7. “I knew you did come here”

Ava’s POV 

“What’s on your mind?” Lyra asked as she sat beside me and I shrugged.

We were currently in Alpha Alaric‘s quarters for our daily duties. It’s been three days since I walked in on beta Kieran in the archives room and ever since then I couldn’t get the name Seraphina out of my mind, it felt like I have heard it before but I couldn’t figure out wagered exactly.

“Earth to Ava” Lyra said as she waved her hands in front of me and I chuckled.

“Sorry I got distracted”

“What’s on your mind? Are you stil in pain from when madam Rhea punished you?” She asked worriedly and I shook my head as a sigh escaped my lips.

“Have you heard of the name Seraphina before?” I asked as I turned to face her.

“Seraphina? Who’s that?”

“That’s what I want to know too” I said as I layed down on the pavement.

“Where did you hear it from?” She asked as she looked at me questionly.

“At the archives room the other day, I met beta Kieran there and he was reading something and I caught that name” 

“Oh…..”

“Then we sneak back in to figure out what it was” Tina said as she walked up to us cutting Lyra off..

Smack!

“Are you crazy?” Elina said as she hit her on the arm.

“It’s not like the archives room is heavily guarded or anything, no one will know we are there. Ava went there and escaped punishment right”

“But she was lost not snooping around” Lyra said and Tina rolled her eyes as she looked towards me.

“What do you think Ava?” She asked with excitement written all over her face.

“I think you are crazy, we are servants remember?” I said to her but the thought remained in my head.

“It was just a suggestion, you the one with the name stuck in your head”

“It was just a suggestion” Elina mimicked Tina and Lyra laughed.

“I will get over it eventually” I said sitting up as I cracked my back.     

“I have to go now I still need to clean the Alpha’s study” I said standing up and Lyra nodded.

“I think he’s in there with Lord Lucian” Elina said and my chest tightened. Lord Lucian, something about him made me uneasy. The look he gave me the night of the dinner when he accidentally saw my tattoo still sends shivers down my spine.

“Should I wait?” 

“Nah, you are good to go they don’t mind” Tina said and I nodded.

I said bye to the girls as I walked towards the study, my hands gripping the brush tighter than necessary as I tried to even my breathing. I had no idea what was waiting for me behind the door and I honestly wasn’t ready for it.

I stood in front of Alpha Alaric’s study as I took in a deep breathe. 

“Good morning Alpha, I’m here for my cleaning duty” 

“Come in” a deep husky voice replied.

I opened the door to the study and sitting inside across Alpha Alaric was Lord Lucian, the one person I was trying to avoid. I lowered my head towards them as I walked towards the shelves and started cleaning.

“How have the warriors training been?” Alpha Alaric asked Lord Lucian and he shrugged.

“Zeron has been a pain in the ass but aside that it’s been good” he said back and Alpha Alaric nodded.

I tried my best to focus on my cleaning but I could feel Lord Lucian eyes drilling holes in the back of my head and it made me loose my focus as a thick book fell on the floor from the shelf. I immediately picked it up as I turned around and lowered my head towards them to apologize and Lord Lucian chuckled.

“You are one clumsy girl aren’t you?” He said as he locked eyes with me and I bit down on my lower lip.

“I’m sorry Lord Lucian it won’t happen again”

“What happened to you?” Alpha Alaric asked, as he drew my attention from Lord Lucian I looked back at him as I realized he was talking about my scars and I instinctively hid my arm behind my back.

“It’s nothing, I was punished for my mistake” I replied as I looked down. He opened his mouth to say something but ran his hand through his hair instead as he continued what he was doing.

“Well I will be going now brother” Lord Lucian said as he stood up, he looked towards me again with a smile on his face before he left, leaving only me and Alpha Alaric in the study.

The silence in the study grew thicker as I gulped hard, I stood in place as my fingers instinctively gripped the hem of my dress.

“You can continue your cleaning” he said without looking up from his desk and I nodded as I picked up the brush from the floor.

The sound of my heart beating grew louder in my ears as I focused my attention on the shelf. I wanted to turn around to look at him but the tension in the room wouldn’t let me, I heard him sigh from his desk as he pushed his chair out to stand up.

His footsteps grew closer, until he was standing directly behind me, his tall frame towering over me as he placed his hand on the shelf in front of me, trapping me in front of him. A deep breath escaped my lips as I tried to steady my breathing.

“What is going on between you and my brother?” He asked as his warm breath brushed against my neck, I slowly turned around as I stared into his striking brown eyes.

“There’s nothing going on, I just accidentally spilled wine on him during the dinner” I said as I tried to avoid his eyes. He moved backwards from me and a gasp escaped my lips.

“Was that where you got your scars from?” He asked and I nodded. He grabbed me by the arm as he examined my scars but my tattoo reacted to his touch and I let out a huge cry as he let go of me and I fell to the floor as I clutched my arms. He stared at his palm for a while as if he also noticed the reaction before looking at me again.

A scoff escaped his lips as he turned around and left the study, leaving me all alone on the floor.

~~~~~~

“Ava are you okay?” Elina asked as she rushed towards me.

“I’m…..I’m fine” I said as I rested on the room door.

“What happened to you” she said as she gestured to the swelling on my tattoo.

“It’s nothing” I said as I rolled my sleeve down and staggered into the room as I layed on Lyra’s bed.

“Are you sure?” She asked again and I snapped.

“I said I’M FINE” she got startled as she shifted backwards.

“I’m sorry Elina, I’m just tired”

“It’s okay” she said as she avoided looking at me.

“Can you be by yourself? I still have some duties to finish up with Lyra and Tina” she said and I nodded as I gave her a dismissing wave and she left.

I traced my hand along my tattoo as my thoughts drifted back to what happened in the study. Why did he corner me? Why did he ask about my scars? And most importantly, why did my tattoo react to him?

I raced through my thoughts as I tried to find answers regarding him and I slowly fell asleep.

When I opened my eyes again it was dark outside. Elina and Tina where already lying in their beds and I assumed Lyra was in mine as I tried to sit up. Elina probably told them about what happened so they won’t wake me up.

I stared into the darkness as Tina’s words came rushing back to my mind. 

‘We sneak in to figure out what it was’

Sneaking in? it’s already late at night, no one should be up by now right?. I layed back down as I tried to shrug the thought out of my mind but the name Seraphina kept circling back, who was that and why does her name feel so familiar.

I sat back up as I stared out the window, the clouds covering the moon as the courtyard remained quiet.

I took in a deep breath as I stood up from the bed, just one snoop. No one should be awake by now, I need to know who Seraphina is. I thought as I slowly creeped out of the room.

I walked towards the archives  on my tiptoes as I tried to hide my movements. My breathing felt like a whisper as I used the familiar environment to trace the room until I got there.

‘This is it Ava, there’s no turning back’ I whispered to myself as I slowly opened the door.

The moment I stepped into the room, the flip of the light switch turning on made my heart jump out my throat as I remained still facing the door.

Of course I was caught, what was I thinking sneaking in. Curse you Tina.

“I knew you did come here  Ava, earlier than I expected tho” a familiar voice said behind me and I gulped hard as I slowly turned to face him.

I’m in big trouble.