Seven years later…(Valerian)“HERE she comes. Let’s all give a round of applause to the woman of the hour, Cassandra Hudson!”Once again, Cassandra took breaths away as she walked towards the center of the gallery. This was her fourth solo exhibit. And as usual, it was a success. The gallery was bustling with people. Almost all of the photos already had little red stickers underneath them. And a while ago, I just heard people requesting the manager for another exhibit while complaining that somebody had already beat them to buying her works.But of course, it all depends on the photographer herself.Looking at how Cassandra faced the people with confidence filled me with pride. She did it. I could see her wings fully spread now.We were traveling in our fourth country when she found her passion. I bought her a camera the very first time she told me about it. I was more than happy to see her finally wanting to do something for herself. It was the first time I saw her eyes sparkle.Unt

I WAS surprised by the petals scattered around the floor the second I opened the door. There were scented candles around, too. I thought Val and I were only going to have a simple dinner to celebrate last night’s success. I gulped and continued walking towards the living room of his grand mansion.And there, I saw him playing the piano, emitting princely vibes again with just his cream turtle-neck long-sleeve and pants. His shoulder-length platinum hair was neatly tied. He was looking at me with tenderness in his eyes as he played.This was the same music that made me believe that life was still beautiful even after suffering from amnesia. Watching him like this had brought me back to the past, to the times when he would come running at my door each time I would have nightmares and then he would hold me tight in his arms. And because I was scared to go back to sleep, he would play the piano to pacify me.‘I’m always here’, those three words were what he would always tell me.For other

AFTER dinner, I joined Iris in the entertainment room and watched her favorite kiddie show with her. An hour later, I tucked her to bed and went to my office. I turned on my computer to review the documents regarding the hybrids in case there were details that I missed. Tonight was the tenth time we encountered some of the hybrids but it just proved that they were either back in the country or that they didn’t leave the country at all. The pack once located some of them in Asia and Australia. The problem was that most of the hybrids would rather slash their throats than be interrogated. I didn’t know how a heartless man like Kenji managed to have such loyal subordinates who would rather sacrifice themselves than expose their king. Over the past years, Dad and I had worked together to build an empire for the wolves. We did it in memories of Mom and Alexandra. Our number and strength were so much better than before. The wolves were no longer easy to take down. Our army now was stronge

(Richard)THE minute I inhaled the woman’s scent and realized that I misunderstood, I cleared my throat and switched back to polite mode. “I’m sorry, Miss. I mistook you for someone I know.”Alexandra was dead before the wolves could proclaim her as the Luna Queen. And the massive change in the Alpha King’s personality drilled that truth in our heads over and over again. It was just that the resemblance was uncanny.I was among the lucky ones who was able to train under Alexandra’s direct supervision when we were in Manila. I looked up to her. Her height, complexion, and almost everything about her appearance was similar to the woman I respected the most. Almost. Because her hair and scent were different than our Queen. This one didn’t even have a mark on her neck which would have proved her identity.“I would also like to apologize on behalf of our princess. She is just missing her mother.”“What are you saying, Uncle Richard? She is my mother!” the princess insisted.“No, she’s not,

THERE was a thought that suddenly crossed my mind. I knew it was impossible. In fact, it was such a ridiculous thought that I should have just ignored it. But just to be sure, I still dialed Nick’s number.“Hello-““I want you to investigate something for me, Nick. I need a result as soon as possible.”I gave him the details and ended up the call while pacing the room back and forth. I could feel a tornado of emotion brewing inside my heart. My mind was in chaos as well. And my hands were cold. I didn’t think I would feel this way because of a woman.Cassandra was doing it again. She was making me worry again. But the situation was worse than before.Now that I thought about it, she did mention that she was currently in San Antonio, Nueva Ecija, the very town where Sinclair lived. She said she was there to look around and to accompany a certain gallery director. But was that really it? Or was meeting Sinclair her true agenda?Half of me was saying that there was nothing wrong with it,