Chapter 3

"Wait, are you suspecting that I pushed my sister off this cliff?" Henry scoffed.

"Veronica is missing because of you, Jason. You made a public disgrace of my sister and my family, yet you have the guts to get mad?" Henry's eyes widened as he made the last statement.

"My sister is missing and probably dead because of you and I hope you live with the guilt for the rest of your life, Jason!" Tears were brimming at the corners of his eyes.

I was torn between anger and confusion.

A few seconds ago, Henry was acting like a psychopath who killed his sister. Now he's playing the victim role and accusing me of killing his sister. I badly wanted to land this motherfucker a blow on the face but I knew that would incite even more trouble for me.

The pack members already see me as the heartless alpha who led his mate to her death and I don't want any more stares and accusing fingers. Slowly, I let go of Henry's collar regardless of the sinister feeling I had about him. I can't do anything to him, all I just needed is evidence to prove that it was Henry who killed his sister.

Exhausted, I walked to my car but as I turned my back to look at Henry, I couldn't find a trace of him. I ran back to the cliff but he wasn't there anymore.

And for the first time in my life, I was scared.

*****

Tyler's POV:

I jolted upright in my bed, my heart racing as if I had just sprinted a mile. I gasped for breath, trying to shake off the remnants of the dream that had just plagued me. The nightmares were becoming frequent, but this time they felt so real.

In my dream, I had seen a girl lying on a deserted seashore, surrounded by nothing but sand and the vast ocean. She was asleep as though in a coma, and her breathing was shallow and labored. It was a horrifying sight, one that made me feel helpless and desperate.

I looked around my room, trying to get my bearings. It was still dark outside, and the moon was high in the sky, casting an eerie glow through the window. I shivered, feeling a sudden chill that seemed to seep into my bones.

I got out of bed, feeling the cold floor beneath my feet, and paced around the room, trying to make sense of what had just happened. Was it just a nightmare, or was it a premonition of some kind?

The wooden floor creaked softly as I walked towards the door. Turning the knob, I flung the door wide open and walked down the hallway, in the direction of my study room. I stopped in the middle of my track when I heard a familiar voice call out my name.

"Tyler", the soft feminine voice, belonged to my wife, the Queen.

I turned around to face her. The hallway was dimly lit but I could make out her smallish, petite features as she leaned on the door frame. My wife, Malia, seemed to get even more beautiful as she aged. We've been married for nineteen years— after my first love, Rhoda died.

"Is it a nightmare again?" She asked softly. Her voice was calm like the waters.

I walked towards her, shifting some strands of hair from her face and cupping her face in my palm. "Why don't you go back to bed? I'll be fine" I said in a whisper.

"You still see her in your dreams" she blinked as I ran my index finger up and down her face.

"Yeah, it was lucid this time and I feel like she's near. I just can't wrap my head around it." I stared into the depth of her eyes.

"It's just a dream. I guess you're stressed and need more rest" Malia whispered, leaning in and nibbling on my lower lips with her soft tongue, she parted my lips open and took my tongue into hers. She tasted like caramel and I couldn't help but drown in the ecstatic moment. Slowly, I shut my eyes close, the pleasure was inexplicable but almost immediately after I shut my eyes, I saw flashes of her image in my head.

It was the girl from my dreams. I could recall her face as though I have seen her before and to make matters worse, I could feel her presence so close, her scent so strong as if she was just miles away. I am the Lycan King and my sense of hearing and smell is stronger than that of a normal werewolf.

Impulsively, I tore my lips away from Malia's. She had a bewildered look on her face. "Tyler, what's wrong? Did I do anything that pissed you off?" Malia said in a hushed tone, backing away from me to get a full glimpse of my face as the moonlight cast a silvery sheen on my face.

"No, you did nothing wrong" I wrapped my hands around her waist in a reassuring manner.

"I just need to find her. I can feel her presence and her scent is so strong. I can't shake off the feeling that she's my missing daughter" my voice filled with emotions as I searched for answers in Malia's eyes.

"Tyler, are you even listening to yourself?" Malia scoffed as though pissed off. "You think some strange girl you see in your dreams is your daughter, Veronica? Is it that hard for you to move on? It's been over eighteen years since Veronica disappeared"

"Why would she reappear now all of a sudden? Or are you still holding onto the memories of your dead concubine, Rhoda?" She added.

At the mention of Rhoda's name, I began to palpitate. Rhoda despite being a normal human was my first love but I was blinded by my quest for power and when I was forced to choose between the throne and love, I went for the former. Unknown to me, Rhoda was pregnant with our baby. When news got to me that Rhoda died during childbirth, I was torn between regret and grief. I brought the baby into the palace and named her Veronica but a few days after Veronica's naming ceremony, she mysteriously disappeared from the palace.

I ordered everyone to search for her high and low but no one could find her. I mourned the demise of both my first love and my child. And with time, I got over the loss and moved on with my life. I still suffered from nightmares every night because I kept on seeing Veronica lying on the shore. Every night, I'd wake up, sweating and panting heavily courtesy of the nightmares but tonight was different. It felt real, and my subconscious mind keeps telling me that my daughter, Veronica, might be somewhere close.

"Honey, why don't you go back to sleep? It'll soon be dawn and I don't want to see you stressed out tomorrow" I said, quickly brushing off the gut-wrenching questions that Malia just asked.

I could see Malia frown, her eyebrows furrowed. She looked glum all of a sudden.

"I hope you find her," she said, turning around and began heading back inside the room.

I stood in the hallway, confused about what action to take next. Then I decided to go in search of the girl in my dreams. I really hope she turns out to be my missing daughter.

As I rose from my slumber, the weight of the day ahead seemed to press down on me like a heavy blanket. The sun had yet to rise, casting the room in a dim, pre-dawn light, but my mind was already racing with the thoughts of the long journey ahead.

I knew that finding Veronica would be no easy task. It had been years since I had last seen her, and the trail had long since gone cold. But after the dream I had last, I was convinced that she is closer to me now than ever before, and so I rose to my feet and made my way to the closet.

I reached for my favorite leather jacket, the one that had seen me through countless battles and years of ruling my pack as their king. It was a comfort to wear, a reminder of my strength and my power.

Next, I pulled on a pair of sturdy jeans and laced up my boots, each step a reminder of the determination burning in my chest. This was not just any journey - this was a quest to reunite with my lost daughter, to finally bring her home.

As I made my way out to the car, the first rays of sunlight began to peek over the horizon. The air was crisp and cool, a refreshing reminder of the beauty of the world around me. I climbed into the driver's seat, the leather creaking beneath my weight.

With a roar of the engine, I pulled out onto the road, my eyes fixed firmly in the distance. The journey ahead was long and perilous, but I knew that I was ready.