CHAPTER 21: THE WEALTHIEST

ALEKS

I was startled and a little pissed when I found Atlas settled on my coach, but I didn’t say anything. I could get mad at and scream at Lander all I wanted because I knew he loved me and I was safe enough to throw tantrums and grovel later on, but I did not have the luxury of glaring at everyone who invaded my privacy since, technically speaking, I had none. Hell, I couldn’t even call anyone, not that I really had anyone who was dying to hear from me who hadn’t, unless I got authority from Jason. I was too angry and shaken to play nice with him so I ignored him and went out of the house, wearing clothes I didn’t own, to a mansion filled with strangers, from where we would go to hear my fate from a bunch of strangers. Hell, even Lander thought he knew me better than I knew myself, so at this point I was barely a human being. I may as well have been a bad puppy that had chewed on someone’s birth certificate.

Despite my stormy mood, the beach was glowing as if a star had shattered into a million glittering pieces and lay itself upon the water. The water itself was blue, bluer even than the sky itself. Unfortunately, the beauty of the island managed to temp down my anger but not entirely. I was still furious and as I speed walked towards the mansion, I paid no heed to the wisely silent man besides me as he annoyingly kept pace with me before I finally stopped by the larger entrance which was guarded by two burly men who barely reacted at my presence but practically fell over each other, bowing at Atlas’ presence. He smiled widely at the two man before taking the lead and silently leading me past a series of closed glass doors and one open living room which looked homier than most with lots of cushions and mahogany floors, and into the biggest and fanciest room…whoa…two-story closet I have ever seen in my life. Atlas pointed me towards a rack of indoor slippers and I exchanged my sensible pumps for them. They were comfy and so comfortable and I saw their purpose when I stepped into the softest and thickest looking, white Persian rug which matched with the rest of the white and blue themed room. I barely heard Atlas mutter something to me before he left as I took in the sight of the place. My anger was quickly forgotten as I breathed in the cool and fresh air that occupied the room and took in first the right side of the room which was occupied by high shelf after high shelf of folded clothes which seemed organized by color, some hung on hangers which seemed to float through the air of the room by some kind of mechanism, and rows and rows of coats. An entire clothing rack consisted of a collection of sparkling and gorgeous looking tutus. The right side was clearly the more feminine side of the room. The left side was less colorful and seemed to comprise mostly of sharp, well-made suits, hung up high on the hangers and blander folded clothes in general. If I had to guess, I would say it was Jason’s side of the room. Another section of the room contained what seemed to be an open closet of thousands of pairs of shoes for both the sexes, most of them displayed in rows of colorful wedges, stilettos, boots, stylish sandals, and all kinds of heels on one side, and oxfords, loafer tennis shoes, running shoes, jodhpur boots, and combat boots on the other side. Another section was dedicated to what seemed like boxes of more shoes.

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Short, crystal-like spiral stairs led up to the upper story, which was quite visible from below. The room was even more breathtaking than the lower one. The shelves contained a vast array of hand bags, stylish back-packs and purses of different materials and colors. Another section boasted the biggest and fanciest collection of watches I had ever seen, all in a display case. The center was the most breathtaking. Christ, I could see jewels of all kinds in enclosed cases that gave different illusions of the elements. A number of fancy bracelets made from diamonds, rubies, amethyst and some less recognizable materials, seemed to float within a glass case that seemed to be filled with water. Next to it, an array of rings seemed to withstand inside a raging case of fire. Crowns of diamonds seemed to be suspended in the air that visibly swirled inside another case while necklaces and pendants of all manner of rare stones were strewn over what seemed to be rocks and all manner of earth, inside the last display. The sheer opulence displayed around the room was truly breathtaking.

Aside from the clothes, the lower part of the room also had a huge dresser which boasted a big full-length mirror and a number of unrecognizable potions on the surface. There were also comfortable looking dresser chairs in front of the mirror. And at the center of the room were two long, blue, buttery leather coaches with fluffy-looking pillows and a small table with glasses and jug with an unrecognizable substance in it.

Draped somewhat enticingly on one of the coaches, a bubbly and more energetic Bené toddling around next to her on the couch with various toys while having a low conversation with himself as he used his mother as some kind of ramp for the monster truck he was moving along her leg and sucking on a binky whilst wearing the cutest little wolf-themed outfit, was Lanthe , looking more beautiful and enchanting than ever as she stunningly smiled at me and I literally felt the last of my anger seep out of me as I smiled back at her. I couldn't help but smile back at her. Her previously purple hair was now a beautiful and soft pink color that suited her greatly and piled on top of her head in a thick, messy bun. Her long legs were visible as she wore short, black shorts and a cropped hoodie that took years off of her and made her look twenty-three. It seemed Lanthe got prettier every time I saw her. It baffled me how much I noticed so much about her. Sure she was by far the most beautiful woman I had ever seen both live and on screen, but I was starting to wonder if I might have had a little crush on her. But I also knew that part of the admiration brewed from her simply birthing Leukas. She had given birth to the man I had loved since I first saw him, so of course I admired her a lot. Her beauty was just a bonus. Hell, no wonder I was so doomed with Leukas.