what that did and use the company's relations as an ideal to keep things running smoothly so as to prevent any form of revenge from Hazel.
Draven sighed inwardly; he thought they were better than this. "But hopefully we'll be going to the ball, right? Like every other important company out there," Elder Frey asked, trying to get a definitive answer.
It made Draven wonder when Elder Frey had gotten this close with the Labrinths. "Like every other important company, we will also be there, but as for the Luna of my pack, I can give you no assurance," Draven said with finality.
With no more room for negotiation. Elder Frey understood that and nodded his head lightly. "Thank you for your understanding, Alpha Draven," Elder Frey said, looking a bit disappointed.
Draven hid a smile from tugging at his lips; he had missed this sort of thing that he did back when he was in full control of the company. Now that he had let his son manage it, things like this weren't of interest to him again.
"If that is all, I'll be going to Elder Frey." Draven said, standing up as he dusted his attire, "That is all Alpha; a shame you couldn't stay for some Chai Tea, but best of luck, Alpha Draven," Elder Frey said lightly as he bowed slightly.
Draven nodded in return and left the house. He walked back out the door, feeling the cold wind bite as it blew more directions than he bothered to count. He got into his car and breathed out feeling relieved.
He could finally go back to his Luna, spend some time together, and possibly make love. He noticed how happy he had become after accepting his feelings for Hazel.
He found himself smiling as he thought of her, and this time he chuckled slightly at the thought of a future with this woman.
\~~~~
There was something unreal about being a shadow that Noah couldn't explain into words, a kind of fear that gripped you. He had experienced it for the first time when he fell into a shadow.
He thought he was lost, never to be found again; he had been young before, really going, not yet a teenager; he had cried himself to sleep while lost in the complete darkness of the shadows, only for him to wake up hours later on the floor of his room.
It was a funny thought that came back to him once in a while, but right now, the one who was panicking beyond reason was Alice. He held her hand in the shadows; he could feel her grip tighten on his; he couldn't even let go if he tried.
From the shadows, Noah watched as three men pointed guns at the back of the van. They had expected to see us intruders and possibly kill us or imprison us, but all they could see at the back of the van were shadows, no people as they had expected.
"Where are they?!" The driver asked as though in surprise, "I was sure they were here, I promise you," he said defensively. The other men looked at him with doubtful expressions, then lowered their guns down.
"Just carry the food to the slaves; don't bring up any more stupid stories of you hearing whispers in the back of your van," one of the armed men said.
"If you do something like this again, I'll shoot your right foot." Another one finished as the three of them all left. Noah calmed himself down; it had been a close call, but they both escaped.
The driver began muttering in my fervent breath about how he was being maltreated; he carried about three bags of provisions in his hands and looked like he was about to take them somewhere.
Noah made a split decision and jumped into the driver's shadow, unknown to him. He could feel Alice panic, but he held her tightly. The driver walked from the van to a certain building; it was a duplex and looked somewhat abandoned.
The driver got into the building; by his left was a wooden door. He opened the door and walked down a flight of stairs. He took three flights of stairs. Before he reached the bottom, Noah could hear the voices of numerous people that were gathered in a place.
The driver opened the door into a dungeon. The first cell on his right were the three men he had sent to spy on the Labrinth family; they looked beaten and wounded but conscious and in chains.