321- Konrad
POV Viktor Averwyn:
“Problems?”
“At the gate down below.”
“Attack?”
“Not yet.” He seemed unsure whether to speak there, and I urged him:
“Say it.”
I expected news of Konrad, wanting to enter accompanied by other alphas or under orders from the Elders. I was surprised:
“A group of Romani gypsies. They’re asking to speak with you.”
That was enough for Seraphine to break her silence, jumping to her feet with a look of panic. She gasped, staring at me, her mouth parted as she struggled to breathe.
I didn’t react.
“Did they make any threats?”
“Some have daggers, a bit more demanding.”
I growled, furious at their audacity. She jumped aside at the sound of my beast, distressed and terrified.
They had never even come near our forests before. They were nothing but ants, irritating. I told Cezar:
“If they make any aggressive move, kill them all.”
“No!” Seraphine screamed, her desperation breaking through her fear. Tears spilled from her eyes. “They are my people! They want to save me!”
I tossed the linen napkin onto the table, impassive. Daciana went to her, trying to comfort her, glaring at me. Adelina stood as well.
I ignored her, leaving with Cezar. She bravely ran after me, crying, pleading:
“Please, don’t do anything! I beg you! Don’t kill them!”
I kept walking, crossing the rooms. Her hurried steps behind me, followed by the other two trying to hold her back. When she saw I ignored her, her screams became sharper, more unrestrained:
“You monster! Bastard! Isn’t it enough that you killed Zuleica, Istvan, and Vladimir? That you killed my aunt and all the other women? You have no soul!”
“Calm down, child, calm down!” Daciana tried to soothe her.
The commotion was left behind. The guards closed the door behind me, and her insults were muffled.
“You made quite an impression on her,” Cezar commented.
“Everyone thinks what they want. I won’t waste my time explaining myself. How many gypsies are there?”
“About twelve or fifteen. We were going to drive them away, but the one who seemed to be the leader insisted a lot on speaking with you.”
“You did right to inform me. Let’s go.”
“I sent reinforcements down.”
I nodded. We crossed the village and exited through the main gate. We ran quickly along the road, down the long winding path cutting through the forest. Every part of it had cameras and traps, but I would only use them in case of serious threat.
On the descent, at the heavily armed guard post, more of my guards stood ready. Outside, the group in their colorful clothes, their fear reaching me even as they tried to show strength. I admired their courage.
They all fell silent when they saw me. I quickly identified the leader, one of those at the front of the group who stepped forward, without coming too close. His teeth were gold as he spoke solemnly:
“I am Vasile Vance. The Baro of our clan. I came with my people to ask that you return Seraphine Valerian. She is the daughter of the late Zorvan Valerian, our friend, who has not yet even rested in peace.”
“No.” That was my dry answer.
They stirred, some gathering together, letting out exclamations.
Vasile gave off a scent of terror but held firm, eyes on mine.
I observed them more closely. I understood their side, but I was curious.
“You’ve never come here before. Why now?”
“She is important. We promised our Shuvano we would protect her.”
“From me?”
“He believed you would return and take his daughter. That’s why he sent her away for years.”
I frowned, fully attentive, my mind working. It was getting stranger by the second.
“Explain better.”
The man glanced at the guards behind me and those armed at the post. The air was static, tense. When he looked at me again, memories returned:
“Twenty-two years ago, when his wife was pregnant, Zorvan had a vision of a black wolf in our village. He saw his daughter as an adult beside the animal, with a lot of blood on the ground, around the bonfire. After the vision ended, a real wolf came out of the forest and stared at him. It was a warning. So he sent Alba to Germany, and Seraphine was raised there.”
I didn’t move. Fire, blood, bonfire.
That same night, I ran transformed to that place and stared at the man through the window. What the hell was that? I had woken from a nightmare with my mother, urging me to save my destined one. I didn’t think, I acted on instinct. And the gypsy saw me as a threat.
It was all very strange. And a fleeting thought struck me: what if it was all the same thing? To protect her? Maybe, if she hadn’t lived far away, she would already be dead. Like the others before her.
“I know one cannot escape fate,” Vasile continued. “But we promised to take care of Seraphine. We guarantee she will return to Germany if you give her back.”
I analyzed all of that. The men with him shifted, most without the courage to face me. Others with hatred.
“How did you know where my territory was?”
Vasile looked away.
“Everyone knows you are in this part of the Tharnak.”
“There are five alpha villages. Mine is the farthest, hard to access. Someone told you. Was it Konrad?”
He blinked, shaking his head no. Trying to hide it.
Rage wrapped around me.
“You joined him, against me?”
“We don’t want war. We were willing to search for Seraphine. The other one just appeared and… told us where to go. We came on our own.”
“Get out of here,” I growled low.
“We’re not leaving!” one of the villagers shouted angrily.
I roared so loudly the leaves nearby shook. My eyes burned gold, my fangs emerged, claws extending.
Screams echoed, many of them backing away, falling, stumbling over each other. Vasile stood frozen, eyes nearly popping out. Two jumped in front of him to defend him, holding silver daggers, trembling.
I used my fear pheromone, striking them like that, until the weapons fell to the ground and they dropped to their knees, screaming.
“Please!” the leader begged, trying to help them up. “We came in peace!”
Two guards fired into the air, scaring off the birds. Cezar and Boris leapt to my side, half-transformed. When they advanced on the gypsies, the men bolted into the forest, screaming in desperation. The wolves still chased them, without hurting anyone. Scaring them to death until they vanished from sight.
My anger was still not satisfied, while I felt the urge to kill Konrad. Exposing us like that, without the courage to attack me, hiding behind weak humans who would never be a match for me. He knew it.
No one was left there. I retracted claws and fangs as Cezar and Boris returned. The first one grinned.
“There was one who even shit himself. Fell down and saw me over him. I told him next time I’d eat his flesh and pick my fangs with his bones.”
“I think they’ll never set foot here again.” Boris headed toward the gate.
I focused on the dense forest, an instinct freezing me in place, sharpening my senses. The smell came first. Before anything else, I armed myself with claws sharper than before, warning:
“It’s an attack. Get ready.”