Chapter 198: The green-eyed man

Chapter 198: The green-eyed man
Meredith's POV

"Who then is my father?" Vida's voice didn't leave my head, even after she stopped speaking. I could still hear the words; I couldn't just forget about the question. Even as I managed to tell her that we will find her father, if that would make her happy but deep down I felt uneasy.

She didn't say anything else, she just cried while I ran soothing circles on her back. When she eventually fell asleep again, I grabbed my phone and walked out of the room into the living room. I was exhausted as well but sleep refused to come

So I sat at the table of the bar in the living room, grabbing a bottle of alcohol and filled a glass while I stared into it like it might somehow give me answer but it didn't, I took a slow sip letting the burn settled in my throat yet again, alcohol didn't help, because somehow the word of Veronica, Vida's mother words hit me. "Green eyes!" I muttered under my breath, my grip tightened slightly around the glass, "and a butterfly tattoo," my jaw clenched, and I shook my head, because I couldn't forget those green eyes. I had seen it somewhere, but as much as I wanted to, I assumed it was a coincidence. Ruin, my wolf, kept pushing the face of that man into my head. I leaned back slightly, dragging a hand down my face, "How could I forget!" I whisper hoarsely, those eyes, that man, he hadn't just passed through my life unnoticed, he had stayed, lingered, haunted for weeks. I could still see him clearly in my mind, the sharp green eyes, cold, calculated, and dangerous. The kind of eyes that made you feel like prey without even knowing the reason. And that tattoo, should I even call it a tattoo, it hadn't been something you couldn't ignore. A butterfly inked low on his abdomen, I had seen it just once accidentally. My chest tightened, if Vida had it, they would call it a birthmark, not a tattoo, and it must have run in their family. "This can't be...," I muttered, shaking my head slightly, but the more I tried to push it away, the clearer it became, the piece fit too perfectly that I couldn't ignore it. "damn it!" I exhaled sharply, setting the glass down harder than I intended the sound echoed in the quiet living room.

"Meredith?" I flinched while my head snapped up, only for me to see Logan. He stood at the stairway watching me with a mixture of confusion and concern.

"How long have you been there?" I asked, my voice rough.

He stepped in slowly, "long enough to know something is wrong." He pulled out the car beside me and sat down while grabbing a glass as well. "Are you okay?"

I let out a humorless chuckle, "Do I look okay?" He didn't answer immediately, which was a clear answer to Logan's questions. I leaned forward slightly, resting my elbows on the table, my hands clasped together, "I don't want to lose her."

The words came out before I could stop them, Logan frowned slightly, "lose her?" He shifted closer, "You know Vida, she is strong," his voice softened, "she will get through this, it's just grief, give her time, and she will go back to normal."

My jaw tightened, "I'm not talking about that," the growl slipped out before I could stop it, low, sharp, and dangerous. Logan froze slightly, clearly caught off guard, silence stretched between us for a second then I said it, "We watched the video,"

"Meredith, what were you thinking letting her watch that this night?" He reprimanded me.

"I didn't want to." I hissed, "But she wanted to. What can I do to stop her, to stop the green-eyed man?"

I blurted out, his brows furrowed, "What?"

"Yes, the green-eyed man with the butterfly tattoo."

That got his attention, his entire Expression changed slowly, and carefully, he stared at me like he could get the answer from just staring at me, "Meredith," he called cautiously, I lifted my head slowly, meeting his gaze, and I saw the shock on his face, the moment it clicked for him, "No!" He breathed. I didn't say anything. I didn't need to because the truth was already sitting between us, heavy and unavoidable. "You are not saying, he is..." His voice was quiet, but firm, and certain. He leaned back slightly, running a hand through his hair, "How could you be sure? There are so many people with green eyes?"

A bitter laugh left my lips, "How could I not be sure?" I looked away briefly, my mind flashing back again, to the one time we had encounter, "those eyes," I said, "I couldn't forget them even if I tried" my fingers curled slightly against the table, "they follow me, in my thoughts, in my instincts, that even if I tell myself it's a mere coincidence, it still didn't feel right." Logan stayed silent, listening, "and that tattoo..." I continued, "I noticed it the first time I saw Vida," I swallowed, "and now..." I shook my head slowly, "It all makes sense while the tattoo felt familiar."

Logan let out a slow breath, "You think he is Vida's father?" He asked like he was still doubting it. I nodded slightly at him, "Are you going to tell her?" He asked after a moment, and the question hit harder than I expected.

I froze, because the answer wasn't simple. Fine, I wanted Vida to find her family just like Luna Akira found hers, but I know finding her father might lead to two things: either I lose her again, or she stays with me, but the former is scarier if the man I think is her father turns out to be her father. I know he would want to take Vida away from me, he doesn't like werewolves. I leaned back in my chair, staring up at the ceiling. Vida's face flashed in my mind, her tears, her voice, the words echoed again in my head, "Who is my father?" My chest tightened painfully, if I told her everything would change, the man I was thinking of wasn't just some common man in the street; he wasn't just a lost piece of her past but one significant, a walking danger, the kind that didn't just create fear in your head, but made you feel it. He is powerful. My jaw clenched, "I..." I started, but I couldn't find the right words. I didn't want to lie to her, but I don't think I could tell her the truth. I closed my eyes briefly, then slowly I shook my head, "I don't know," I admitted, but I was honest because I really didn't know.

Logan studied me carefully, "You will have to decide soon," he said quietly, "and remember no secrets."

"I know." And that was the problem, because time wasn't something we had, not with a man like him. Silence settled again, and I thought and felt uncomfortable until a guard stepped in, his posture straight, his expression serious. Both of us turned towards the door.

"Alpha Logan and beta Meredith!"" He addresses both of us, "there is a visitor."

Logan frowned slightly, "At this hour?"

The guard hesitated, then added, "he insists it's important." Something in his tone made my instincts sharpen immediately. "He said he needed to speak to Beta Meredith urgently," the guard added.

"Me?" I pointed at my chest, and the guard nodded respectfully.

My brows furrowed, Logan glanced at me briefly before looking back at the guard, "Did he give a name?"

The guard nodded, and for a second, something in the air shifted even when the guard hadn't said anything, "Yes, Alpha!" The guard said, my chest tightened, "he said his name is Prince Vladimir." I didn't even realize I had stood up until my chair scraped loudly against the floor, because deep down I knew this was the moment that Vida's future with me would be decided.

"Let him in!"