Chapter 7

They arrived there in less than five hours, and Leon parked the car in the parking lot then stepped down afterwards. He pulled the door open for Penelope, and she got down.

       They entered the mansion and made their way to the living room, where they found Lucian seated with his legs crossed and the laptop he was using placed on his lap.

       "Sire!" They both bowed to him in respect, and Lucian averted his gaze from the laptop.

He raised his head to look at them and smiled.

       "Welcome, Penelope," he said, and a warm smile emerged on Penelope’s face.

       "It’s been a while, Supreme Alpha," she uttered, as she walked over to sit down on the couch opposite Lucian.

       "Yes, it has been a while. It appears Leon had you do the job." Lucian smiled as he spoke.

       "Indeed. Who is a better disguiser than me?"

       "Absolutely no one." He chuckled as he replied to her question. "So, what did you find out?" he inquired.

       Penelope stared at him and let out a long, deep breath. "Well, it's really hard to explain, but um, it seems that she has been physically abused," she answered.

       "What?" He was not sure if he had heard her right.

       "She has been physically abused. Heavily at that. I was able to go in with the doctor, and they were there to give her treatment. She looks like she’s about to die. Her whole body is filled with bruises, and if I am not mistaken, I believe she was whipped, kicked several times, and maybe more," she explained. Lucian and Leon stilled in disbelief. Their eyes fluttered, and Lucian, who couldn’t bring himself to believe it, gazed at Penelope, unsure of what to say.

       "Why? What did she do?" he inquired.

       "It was over the incident that occurred between you and her. I overheard the maids talking about it. Mr. Ferguson had whipped her that badly in rage, in addition to the kicks," she clarified. Lucian’s eyes flickered rapidly, and his hands balled into tight fists.

       "What the fuck?! Is it that big of a deal?" he questioned and Penelope nodded her head at him.

       "Yes, it is. Like he said to you, his reputation is at stake. But maybe his anger is not just about what happened, I noticed he has this sort of hatred in his eyes when she is mentioned. Maybe it’s something more. I don't know." She shrugged.

       "I see." Lucian nodded his head and stood up from the couch. "You can take the guest room on the second floor. You will feel much more comfortable there." He smiled at Penelope, but she shook her head at him.

       "No. I have to go home. I need to look after that little brat of a sister before she disappears again." She half smiled and stood up to her feet. She slightly bowed to Lucian and proceeded to leave, but having one more thing to say, she halted and turned around to look at him. "Sire, you rarely ever make wrong decisions about things, and I am sure it will be the same this time around." She beamed warmly at him.

       Lucian watched as she strolled out of the building and let out a soft breath. He shut his laptop close, and without uttering a word to Leon, he made his way to the elevator, which took him up to the third floor.

       He stepped out once the door was pushed open and proceeded toward his bedroom.

He stepped inside once he had opened it, and shut and locked it, then ambled towards the couch. He dropped his laptop on the sofa and strolled towards the huge window, which gives him a pretty view of the horizon, especially in the morning and at dawn. He stood there and stuffed his hands into the pocket of his pants, different thoughts immediately beginning to whirl in his mind.

       What should he do now? He pondered as he shut his eyes .

       Yeah, it’s not his fault or anything, but why is he feeling guilty? This was an accident! Something that occurred without each party being in their right mind, so why is one suffering and the other feeling extremely guilty? Should he really take responsibility for her? If he doesn't, will she continue to suffer?

       He shouldn’t really care since he doesn't even know her, but for some reason, he feels this sense of responsibility towards her. One part of him wants to ignore, while the other part wants him to act. "Gosh! How did I get into this mess?" He rubbed his face in complete stress and took a long, deep breath. "Well, I’ll wait until tomorrow. Then I'll see how I go about things." He agreed with himself and plopped down on the one-man sofa close to the window.

***

[3:59pm]

       "Hello, Father." A young, beautiful lady with blonde hair and blue eyes crossed her legs as she placed the phone close to her ear.

       “Selena, are you not coming back?” The male voice, which belonged to her father, asked over the phone.

       "Father, I told you that I would be back in two weeks. Why are you so worried?" The lady inquired.

       “Selena, king Lucian’s father is asking about you. They brought up the topic concerning your upcoming engagement with him, so please try and see if you can come back faster,” He explained to her, and a deep breath fled Selena's nose.

       "Don’t worry, Father. Lucian and I have spoken, and everything is fine, so you need not worry. Besides, I have to look good for my engagement too." She chuckled softly, and her father, who knew that whatever he was saying she was not taking into account, hung up the call. Selena brought the phone away from her ear and stood up on her feet.

She strolled towards the mirror in her room and stared at her gorgeous reflection.

       "I can't wait. Soon, I will be a king’s wife. The queen of the Lycans!" She laughed softly and admired herself.