Chapter 7

The silk dress swept the cobbled pavements, as the damp air of the night had me shivering. My heart thumped loudly in my chest like it was about to implode, and I gripped the hem of my skirt while I ran from the forest. The man disappeared in plain sight. He didn’t utter a single word after he threatened my life. All that was left in my mind was the thought of his violence; how he could’ve easily snapped my head off, but didn’t. Then a voice would whisper in my ears –– a gentle, soothing voice that contrasted the anger in the man’s tone. It didn’t bring much comfort; it pulled me towards a dangerous situation that made my body comply before my mind ever could.

I reached the corridor, panting in exhaustion. My hands trembled, and I could still feel his claws around my arm, digging into my skin. His eyes… There was nothing there but rage. The lifeless werewolves behind him scattered like they were about to be buried. And the forest was dark enough that I barely counted how many of them were dead.

As I squeezed my way through the crowd, everyone came to a halt. They murmured under their breaths, their gazes averted to the staircase bannister. A middle-aged man in a golden robe stood on the podium. The guy from a while ago emerged from the staircase, his face stoic. There wasn’t a trace of blood on him, even the suit he wore that had a red stain was in pristine condition. Beside him was a girl wearing a velvet, purple gown that hung loosely on her petite figure. She looked identical to him: ebony hair, electric-blue eyes, and porcelain skin.

“A toast,” the middle-aged man spoke, his voice reverberating in the entire hall, “to the royal family. We are all gathered tonight by the moon goddess to hold a significant tradition that signifies unity in Azen.”

Everyone raised their champagne flutes in the air before claps and cheers resounded.

The royal family… he must’ve been the prince.

“Where the hell have you been? We were looking for you.” Harvey’s voice rang in my ears. He stood beside me with furrowed brows.

Tell anyone about this, and you’ll be dead by dawn. The sentence lingered in my head. I looked up to the prince once more, and I froze when his eyes were directed at me.

“I needed some fresh air,” I replied, but Harvey didn’t seem to believe me when he scoffed.

“Is that blood on your arm?” He frantically grabbed me, but I pulled away from him.

The wound from the claws had already healed –– thanks to my werewolf blood –– but it left a  scarlet stain dripping on my arm.

“The trees. I mean, yeah, I was roaming around, and I got stuck.”

“You’re lying,” he implied. “Your glove has a tear. What did you do?”

“Harvey, now isn’t the time,” I mumbled, gesturing at the speaker on the podium.

“Let us all encourage the presence of the Azenthars who organized this prestigious event.” The man spread his arm wide as the girl took a step forward. “Princess Zandra of Azen.” She bowed her head slightly and waved a hand at everyone. “The prince and the only heir to the throne,” he strode forward as everyone lowered their gazes to a bow, “Enzo Azenthar.”

He just stood there, indifference drawn across his face as if he didn’t want to be there. How could he possibly not feel disdain when he’d just murdered a bunch of werewolves and threatened my life a few minutes ago? And the fact that he would become king and was apparently capable of that much violence appalled me.

“They look so majestic, don’t they?” Therese said beside me.

“It isn’t the word I’ll use. But yes, they look a bit different from everyone,” I responded.

“History says that they’re the children of Selene.”

I flicked my eyes at her and raised my brows in confusion. “You mean, Goddess Selene?”

“Azen doesn’t refer to Selene as the goddess. And, contrary to the belief of the werewolves on the other side, Selene isn’t the Moon Goddess but the daughter who served as the messenger. Selene gave birth to the Azenthars, which made them have those, you know, unique looks.”

“That must’ve made them closer to the goddess.”

“They are.” She crossed her arms above her chest while she looked up. “Selene is everywhere around us because of them.”

“What do you mean?”

“The fireflies,” she answered. “Azenians believe that fireflies guide you to fate. They come from the willow trees all around Azen. If you pray to the tree, it answers through the fireflies.”

Fireflies guide you to fate, I repeated her words in my head. If this were true, it only meant one thing: the firefly I saw didn’t appear randomly. The whispers, the pull in my chest, the weight of that moment. It all led me to him: the prince.

No, it couldn’t possibly be. He almost killed me. I refused to believe fate would put me in a position where I could’ve ended up alongside those other ones he killed. I had to convince myself that it was coincidental, but if it was, it wouldn’t need convincing.

Before the man in a golden robe could proceed, one of the palace’s guards came to the royals’ side and whispered in their ears. They both looked perplexed as they exchanged glances. The princess leaned toward the man on the podium, and the crowd was left in utter silence as both the prince and the princess walked away. They disappeared from the vicinity, leaving the man distraught.

“It is with great dismay that I announce that the Moonlight Ball is canceled for tonight and shall be moved to some other time,” he announced, confusing the crowd as chatters replaced the silence.

He didn’t elaborate on what had happened. He just turned his back as we were ushered outside by the palace’s guards.

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No one had a clue what happened that night, but everyone gossiped and speculated. They didn’t have much time to find their mates, and I couldn’t know whether my deal with Harvey was still on the line or not. Not when the fireflies appeared, and if Therese was right, I knew for a fact what it tried to show me. 

The apartment was quiet as Harvey and I entered. I plopped myself on the couch and took off my gloves, tossing them on the coffee table. I threw my head back, stared at the ceiling, and clasped my hands above my stomach. Harvey sat across the couch in front of me and took off his coat.

“So are you going to tell me about what happened? While you were out to get some ‘fresh air’?” he started, and I shut my eyes.

It appeared in my head: the forest, the werewolves, the prince. Telling Harvey about it would be a risk I couldn’t take; the prince seemed serious about his threat.

“You don’t have to interrogate me,” I answered.

“I can’t be worried about you, is that what you’re saying?”

“Yeah, you don’t tell me everything, now it’s a problem when I do the same.” I scoffed and sat upright.

“It’s different.”

“How the hell is that different?”

“Because I’m protecting you. It’s why I’m asking what happened so I know.”

“Harvey, I don’t know you anymore, okay?” I couldn’t hold back my frustration anymore. “It’s one thing that you lied to me about not having a way back to the other side; it’s another when you basically just coerced me into choosing you. You know how ridiculous this situation looks for me?”

He was taken aback and leaned against the couch. Then he sighed.

“What do you want to know? I promise to answer you.”

“You told me you were sent here for a certain reason. I want to know why, and what does it have to do with me?”

“You really want to know why?” It was followed by silence as if he was articulating everything in his head. “I fell in love with a human, Elle. I was in senior high, then college, and I had to adapt to a lot of things that weren’t taught in the way of being a werewolf.  I have to get good grades and get into an Ivy League school; otherwise, I will disappoint my parents. That’s how blending in with the humans took a toll on me. I was lonely. I was separated from everyone. Then she came into my life, and suddenly everything feels less heavy. She didn’t know that I’m a werewolf, and I don’t plan on telling her. She’s the only one who made me feel loved during those times. My parents found out, and they were scared I would get her pregnant. That’s forbidden by the goddess. Then an opportunity to Azen came, and the Moonlight ball… they want me to rekindle with our kind.”

Hearing Harvey explain all of those made my heart clench. I was mistaken; I did know him. I knew him because I was there when he struggled to appease his parents, especially his father. When we were kids, he told me a story about how he would have Harvey to forcefully break all his bones at the age of seven so it would be less excruciatingly painful whenever he would turn. Harvey would be taught to haunt at night, to fast on food, to learn survival through pain and endurance. To the alphas, that was how they prepared their offspring for fighting a war –– a war that came so inevitably every werewolf had to brace. But his father neither raised him for war nor survival; he raised him adept at cruelty. Harvey took all of those while I became his anchor. I couldn’t even begin to imagine what he went through after our separation.

“So they sent you here as a punishment? A punishment for falling in love? They just found a very absurd strategy to get rid of you.”

“If that’s how you’ll take it. And they think that if I stayed on the other side, I would just find a way to be with her. So I bargained with them that if I were to be alone here, I should at least bring you as my company.” His eyes glistened, holding the tears that dared to trickle down his cheeks. “I’m lonely, Elle. I’ve been so lonely for so long.”

I pursed my lips as I got up and moved to his side. I placed a palm on his back, my chest clenching when a tear escaped his eyes.

“I’m sorry to hear all of those, Harvey. I’m sorry about her, and I’m sorry about what they did to you.” I rubbed my hand on his back and tugged my lips into a smile. “It feels weird, right? Because you apologize all the time, and now I’m the one who feels sorry for you.” I tried to lighten up the mood, and it did bring out a chuckle from him.

He wiped the tears saturating his face and turned to look into my eyes.

“No.” He shook his head, his body tilting towards me. “Thank you for everything. The reason why I can’t tell you is that I don’t know how you’ll react or if you’ll understand. You told me a few seconds ago that you don’t know me. So that’s also one of the reasons I find it hard to be transparent recently.”

“Well, we’re here now, and I do kind of feel bad for forcing transparency out of you, but it’s a good thing.” I ran a hand through his tousled hair as our eyes locked.

He leaned his face toward me, tucking some strands of hair behind my ear, and his fingers grazing on the side of my face. And in a blink, he closed the gap between us as our lips collided.

His hand ran from my bare shoulders down to the arch of my back. When he pulled me closer to him, my chest pressing against his, I hummed through our kiss and raked my hand through his hair. Heat surged through our bodies as anticipation filled every second. His tongue gently grazed my bottom lip, tilting his head to the side as he trailed kisses to my jaw. When his lips came in contact with my neck, I let out a soft moan. He began untying the knot of my corset and ran his hand through the lace. When he lifted his face, the grief had left his eyes. He lifted me from the couch and placed me on his lap, so I was straddling him. Cupping his face, I reconnected our lips as he let out a soft groan. But when his hands made their way under my corset and I felt him harden down there, a sudden realization washed over me.

I pulled my face away from him, his lips now drenched. I wiped it off him with my thumb and got up.

The whisper. It appeared again.