When I finished up my bath, I wrapped myself in one of the oversized, black, waffled towels. Over near the sink, I found a hair drier and a comb. I took my time to tame my hair so that it was mostly straight. I swept it into a loose chignon on the back of my head, pinned in place with... well... a pen that I had found near the tub.

Upon exiting the bathroom, I found three outfits laid neatly on the end of Lorién's bed. He was nowhere to be found, but there was a note written in a very exorbitant cursive font laid atop one of the outfits. It read: "Dear Kasia, I have gone to fetch breakfast. Please make yourself comfortable. These ensembles appear to match your body type and size. Please remain inside of my chambers until I return. Furthermore, I apologize for my behavior concerning my coat. However, I did mean what I said. Do not touch my leathers. Here is one of your own. Lorién" I laid the note aside and lifted the leather jacket which had been beneath it. A genuine leather stamp was the only marking that I could find. There were no brand marks. I sat it down and surveyed my other clothing options.

I dressed in the provided jeans and tank top and skipped the blouse that was clearly intended to go with it. I arranged the other clothes into a neat stack and then set them on top of the dresser next to the bed. I will keep these if my bag is not found. I left the blouse on the end of the bed because thanks but no. I am not some high society lady who wears blouses.

I slid the leather jacket on and found that it fit me brilliantly. The front had a double-breasted design, and when zipped, it hugged my body perfectly. I pulled the zipper up to just below my heart and stretched my arms out to make sure I still had mobility. It was a perfect fit like it had been made for me. I could fight in this if I needed to. Well, at least my kidnapper has a good eye for quality clothing. There were no shoes, but that did not bother me all that much. I like the feel of the earth beneath my feet.

I walked over to the french doors that opened to the balcony and walked outside. This room is on the highest level of the building, and the view from here is expansive. The land around the house is bright and colorful. There are even children, werewolf children I realized, playing in the gardens. I have never seen a place like this before. I have never been anywhere that feels quiet and peaceful yet full of so much life and sound. I almost wish that I could stay here.

After a while, I heard the interior door open and then close again. I walked back into the main room, which in this case, was Lorién's bedroom. A quick glance around the room told me that I was alone. I followed my nose over to a dining cart that had seemingly just been brought into the room. A small note on the front of the cart said, "Courtesy of Alpha Lorién." Under the food cover, I found fresh pancakes topped with honey and fruit. A fresh fruit smoothie was beside the plate. It was garnished with a mint leaf and a chocolate cigarillo.

I pulled the dining cart over near a desk in the corner of the room. I transferred the contents of the cart over to the desk. The pancakes were so light and fluffy that it felt like eating a cloud. The fruit was perfectly ripe, and the smoothie had just the right amount of sweetness. This meal was no doubt prepared by a professional chef. Surely no normal home cook could make breakfast into an experience rather than a meal.

After I finished eating, I returned the dishes to the cart. I then took the cart to the hall. I thought that way whoever had brought it could more easily retrieve it. I guess that is the correct procedure. I would not know, honestly. I've been comfortable at points in my life but never rich by any means. Having servants who delivered meals was not even a thought that had ever crossed my mind.

~~~~~~~~~~

When Lorién returned a while later, I was sitting in a chair in the corner of his room. I was reading a book that I had found on his bedside table but glanced up to acknowledge his presence.

"I'm not stealing your book by touching or reading it," I quip, meeting his cool amber stare dead on.

"No? So you just have a habbit of borrowing other people's things without asking?" He mused.

"If you had been here, I would have asked. As it were, you were gone for two hours, and I became quite bored," I answered.

"As it were," he mimicked, "I was attending to my duties as the Alpha of my pack. I have certain events that require my daily attendance such as breakfast with the other Alphas. These things are important in maintaining positive relations within our community here at Sunlite."

"So you're a government official and a kidnapper? How busy your life must be," I laughed out loud.

"I did not kidnap you. You're a grown woman, regardless of your childish attitude. You could have easily escaped while I was gone, had you really wanted to," Lorién scolded.

"On the contrary, I was still a child when you tossed me over your shoulder. TODAY is my birthday, and I don't see why I should spend it cooped up in this boring room of yours," I growled.

"Well, excuse me for being accommodating! I figured you would be safer here than wandering through the woods or packhouse where Goddess knows who might prey on your cluelessness. Why didn't you leave when you had ample opportunity? No one was here to stop you," he growled in return, and I simply blinked back at him.

Why didn't I leave? Why did I sit down to read a book instead of running at my first opportunity? Kasia you idiot! What are you doing to yourself?

Once he was done speaking, Lorién walked out onto the balcony and took a survey of the visible surrounding area. I stood, watching him from within the room. He gripped the balcony railing between his fingers and huffed aloud as a chilly wind hit his face and then came fluttering into the room, chilling me as well. He took a deep breath and appeared to calm his annoyance. I could not help but notice the scent of blood in the wind. I assumed that it was fish blood carried over from the docks. The temperature difference made sense if the wind was coming off the water.

Lorién suddenly stiffened and sniffed the air. He must have also smelled the blood. I watched him carefully as he reacted to the smell. Maybe that wasn't fish blood after all?

"Lility, Hanno? Are you two okay? I need a response, now," he demanded aloud, but I assumed he was speaking on mind link with his pack.

Lorién turned on his heels and went into his bedroom. He hardly noticed that I was still standing there watching him. He hastily made his way across the room to the exit.

"Okay, bye?" I called after him, but he did not respond to me as he rushed out of the room.

He left the door standing wide, open into the hall, behind him. I was left staring at Lorién's departing figure. I crossed the room and placed my hand on the intricate brass handle of the heavy hand-carved mahogany door. It felt cool and old against my fingers. The tree that provided this door had once lived a long life. I could feel it. It had faced countless hardships and weathered many storms. I could feel the centuries worth of memories held deep inside that solid, beautiful, cool wood. I could feel remnants of all the spirits who had touched it before and left a piece of themselves behind. It is strange, the stories that dead things can tell.

Just as I came out of my thoughts and was about to pull the door to begin closing it: I heard someone inhale sharply, as if they had been startled. I looked up to find a set of deep, emerald green eyes observing my every movement and gasped. The person standing before me had glistening, waist-length, silvery-white hair that fell partially over their face helping to hide the now amused expression dancing in their eyes. They straightened their posture and tossed their shimmering hair over their shoulder. A strikingly beautiful, yet also very masculine, face was revealed by this movement. His features would have very easily put most high-fashion models to shame. The dashing male gave off an aura that felt remarkably familiar, but I was unsure why it felt that way.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"I apologize for the intrusion, My Lady. I was not expecting Lorién's bed chamber to be... occupied," came the carefully chosen words in a calm but somehow also vicious tone as the beautiful man spoke.

I was slightly startled by the tone he used. I've never seen this man before in my life. Why does it sound like he is mad at me? I stood a little straighter and eyed him with a questioning gaze. His presence felt strong. He seems like someone who commands attention and respect just by existing. Too bad I'm not someone to give that up without good reason.

"Whiles I am certainly not your lady, I forgive the intrusion. It's quite rude to stand gawking like that, though" I said with a clear disregard.

"I merely meant to stop and close the door for him as he seemed in quite the storm of fury. I did not think he had been... blowing off steam... with anyone based on his rush. Please, excuse me," he explained with a venomous growl.

"Well he wasn't. You know what they say about assuming and assholes," I said through gritted teeth at the audacity of this total stranger to speak to me in such a tone.

While waiting for his next response I noticed that two spirits were giggling, and from the way that the sounds moved they were possibly also dancing around behind him. I took a moment to listen and see what they might be so amused by. The female spirits were giggling about how "Master Stryker" seemed jealous of something, but that was the extent of what I could make out from their conversation. The man threw his hand out to the side and took a low bow which silenced the spirits. Could he hear them too? Surely not and he was simply bowing out of feigned respect or as an apology for his words.

"Forgive my rudeness. My apologies, Lady... oh, I haven't gotten your name," he said and then stood straight once more.

"No, Stryker, I suppose you haven't," I said and smiled triumphantly as I stepped into the bedroom and pulled the door shut behind me.

Once the sound of receding footsteps echoed in the hallway, I finally relaxed and let out a huge sigh. I do not like confrontation to be the first impression that new people have of me, but man that guy was pompous! Blowing off steam? As if I'm some booty call? Nope, I wasn't able to just let that slide. Plus I don't generally like being around people who are followed by spirits anyway. So it doesn't really matter what he thought of me.

"That was so fucking weird," I said to myself.

"Quite so," came a male voice that I almost recognized.

I looked around but found myself alone in the room. Great, someone noticed that I can hear spirits speaking. I knew I should have thought better of repeating his name without having been introduced. After looking around the room one more time and confirming I am alone I walk over and plop face-first onto the bed. I mentally prepare to be bombarded with requests from the spirit, but the room is quiet.

"Could today get any stranger?" I asked myself out loud.

"Obviously," the voice lilted.

"Yes, obviously. Who might you be, by the way?" I sigh and roll onto my back.

"Lucien Lofanti was my given name, but you can call me dad, Kasia Dear," the voice said in a gentle tone.

My blood ran cold.

"Dad? Why are you haunting Lorién's bedroom?" I asked and tried to gain my bearings.

"I am not. I died on these grounds. Naturally when I felt my only daughter, my long dead daughter, come into the area I searched out her spirit. Oh, how suprised I was to find you alive and seemingly doing well. How are you alive, anyway?" The voice seemed curious but not maleficent.

"After what I've been told I am not sure you deserve to know," I growl out the accusation.

"Why is that?" he asked.

"The only thing those vampires ever told me about my past was that I was an orphan because my father killed my mother," I spat.

"On the contrary, your mother hid you in the orphanage. It was with good reason. She wanted to protect you from becoming a plaything for that werewolf king's bastard daughter. Not from me. We had our differences but I loved your mother. I loved our family! When I found out what she had done I went for you but they said you had a new family and wouldnt tell me where," He sounded pleading.

"I'm in no mood to talk about this now. Lorién could come back at any point. I don't want him knowing that I can hear you. Men tend to use whatever they can find against me," I sighed.

"You shouldn't care what the son of the man who murdered your mother thinks. He wont be back for a while. He's in the southern area of the packlands dealing with a rather messy situation. Lives were lost, so he should be tied up for quite some time. I'll let you process things, though, and check on you later," he informed me.

"I suppose my brother also isnt crazy? He didn't kill you?" I retorted.

"Oh your brother is quite crazy, but Lisana killed me. Make no mistakes about that," my father's voice said in an echoey whisp of air.

I didn't speak again since the sound of his last sentence told me that he had moved out of the room. I pressed the heels of my palms into my eyes and groaned.

Honestly, of all the possibilities, I just had to run into my father's spirit here? Now I am not even sure if I can believe any of the information that Lorién had fed me about my family. If his father killed my mom and his sister killed my father... I guess that in and of itself was enough reason to lie. Who knows how I may have reacted to the truth. I certainly wouldn't have slept in his room. Not that anyone asked me if I wanted to in the first place. Perks of being kidnapped, I guess. I have got to get out of here. I need to clear my head. This is a lot to process, and this room is making me feel claustrophobic.

I walk out to the balcony and take a look around. There is a garden that I can barely see the edge of from here around what looks to be another wing of the building. I head back inside the room and then straight out into the hall.

Okay, this is an enormous building, and I have no clue where I am. I know the garden was to the left of this room. So, I guess we will start there.

I head down the stairs and then pause. After looking both ways, I spot a windowed door that leads to the exterior of the building. Once outside, I set a path towards the garden I had seen from the balcony. It took me about seven minutes to get there. The hedges and sidewalks outside this place are like some sort of maze. The reward of my journey is absolutely enamoring, though.

The garden was broken into sections of food, flowers, flowering hedges, and trees. It is landscaped so whimsically that I hardly remembered I am in the real world and not a dream. I pinched my own arm just to be sure.

"Ow," I whined.

Okay, definitely awake. I made my way towards a stone bench nestled under a wisteria tree that had been trimmed to accommodate the seating area. My entire body let out a long sigh as I sank onto the cold stone. I've always enjoyed nature. It's been so long since I've had a chance to do something so simple as to sit with the mother and enjoy her company. I laid my back across the bench and closed my eyes.

A short while later, the eerie feeling of someone watching me crept into my consciousness. I opened my eyes slowly but found myself alone. Once I had adjusted to the daylight, I sat up and looked around more incredulously. No one was visible in the garden aside from myself.

"Hello?" I questioned to see if it was a spirit that I had felt. No answer.

I stood and wandered towards the building so that I could survey the balconies overlooking the garden. Just as I stepped onto a pebbled path that appeared to wind into the roses on my right, I caught sight of him. Stryker's beautiful green eyes were staring right at me. I raised my hand and wiggled my fingers in an awkward wave. He smirked and nodded in response.

"Are you following me?" I called up to him.

"You're the one in my garden. I wonder if you're following me?" He returned.

"I wasn't aware that it was yours, your majesty," I smiled and gave a sarcastic bow.

"I'm no king on high. I simply admire the beauty of nature. Thus I surround myself with beautiful things," he said as his eyes never left me.

"Your garden is lovely," I replied and turned to walk away.

"I could show you something much more lovely. If you'd care to join me?" He said.

Before I could turn back towards him to respond, Stryker was next to me. How did he move so quickly? He offered me his arm with a dazzling smile. I blinked in sheer confusion but took his arm, and we began to walk. He took shorter strides to accommodate my height and I easily kept pace with him.

"How did you...?" I finally managed to ask as we exited the back of the garden.

"I am High Fae. Just like you," he said in a hushed tone that told me not to ask more.

We walked in silence for a long while after that. Each of us was taking in the natural beauty all around us. The trees and the animals all were humming the tune of fulfilled lives as we passed among them. I wish my soul hummed such a beautiful song. Mine probably sounds closer to the yowl of a hungry cat, and I sincerely hope no one else can hear it. I wonder if Stryker's soul hums? Or maybe it sings? He looks like a man whose soul would sing.

As if in answer to my thoughts, the song of a river pulled me back to reality. I looked ahead just through the other side of the grove of apple trees we were approaching. There I could see the sunlight gleaming off the water. I quickened my steps excitedly, and Stryker again changed his pace to accommodate me. As we cleared the trees, my face lit with a bright smile. I released Stryker's arm and ran directly to the water's edge to dip my feet in. Now, this is a true stroke of serendipity.

I glanced at Stryker and found him observing me with a look of amusement. He must think I'm a nut to be so excited over water, but I don't care. I sat down on the bank of the river and allowed my legs to sink into the water. It was cool and refreshing. It calmed something deep within my soul. Stryker joined me, and I swear I almost saw the water reach for him as he dipped his feet into it.

"Thank you for showing me this place," I said almost too quietly.

"Its quiet lovely," my father's voice came from behind us.

I did not react. I've spent enough time hearing spirits to know that responding to them in another person's company is a surefire way to look crazy. Instead, I reached down and ran my fingertips over the water creating small ripples in the otherwise calmly flowing river. My father apparently did not take the hint, as when he spoke again, he sounded much closer.

"That Lorién, he's found wolves on the southeast of this land who were attacked. Many have died, and the surviving few are gravely ill. He seemed rather upset over the whole incident. Seems his favorite plaything was the one who attacked everyone. Two of yours died too," he said.

Two... of yours? Wait, is he talking to Stryker? I cut my eyes to Stryker just in time to see him nod his head in response. My eyes narrowed and I turned slightly to face him.

"You can hear my father!?" I accused.

"Lucien is your father?" He asked looking a bit shocked.

I nodded.

"You're Kasia? Does... does Malakar know you are alive?" Stryker stood up suddenly and looked around.

"Lucien does he know?" Stryker repeated the question.

"No and he should not be made aware. You know he is unstable, Stryker," my father scolded.

"He isn't unstable. He's angry. Angry that his whole family is dead and he couldn't do anything about it. Angry that his little sister was killed and he couldn't even burry her body. Except she wasn't, shes right here," Stryker growled.

"It isn't your place to inform him, Stryker," my father's tone had a finality to it.

"Excuse me. I'm literally right fucking here. I can decided of my own mind wether Id like to meet him," I snapped, causing Stryker to turn back to me.

"Of course, Banphrionsa," Stryker said and bowed his head in what appeared to be an apologetic way.

"Bon- what? Whatever, fuck, I'd like to go back to the house. I need to think," I said aloud as I stood, ignoring the strange new nickname for now.

Stryker offered his arm, and I took it for the return trip. We did not speak on the way back to the packhouse.