Chapter 78 A slap I didn’t expect
ANGELICA'S POV
“Haha, you should've seen his face. He looked like he would piss his pants.”
“It was really epic.”
I fluttered my eyes open when I heard some commotion from downstairs.
The thought of telling the alphas, my mates, my future husbands, about what I learned in my training session about the sacred tree and how Alchemist gave me a task to burn a mere leaf really filled me with excitement.
As supernatural beings, maybe they would tell me a trick or two.
With that thought in mind, I rushed downstairs excitedly.
“Hey,” I said, my gaze flickering between the three of them.
Felicia looked at me briefly, then smiled and looked away. Something about her smile gave me an off feeling, like it was meant to be mocking.
But why would she mock me? I shook the thought out of my head and looked at the alpha brothers.
“Hey,” Ericson nodded at me, his hazel eyes that used to look at me lovingly for hours moving away quickly.
I smiled at him and walked forward.
“How was your day?” I asked, striking up the conversation.
When they just looked at each other, probably thinking I would understand the werewolf things, I smiled awkwardly.
I know it was a little hard for them to mingle with my human nature, especially when their sister was back. They didn't want to say or do anything that would make me look lacking or humiliate me, and my heart warmed at their thoughtfulness.
Thus, it was better if I started first. “I had a training session today. I met the Alchemist who took me to a sacred tree. It says that it has the powers of our ancestors. He asked me to burn a leaf, but it was so hard and—” I started.
“Mi vida, let's talk later. We have an important meeting in ten minutes, and we don't want you to feel that we are not listening to you.” Dylan walked to me before he placed his lips against my temple.
Ericson smiled and did the same before they left without even hearing my reply.
“He even gave me a leaf for the test, and I was wondering if you could help me a little,” I murmured the last part to myself.
The sudden emptiness in my heart increased, and I hugged myself, looking at their back as they left for the room that was ours earlier.
Maybe they were just really busy.
I walked to the kitchen and saw a cook preparing the meal.
She smiled at me in acknowledgement, and I nodded.
“Is there anything in particular you would like to eat?” She asked, and I shook my head in denial, not in the mood to eat anything, let alone anything particular.
I waited for them to end their meeting and meet me.
When the clock struck eleven, I stood and walked to their room to talk, only to find out they had left for the border patrol.
My heart ached, disappointment filling it. I really wanted to talk to them, not just about this trick.
“Do you need anything?” Felicia's sharp voice came from the balcony, and I shook my head.
I could use this chance to get to know her better. I nodded at myself and was about to ask if I could enter when she spoke.
“I like to stay alone and think.” Her words clearly indicated she wanted me gone, and I smiled bitterly before closing the door.
It was a weird feeling. It felt like it had been ages since I saw the alpha brothers, let alone talked to them.
I missed them, their love, their care, their goofiness, and how they would fight each other for my attention.
With a tired sigh, I walked to the room and started practicing to burn the leaf, but it didn't work no matter how many times I told it to.
It's not going to be that easy. You really need a strong sense of emotions and determination for it. My inner voice, which has also gotten quiet recently, said.
I looked at the leaf that, unlike other leaves, wasn't wilting before placing it on the nightstand.
The next day, I tried to talk to the alphas again, but they left with Felicia before I was awake.
By the time I returned after the training, they were gone again for the night patrol.
This time, even Felicia was gone.
The silence in the empty house that used to be a home, with their presence and laughter, started to gnaw at me from within, and my thoughts were turning negative against my will.
Was there something that I did? Something that they didn't like and were punishing me for that? These days, it seemed more like they were ignoring me deliberately.
A strange sense of loneliness started to grip my heart, and no matter how many times I coaxed myself that it was just me overthinking things, it wouldn't leave.
Day after day, the schedule remained the same. It almost felt like they were never at the pack house whenever I was there.
After a few days, I couldn't take it anymore and decided to ditch the training so I could stay home all day and see when they would return.
I watched videos online and cooked their favorite meals, along with a dessert for everyone, especially for Felicia, to apologize for whatever I had done to make them angry.
Just like I had expected, they returned at around ten in the morning, just an hour after I had left.
“You are at home today?” Dylan said casually before he looked towards the kitchen and arched his brows, his lips stretching into a soft smile that I had missed so much.
Warmth spread through my chest immediately, and I walked to him.
“I figured we haven't gotten much time together these days. So I decided to stay back and cook for you guys,” I whispered shyly.
The man chuckled at my words before he bent and kissed the corner of my lips.
“That was very thoughtful of you, mi amore. I'll freshen up and return quickly,” Dylan said.
“It smells like mouthwatering,” Ericson entered next, and I told him the same, to which he nodded, but his hazel eyes didn't remain focused on me for long.
They moved to Felicia, and I tried my best to keep the disappointment off my face.
“Thanks,” Ericson said after a long pause before he went to the bathroom on the ground floor to wash his hands.
“I didn't expect you to be here. And cook,” Felicia said. I sensed a little contempt in her tone, and this time I was sure I didn't mishear it.
This bitch. She is deliberately taking your mates away from you. My inner voice said as if she could sense my thoughts, and I nodded.
“Why are you doing this?” I asked Felicia.
“Doing what?” Felicia asked innocently before she walked inside the kitchen and grabbed the dessert bowl.
She raised the bowl in the air, and my eyes widened when I realised what she was about to do.
“Felicia!” I raised my voice and rushed towards her, snatching the bowl from her hand.
“Ah! It hurts!” Felicia cried out in pain as she fell backwards on her butt, hitting her head on the side of the slab.
The smell of blood spread in the kitchen, and I looked at the scene in horror. I didn't even know she was holding a knife that dug deeper into her skin when she fell, cutting her skin.
“Felicia!” Ericson and Dylan rushed towards the kitchen.
They looked at Felicia on the ground, bleeding, and then looked at me with wide eyes.
“Please don't say anything to Angelica, you two. I just wanted a little taste of the dessert, but she wanted you guys to taste it first. I understand her emotions. She didn't mean to push me,” Felicia said as if trying to vouch for me, but it wasn't what happened.
Though she appeared innocent, the way she said those words sounded like she was protecting me even when I was wrong.
But I wasn't wrong. I did nothing.
I shook my head and turned to Ericson and Dylan to explain, but before I could even open my mouth, Ericson did something I never thought he would.
He raised his hand and slapped me hard across the face.
He didn't hold back on his alpha's strength, and my body jerked to the side, the side of my head hitting the slab.
“Ericson, what the hell?!” Dylan asked.
Tears welled in my eyes as I tasted the familiar metallic liquid in my mouth.
Something hot rolled down the side of my neck, and I realized I was bleeding.
My lips trembled at the impact, pain shooting across my entire body as the realization of what had happened dawned upon me.
“How can you be so vicious?!” Ericson shouted, and I looked up, tears rolling down my cheeks, his hazel eyes dark with anger and hatred, shattering my heart completely.