Unraveling

Sinsa paced back and forth in the hallway. She gazed at the door, and her fingers were twitching from nerves. She stiffened when she heard a moan. A stunned realization formed on her face to what they were doing as she quickly backs away to give them privacy, waiting for Draven in the living room instead.

She watched the fireplace, observing the flames ignite and burn as the night passed, and a few minutes later, the werewolf emerged. She hadn’t expected him to look like he was fighting the urge to turn back and re-enter the room. At first, Sinsa didn’t understand why his face was filled with worry, his forehead creasing as he walked into the room with a stiff step.

“What is it? Is she alright? Will she be okay?”

“For now…” he muttered, walking to the couch and covering his eyes with a hand. It had been a long time since Sinsa saw him in human form, and it was a relief to see he wasn’t trapped in that decade-long curse anymore.

She couldn’t help but smile at the alpha’s clumsiness as he tried to adjust on the couch. She was unsure whether it was the erection she had or if he was still adjusting to being back in his human form. He leaned over, his brows still furrowed, and gazed into her eyes with a cracked voice, saying,

“I need to rest, and so should you.” Then, he rolled over again, finding the perfect spot.

“We have a perfectly good bed and—”

”No, I’ll be here,” he muttered back, knowing the living room was the closest to Myra’s room in case of an emergency, one that she immediately realized. Sinsa found her cue to leave as she headed back into her lab. She watched the gold blood intensify and the darkness once more.

A cold feeling crept against her skin; whatever Myra was, it was unprecedented and may be dangerous in the future and a impressing guilt built, but she shut it down. Instead, she spent her night reading. The fae hardly needed sleep like wolves and humans did, so she dug deep into every ancient book she had, but there was no avail to what Myra was.

By morning, she had combed through the whole shelf before she gave up and headed to the kitchen to situate herself with the routine she’d always known. She began to cook, this time preparing a big hearty meal meant for at least five people, but she imagined Draven would have a big appetite in his human form too.

Humming happily to herself as she plated the sausages, scrambled eggs, and bacon, ” What in the moon’s name got you high and humming this morning… Did you get a breakthrough?’ Draven hissed, walking in with dark eyes and bags.

”Not quite... I may have helped myself to what humans perceive as coffee, but now I feel too awake to think of anything else. But it seemed you enjoyed yourself last night, didn’t you, my prince?” Sinsa asked, and Draven passed from her words. Looking at Sinsa, he could tell she didn’t mean any harm, being just curious, but sometimes it was creepy.

“I helped her the best I could; it was …hard,” He continued.

Well, something was hard last night . She wanted to say.

“It’s been decades since I smelled a female wolf in heat, and I never recalled them to be so...distracting.” He rubbed his aching temples and took a glass of water to drink.

“And quit calling me prince, Sinsa; it’s been decades, and you still haven’t gotten comfortable enough with me?” He called as Sinsa blinked, her ears twitching, showing her confusion.

”But that’s who you are, the firstborn son of the Night Law Pack and the heir and alpha of your pack; it won’t change no matter what, prince.”

”Yes, but I was exiled, cast aside after my crimes.”

”You did nothing wrong; that was because of the Canix. They corrupted you, and now you are free. I still can’t explain how, because we have been searching for a cure for decades. It is a miracle that Myra is here.”

”Huh…my little miracle indeed,” he said slowly with a bite to the food; the savory meal elicited a contented frown from the alpha as he dug into the bacon. He hadn’t had a normal cooked meal in a while, especially since he’d been hunting as a full-fledged wolf, his mind corrupted by the Canix , and devoid of human thoughts or instincts.

He was a living, killing machine, exiled from society.

“So I mean that much to you, huh, your majesty?” Myra’s voice rose as she leaned on the doorway, catching Draven and Sinsa’s attention. Her body was draped with another shirt, one he may have dropped beside her last night, which now fit her like a gown, its hem reaching past her thigh, causing him to quickly look away.

The alpha let out an annoyed, gruff rumble from his throat as he stood, his eyes wandering to Myra before he left the room, leaving her perplexed about whether she had committed a crime. As she passed, she rolled her eyes, muttering in annoyance at his arrogance, and walked towards the counter where Sinsa waited with a smile on her face.

“What’s his deal?” she muttered quietly.

“Good day to you, Doctor Myra…” Sinsa said, presenting a full platter, and Myra was on the verge of tears when she tasted the sandwich; a groan of appreciation escaped her, causing Sinsa’s smile to broaden.

“Jesus, what can’t you do? Not only are you book smart, but you can also cook?” Myra muttered with another mouthful of her breakfast, knowing she would have burned the eggs in her situation.

“Thank you; as lesser shifters, we have limited skills and try to develop other skills to gain recognition as guardians.” “You’re a shifter? Like him?”

“Yes and no, I’m an ordinary bird shifter – a phoenix, to be specific – but I can only transform into a small bird, making it rather useless.”

“You’re not useless, Sinsa. Thank you for this and for your help.” Myra’s assurance brought a smile to the fae’s face as she ate her breakfast quietly, despite the wolf male lingering in the back of her mind.

This morning, she woke up feeling sore but satisfied, with memories flooding back and leaving her mortified. Myra had attempted to act nonchalant when she saw the male who had helped her the previous night, but it seemed to have only further provoked the alpha.

She remembers those dark, possessive eyes that seemed to stare deep into her soul, as if he wanted to consume her entirely, or was that just her imagination? She groans in frustration.

And now She couldn’t help but feel mortified, and she insisted that the thought of him shaming her for having no control, or maybe the food, made her feel queasy.

“I swear I wasn’t as full as this three days ago after ransacking my fridge,” Myra muttered as Sinsa laughed. “That’s because I added shifter spices and ingredients to human food, if you don’t mind, which makes it more filling.”

“The meal was delicious, thank you,” she called again as she left the kitchen. “I would be at the end of the hallway; I have something to discuss with the prince—Draven,” she corrected, and Myra nodded as she walked down another hallway. At first, Myra thought the house was just a small cabin from the outside, but it turned out to be enchanted.

As she walked down the hallway, touring the house alone, she noticed the walls were scarred with scratch marks left by Draven. She had no idea that a world of shifters, fae, and magic existed, unknown to her and the rest of the world.

Her skeptical side tried to attribute it to her madness, but it was too convincing to dismiss, especially with her reflection still showing that bright metallic silver. She still had no idea how to calm the turmoil in her dark grey eyes. Unnoticed by her, she had approached the study, where she overheard Sinsa and Draven discussing her.

“Yeah, after all these long decades, I get to return home to the shifter’s realm as a sane prince, but I have to keep it a secret that she was bitten until I find a cure for Myra,” he said quietly, and Myra bit her lip at his words.

He was right; it was his fault, and he didn’t deny it. However, she was desperate to get her hands on the cure, and she was willing to follow him to the depths of another world to achieve it.

She opened the door, causing both their heads to turn before she declared her next words, shocking them both.

"I’m coming with you"’