Chapter 145 The Real World

Chapter 145 The Real World
LORCAN

All three of us end up being stuck in one single room, so it’s safe to assume that things don’t go according to plan, especially when Finnegan starts acting like he’s super concerned about Lyria. 

“We shouldn’t have let her leave with him!” he tells his sister for the hundredth time. “We don’t even know if we can trust him! It was a terrible fucking idea and I regret this whole thing!”

He’s been talking and complaining for half an hour straight now, so I’m sick and tired of hearing the sound of his voice. 

“You trusted the guy enough to bring us all here, and now you’re complaining about her being alone with him? You’re so full of shit.”

Zorah raises her hand to grab his arm, but he snatches it right out of her grip and starts walking toward me, aggression emanating from him. 

“Yeah, but I was going to stick to her side the whole time! I don’t think you understand that. I just wanted to protect her and keep her safe.”

His accusatory tone doesn’t slip my notice. Standing up and facing him, I ask, “And who isn’t protecting her? Me?”

“You know damn right that you’re not protecting her,” he spits. “You just let that asshole walk away with her. Do you even care?”

My hands ball into fists, and before I can talk myself out of it, I punch him on the jaw. Finnegan staggers, then rushes toward me again, brows furrowed. 

Behind us, his sister screams for us to stop, but I can’t contain my anger, not anymore. Not after all the shit he put all of us through.

“You’re never going to be qualified to say anything about her safety!” I growl as I manage to pin him on the floor and throw another punch at his face. “You tried to kill her once, remember? Do you think anyone is going to ever forget that? Do you!?”

“Enough!” Zorah tells before shifting and running straight into me to knock me over. Pain explodes in my side, and I shoot her a glare. 

She bares her teeth at me threateningly while her brother tries to get back on his feet again. I’m so sick and fucking tired of them both. 

“If you were Lyria’s friend, you wouldn’t be defending him the way you are. You think the asshole changed? He doesn’t even deserve a second chance. You and I were going to be abandoned in a country that’s falling apart, remember? Because he wanted to be here with Lyria without anyone getting in the way.”

I see something flash across her eyes, but it’s not enough for her to stand down. Fair enough. I’m not going to argue with her about anything.

If she wants to stay by her shit brother’s side, it’s none of my business. 

I pace the floor of the bedroom while Finnegan rubs his jaw and shoots me venomous looks. Lyria is taking longer than I expected, and against my wishes, I start getting worried, but then the door opens and the guy who brought us here looks right at me and says, “Come with me, boy.”

Boy. For some reason, that pisses me off, but I’m in no position to feel entitled. I’ve lost all my privileges the second I chose this life, and in truth? I guess it just never mattered as much. 

I follow him outside, not looking back once. As soon as the door is closed behind us, he tells me, “Mr. Swanson wanted me to have a few words with you. He says he thinks you’re the only one his daughter can trust.”

“That’s right,” I agree. “I wouldn’t trust any of the Ziccos. What does he want?”

“His daughter’s journey is far from over,” he claims. “There is someplace where she just goes. Where she is needed. You will have to go with her. It won’t be easy, but it will have to be done.”

“You can’t tell me where this place is?”

The guy gives me a measured look as we continue walking down the long hallway, clasps his hands behind his back, then tells me, “It’s a complicated matter, especially for a werewolf like you. I’m not sure if you’d understand.”

Concern courses through me, but I tell him, “Try me.”

Clearing his throat, he finally says after several beats, “There is a reason why Mr. Swanson rushed to get his daughter out of the werewolf world. A lot is happening there at the moment, and her blood would put her life in danger.”

“I know a little bit about that.”

“Do you?” he asks doubtfully as he gives me a sideways glance. “I don’t think you do. Not the full story, anyway.”

“What’s the full story?”

“The disease that’s spreading through the Republic of Eron is being done by its own leaders,” he claims, which does come as a shock to me. I won’t lie. “There are some who want to take over the Alpha Council, and what other way would there be to do that than by wiping everyone out and rewriting history?”

My brows stitch together as we head down the stairs. “You’re fucking kidding me.”

“I wish I were,” he states in all seriousness. “It’s nothing but a civil war. Someone found the wrong vials and decided to go around spreading this illness. They, of course, have a few vials of the antidote which would prevent a full infection. Once a werewolf is fully infected with the bacteria, there’s no coming back from it. From there, it’s only death. Did you know it takes the Creatures of the Dead a total of eighteen days to live? Afterward, they drop dead, get all bloated, and they’re done for. But of course, until then, they likely caused a lot of damage.”

I start putting the pieces together in my mind. My father wouldn’t have disputed his own throne, for crying out loud. So, that can only mean Morian is the one who started all this. 

Yeah, it makes a lot of fucking sense. 

“Is that why he kept her with him all these years?” I ask carefully, wondering if he’ll even understand what I’m asking him. 

He smirks. “Very good. You’re not as dumb as I thought you’d be, being the son of an Alpha Leader and all. What I mean is people who have led privileged lives can rarely think for themselves.”

I let out a sigh and pinch the bridge of my nose. “Wait, if Morian is the one who organized all this, then why would he send her here?”

“Your father knows her blood has the cure. He would naturally want to use her, and that was always the plan, but there are people in Eron who support Morian and want your father out. They want a brand new Eron, one that ties it to the human world and to the dragons.”

“The what?” I ask, stopping to face him. 

He laughs at my confusion. “Welcome to the real world, boy.”