Seventeen

Caralyn blinked.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

She exhales in dissatisfaction before she turns her lowered eyes to the water gun in her hand.

“It was not me,” she said in a low voice, knowing there is no way she can prove her innocence now.

Alessio curls his lips. The way she looks at the moment amuses him greatly, and he’s trying hard not to laugh.

Caralyn hears the ruffle of fabric and seconds later, a cloth falls onto her lap. It’s Riccardo’s suit jacket. She slowly looks up at him with a questioning expression, wondering what she is to do with it.

“Wash it,” he says coldly before walking out of the kitchen.

Alessio and Enzo trail after him.

“I’m a princess!” Caralyn whisper-yell.

She flings away the suit jacket and makes a sarcastic face. “WaSH It,” she says with a deep voice, mocking Riccardo.

“Also,” Riccardo’s voice comes from above her.

She jumps in shock and hurriedly picks up the suit jacket lying on the floor. Then, she turns to face the counter, her fingers clamping onto the counter edge as she peeks her head out.

She looks up at Riccardo. “Yes, My Lord?”

She wonders if he heard her imitating him. The look he is giving her makes her realize there’s a high percentage chance that he did.

“Tomorrow evening. Come to my home office.”

He turns around and finally leaves.

Princess Caralyn stands up immediately, making sure that Riccardo has left.

She sighed in relief, biting her lower lip in regret. She was sure that if the Supreme Ultima didn’t hate her before, he probably does now. Not when he had caught her mocking him after flinging away his suit jacket.

Riccardo enters his home office with Alessio and Enzo. Alessio goes to drop Riccardo’s suitcase on the closest couch on his desk.

“Is Gabriel still not talking?” Riccardo asked.

“Yes. Should I just get rid of him? He’s taking up space without giving any reliable information,” Enzo said, chewing his gum nonchalantly.

Alessio’s head whips toward Enzo before he looks back at the Supreme Ultima. “We can’t do that! I promised him immunity before he gave us all he knew. I already told you beforehand that he does not know much; he just handles delivery.”

Riccardo is quiet for a few seconds before he faces Enzo. “Release him.”

Enzo looks reluctant for a few seconds before a subtle smile crosses his face. “Okay.”

He bows a little and turns to walk out of the office.

“With his complete digits, Enzo,” Alessio says firmly, and Enzo turns around with a displeased look on his face.

He looks at Riccardo, who gives him a subtle nod.

“Not even one can go missing?” he asks with hope shining in his eyes.

“Not even one,” Riccardo replies.

Enzo faces Alessio and sneers. “You’re so damn boring it makes me want to barf.”

Alessio gives him a cocky smirk, and Enzo’s jaw ticks before he finally leaves the room. Riccardo walks to his chair and sits down. His eyes move to Alessio, and he just stares.

Alessio already has an idea as to why.

He clears his throat and looks away. “If there is nothing else, then I will-”

“There is,” Riccardo interrupts him.

Alessio’s eyes move back to Riccardo.

“You said she left. Who did we see out there? Her twin sister?”

Alessio feigned confusion. “I don’t think Princess Caralyn has a twin sister.”

“Alessio!” Riccardo calls sharply with a stern face.

He bows sharply. “Pardon me, My Lord. Mateo must have given me the wrong information. I don’t have eyes back here in the house after all, I just believed what he said.”

A pause.

“I will go look for that mischievous brat right now,” he turns and starts walking to the door. “Mateo! Mateo!” he calls as he steps out of Riccardo’s office and shuts the door behind him.

Riccardo could hear the loud sound of him calling Mateo, until it faded away.

He exhaled. “Imbeciles.”

 

*

Princess Caralyn storms into the pool area with the Supreme Ultima’s suit jacket in her hand.

She looks around, but there is no sign of Mateo. That will be the second place she has been to, searching for him. She had gone to the dining room first, since it was the closest to the kitchen.

She is about to leave the pool area when a sudden pump of water hits her face, and she gasps in surprise, almost falling back as she startles. Giggles erupt from Chiara as Caralyn tries to dodge the water.

It finally stops. Caralyn wipes her face with her palms, her eyes landing on two figures: Liam, smiling from ear to ear, clearly finding the situation funny, and Chiara, holding the water gun, giggling with a victorious expression.

Caralyn drops her shoulders dramatically. “I lost.”

 Chiara cheered, giving Liam a high five. “We won!”

Caralyn laughs, shaking her head at the little girl.

“Has any of you seen Mateo?” she asks them.

Chiara’s face changes to surprise. “He abandoned you?”

Caralyn nods, not willing to cover up Mateo’s act.

“He often hides in his closet when he does something wrong. Have you checked his room?” Chiara excitedly snitches on Mateo.

“Closet?” Caralyn repeats, her eyebrows shooting up.

Chiara gives a series of nods, her pigtail bouncing as she looks up at Caralyn.

“Is he a kid?” Caralyn mumbles, finding the information surprising.

Liam chuckled lowly. “It’s just a habit of his he couldn’t get rid of.”

“Oh,” Caralyn muses.

“I will lead you to his room,” Chiara says, already pulling at Caralyn’s hand, and the princess eagerly follows.

Liam went with them too, anticipating how the scene would unfold.

The trio storms into Mateo’s room, only to find it empty. Caralyn’s eyes sweep around the large room. There are two built-in closets on different sides of the wall, both looking the same. Chiara taps Caralyn and points towards the closet on the left wall.

Caralyn smiles and walks towards the closet, swinging open the double doors without hesitation. Mateo was revealed, earphones in his ears, plugged to his laptop, currently playing a movie.

His mouth is on a transparent straw as he sips on a bottle of orange juice. He almost choked on the liquid when the door swung open abruptly.

His wide eyes are on Caralyn as he hastily removes his earphones.

Caralyn’s lips parted in both awe and surprise as her eyes moved all over the inside of the closet. It looked more like a little room than a closet. There is a mattress, a pillow, a folded blanket, and a bulb emitting yellow light.

The only thing that could make it non-conducive is a lack of ventilation.

She was really getting enticed by the settings until she snapped out of it and shook her head left to right twice.

Mateo releases a nervous chuckle. “Your Highn-”

“Traitor!” Caralyn speaks with narrowed eyes and motions for him to get out.

Mateo slowly climbs out. “Care for some orange juice?” he stretches out the orange juice toward her.

She ignores it and stretches out the jacket toward him in return.

“Oh my!” he exclaims dramatically as he takes the jacket. “You bought me a suit jacket?”

Caralyn releases an exasperated breath.

“It’s the Supreme Ultima’s jacket, the one you shot water at before abandoning me to take the blame,” she explains.

She cleared her throat, and her face turned serious. “‘Wash it,” she says, mimicking Riccardo’s voice and expression. “That’s what the Supreme Ultima said.”

Chiara and Liam burst into laughter.

Mateo turned his lips into his mouth, trying hard not to laugh.

“Are you finding this funny?” Caralyn questions Mateo. “I was embarrassed!”

“I am genuinely sorry, Your Highness. All my fault,” Mateo apologized. “I will go wash it immediately,” he says.

He takes large strides out of the room, snickering even before he steps over the threshold.

‘He definitely finds this funny', Caralyn’s Lycan concluded.

Caralyn nods in agreement.