Standing there, I wondered if I was in the right. After all, I was about to doom a nation. Maybe a few villages if it was the best-case scenario. I had not experienced death since I fell out of the roof. So, I did not know if that was a one-time deal thing either. Maybe I was about to die for real. Though it did not scare me about facing a real demise.

Perhaps that was wrong of me, but I honestly did not care. All that mattered to me was Alijah and his safety. Though, it made me wonder if he could run like I ordered him to in his current state. Either way, there was nothing else I could do but die for my beloved. I was too weak to shift on command, not that I knew how I did it the last time.

Taking a short peek behind me, I saw how angry Alijah was. How distressed his expression seemed. I thought he would not care if I died. I thought he wanted me to perish.

Ah... maybe he wants to kill me himself.

That had to be why he was so angry. I took that opportunity from him. Sadly, the shadow beast was going to beat him to it.

Oh, well… At least he will be breath after this.

In an instant, the shadow beast smashed through the building in front of us, charging towards us. Opening my arms to the side, I stood my ground, not fearing death itself, but what would come of it. However, the only thing that troubled me was if Alijah could outrun me. The only thing that terrified me was hurting someone I loved.

Not much about the rest, though it would be unfortunate to see so many lives lost. I guess... The accident when I was a child changed me, or maybe it was the curse itself that tainted my soul. There was no way for me to know anymore. I had lived with this all my life. Possibly it made me less sympathetic to people, but at least I knew killing was wrong.

But this time it’s unavoidable. He can’t die… And if the world must burn, then so be it.

The moment it got close enough; I closed my eyes, expecting it to collide with me, killing me upon impact. Instead, I felt a gust of wind that knocked off my headset. No pain, though.

Was it like this last time?

I could not remember. Instinctively, my orbs fluttered open to see the behemoth inches away from me, upward on its hind legs. It took a few steps back, landing back to normal. Much to my surprise, it stopped in its tracks, staring at me instead of trampling over me.

What I thought would be an instantaneous death seemed to have shifted into something else. It almost appeared as if it were inspecting me. Alijah sat behind me, silently terrified that if he made a sound. It would trigger the beast to attack me.

The demon sniffed the surrounding air while my body responded to it. The dark aura radiated from me as I felt a thump that was soon followed by another. Before long, my chest burned as I gripped onto it. This was something new. I had never felt this way.

It never happened when I was near Shade or Ruzgard, but those two were different. They had a summoner that linked them into this world, while this one did not.

"Ah... I knew I felt something here... but who would have thought it would be an offspring of the vessel?” The beast announced, glaring at me.

Nervously laughing in response, I could not believe it stopped and left me alive. I was so sure it would splatter me on the floor when it came. It was so certain that I had not planned for anything else. My body, though... felt different.

Not only that, but it also recognized what I was, which was interesting. Vera and my brothers never mentioned a beast speaking to them like this one was to me. Then again, they never gave them a chance to.

“Does that mean you won’t kill me, sir?” I asked, my voice weak.

I panted for air that my lungs desperately wanted, but I could never fill them with enough. My chest felt like it burned hotter with each breath I tried so desperately to get. Aiden and Caden said nothing about the times they encountered beasts.

So... why do I feel this way?

Vera told nothing, either. It was not just that, either. Everything was turning blurry with each second that passed. I guess I was losing too much blood, too. Even felt faint.

Ah... I won’t even die by the beast, but my stupidity. Fitting for me…

“No... I won’t touch a precious potential vessel, but...” The beast snickered, suddenly using its tails to go for Alijah, who was fair game for him.

It did not let me think of what he meant by that, but the instant it happened, something radiated from me. I instinctively threw myself onto the beast’s face without a second thought of what would happen to me.

“Don’t you fucking dare.” I snarled, holding on to it for dear life.

At that moment, something else took over me. Before I knew it, a pulse of energy left me as the beast disappeared, but not in the normal sense of it vanishing. It was almost as if I absorbed it upon contact, which was not good. Seconds after it faded, my world swirled around before it halted.

I crashed onto what should have been the floor, but I found myself in Alijah’s arms instead. The beast had disappeared, so it freed him from my previous orders. Though... I would not know if it was a blessing or a curse.

After all, I did not know what was happening to me. My body burned hotter than ever before. Even though Alijah was calling for me, all I heard were muffled sounds. It felt like I was being seared alive.

Am I dying?

The last time I died it was instant, so I did not remember if it hurt or not. If I was fading.

I’ll... Alijah...

No matter how hard I tried to speak, nothing would come out. I wanted to order him to run, to leave as fast as he could, but I did not even know if I was screaming or not. All I knew was that I was in Alijah’s arms while he tried to speak to me. But I could not even understand what he was saying.

Instead, I felt my magical essence grow uncontrollably. My wolf was not ready to give up on me, though. His body radiated a crimson aura while he tried to stabilize me.

Is that what’s happening?

The beast that invaded my body sent my magic into a state of chaos. It threatened to kill everything around me. If that was it, then I... Alijah was fine if he kept his aura up, but it would not last. He was tired already from the fight with the beast.

It almost seemed to be a lost cause. Scratches appeared on his face while he hugged me tightly, not wanting to let me go.

Fool... such a fool.

I wanted him to run. That was all that mattered to me, but it seemed he would not fulfill my wish.

Will I kill him? Will I be the death of him?

Memories from the cave rushed my mind. When... he was not breathing.

No... I... I...

My body pulsated faster as I tried to fight back. It would not do as it wished with my body.

‘Good girl... Don’t let it take what is mine!’ The same voice from the raiders’ cave arose.

The burning sensation continued to spiral within me.

‘Purify it! Turn it to ashes!’ It continued.

Tears swelled in my eyes. Even though it hurt, I... would fight back!

“Rem!” I finally heard Alijah say clearly.

He held me tenderly close to his chest. His voice... sounded so torn and hurt.

Why... does he sound like that?

I... could not handle it anymore. Tears trailed down my cheeks. I never wanted to do anything to hurt him. Even before I met him, he was my everything. Ever since I saw him in that picture when I was fifteen. When I dreamt of him….

This wolf was my wish come true, even if he was much of an ass. He had always been the same in my dreams too, though a bit more loving.

Ah… but it did not start like that, did it? Hey... Alijah, have you ever dreamt of a girl like me when you were stuck in that timeless prison?

The dimension they trapped him in worked differently from ours. Where he had been, the present, past, and future all appeared to be in one place. That was why he never aged, even though he was thousands of years old.

I had always wanted to ask him if he had ever dreamt of a weird girl while he was there. If I met him, I was going to tell him everything, but that was before I knew of his love. That was when I realized I was the only one dreaming of a future that would never be.

Of Alijah’s smile, of his love, which neither would be mine. And just as this grumpy wolf would never be mine, I would not allow this thing to take him, either. If I ever tried to cast a powerful spell, usually it would backfire and knock me out. It was why Vera was the one who always had to help me channel it.

However, losing consciousness would be for the best. I was still alive, so if I was not conscious. Even if it was a short amount of time before my heart stopped beating, perhaps Alijah could get control. Or maybe the beast would disappear.

Orbs of lost souls appeared around me, trying to concentrate through the pain. It was similar to last time when I focused on one alone. But I was attempting to concentrate on multiple ones. Something I could not consciously do.

Alijah watched his surroundings the moment the orbs stacked up.

One... Two... Twenty... Thirty...

I usually could get to hundreds, but in my weakened state. It would only be a matter of time until... In that instance, it appeared like a bomb went off as a purple light consumed everything around me, along with my consciousness. It almost felt like I drifted into a slumber that I struggled to wake up from.

I had fallen into a dreamless state. There I laid in the comfort of darkness for a while, before being pulled out of it by a familiar scent. The next time I was aware of my surroundings, I jolted awake to find myself in Wyatt’s room again.

A lavender incense was being burned next to me. The same scent Mom used to sleep with every night. The whole manor usually smelled of that flower, but I was not home. I found myself a bit disorientated, unable to figure out what was real and what was not.

I did not know how I found myself back in this room.

Was everything a dream? No...

Everything that had happened was impossible for it all to be a dream. I would not have recognized the room I found myself in if it all had been a fantasy. I also felt the burning sensation in my chest. It hurt so much that I took off my shirt to check what it was.

Instead of being met with the usual skin, someone covered me with bandages. I was so preoccupied with the pain to notice Alijah, who was watching me, while he rested beside me. The moment I tried to take off my bandages, he grabbed me by my hands.

It caused me to gaze at him, bewildered by everything. I could not place myself yet. My memory was all jumbled, but the moment I saw Alijah, my hands trembled uncontrollably. I remembered what had happened before it was nights out for me.

The beast, Alijah... All the cuts I had caused him. Suddenly my pain became secondary as I instinctively hugged him, who seemed to be fine at first glance. There was no trace of what I had done to him on his body.

Even so, I cried his name while he slowly peeled me off. His eyes were bright red as he pushed me back onto the bed. It was obvious he was not happy. Not that I blamed him.

“You will tear your stitches out again. And you just started to heal too.” Alijah growled, narrowing his eyes.

Though I did not know if it included what had happened in the cave. But it probably did. I had to figure out what was the true cause, but Alijah’s demeanor was scaring me a bit. There was a lot I was missing again, though last time Wyatt filled me in.

This time, though, I needed to know what transpired from my wolf. Though... it would be difficult.

“What happened?” I mumbled.

Alijah held me down, leaning closer to me. He appeared to be so irritated that I wanted to shrink right where I was. If he did not hate me before, he surely did now. I probably went overboard with my orders, but I just wanted to make sure he was safe.

He did not know what would happen if I had died.

Come to think of it, how did I survive that?

I guess my blood loss was not bad enough to kill me. Though it made me weak and anemic. I still felt sluggish, and what was worse was the stitches he was talking about. No wonder I felt discomfort.

Did Wyatt sew me up again, thinking it would help?

Stitches and Lycans never mixed well. Not that I blamed neither of them. Alijah did not know how my healing worked. Neither did Wyatt. After all, most lumas did not heal at all.

“I don’t know, Rem. How about you tell me what the fuck that was about?” Alijah questioned my actions.

I did not know what he was angry about. After all, I had done many things. And I would have probably ended up doing more, before figuring out what he was angry about this time.

Is it because of the cave? No... that has been a dream, right? So, it has to be the orders.

I was so confused about what happened that I could not wrap my head around anything. Alijah was wearing different clothes from the ones I had bought him, too.

Are they Wyatt’s? What a mess this has all become.

I had failed in so many aspects. Yet... maybe this was a blessing in disguise. If my wolf hated me, then I... could give up this stupid, senseless love. It hurt, though. The thought of him loathing me. But it was for the best. Even if we had just become partners.

Shit...

If I had not messed it up in that cave, perhaps I could have been a close friend. Even though I wanted it to be a dream, I knew it was not. I screwed everything up so much that I deserved nothing. He could never know what I felt for him.

Though... surely, he knew already.

“I... thought I would die.” I simpered, knowing nothing I said would be fine.

My words triggered Alijah to growl in response, frustrated by my answer. His grip on me tightened, causing me to wince a bit. This was not the reaction I was expecting. After all, it looked like…

Does he not want me to die? I mean... we had become partners, but won’t be better if I’m not around?

He would be free to find his Lilith. Save her from Edna’s hands.

I... probably am slowing him down, right?

He would not stay quiet, though.

“And who would have fucking won from that? Are you brain dead or something?” Alijah chided with a sorrowful expression.

I could only smile in response, unable to understand why he was so angry. It almost seemed like he cared about me, which was not possible. Though I was just feeding the fire more with each word I said to him.

“I’m sorry if I worried you, but I don’t understand why you are angry.” I sighed, feeling guilty.

Alijah bit into his lip, annoyed by my tone. Though was almost as if he did not know why he felt this way.

Was he thankful that I saved him twice? Once from the raiders another from drowning, but weren’t those two times also my fault?

If I had never met him, he would not have been assaulted. He never would have been in those situations if it were not for me.

“What?” Alijah muttered, eyes twitching.

It appeared I dug my grave deeper. There was no escaping his wrath. Even so, I did not know how to shut up. One of my exceptional qualities Vera hated. Noisy Rem, she called me.

“I was freeing you. If I died, you would have been freed from this bond. Shouldn’t that make you happy?” I asked only to regret it soon after.

A weird smile rose on his lips. I… hurt him. At that moment; I froze where I was as he let me go.

Why does he seem so hurt? Ah... I fucked up again! Fucking Rem, why can’t you say anything right!?

“Yeah... Okay. I’ll make a note next time. Fuck you, Rem.” Alijah growled, storming out of the bed.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

He left me dumbfounded. It sounded like he did not want me to die. I was so confused by his demeanor that I sat there for a moment, unable to believe it. After all, I thought he would have let me die the moment he heard those orders.

He should have hoped for it to happen, but he did not.

Why does he care? Why did he rush to catch me when I fell?

This wolf was too much of a puzzle to solve and was making my feelings unstable. I could not believe that I might have won a small space in Alijah’s heart. It was a hope I would never allow myself to feel. If I did, then I never let him go.

Though, the searing pain was still present in my chest. It made me want to rip off all the bandages I had. Though the annoyed wolf would not let me. He growled every time I reached for it, though he was not speaking to me.

Any little sound I made seemed to irritate him, though. It made me feel like I was walking on eggshells. Fortunately, he sat on a chair near the door while I tried to keep to myself for the time being. Nothing I said was right, though.

It was almost as if I wanted to push him away, which was not right at all. It was the last thing I wanted to do to Alijah, yet I unconsciously did it because it scared me to death any other way. I was a coward for anything involving him. Not that he could want me that way.

After all, he had Lilith waiting for him to rescue her. Back in the cave, it must have been a lapse in judgment. The same thing must be what was happening this time, too. Or maybe he was lonely after all his years in solitary.

There was no way those kisses, or this demeanor meant anything other than physical pleasure. The moment those thoughts crossed my mind, I... felt warm. Just from remembering the way he felt. This was dangerous.

I shifted my focus back towards the pain. That was something I could not mess up. Even though it burned like crazy, I did not rip up my bandages, in fear of making Alijah angrier than he already was.

Part of me wanted to find the reason everything had turned so messy, but I already knew why. It turned like this because of what I did in the cave. Because I could not control myself when I thought I lost him. I did not differ from all the women that were after him.

Although... I did not want his seeds, but him instead. All of him... I did not care if I conceive a child with him. All I wanted was him and him alone.

Make him smile and all mine...

Something that could never be. Though... that thought made me wonder if he knew the reason he did not conceive all those years ago. Lycans born under the blood moon were a rare event. Well, it only happened twice in all the years since Lycans roamed our world.

Dad and Alijah were the only two cases in our known history. They were also born sterile until the following red moon. At that time, it activated their powers and reproductive capabilities. Back in Alijah’s time, there were few scientific advancements. They never studied him as they did with Dad. Though my father did not know he was a test subject.

Alijah probably was unaware of the reason all the girls who ravished him never bore a pup. Well, before he got the power to escape. It made me happy how they all failed. Even though it cost Alijah more pain than he would admit.

Though no matter how much they assaulted my wolf, he never gave them what they wanted. A blessing and a win if you asked me. An hour passed before I struggled to find my way out of the bed. The grumpy wolf watched me closely. My thoughts were all over the place. Though…

The moment I went for my bandages again, he stood up, closing the gap between us before grabbing my hand. In response, I winced in discomfort. Though it was not from the way he grasped me, but because of the stitches that were becoming more of a bother with every second that passed.

My chest was still stinging, but significantly less than when I first woke up. That was the only comfort I found in this situation, though. My healing was speeding up, and I had to remove the stitches or else it would become a bothersome situation. Wyatt had not used the special ones that Lycans used, made from a degradable material that our cells could break down.

Humans with their alchemy had made them, much like many other useful items. Though they had also made many horrors. One of them was gunfire, and that made most of the elves unhappy. Though the humans argued, it was for their defense. Something the council could do nothing about.

The moment Alijah noticed my discomfort, in one swift movement, he ripped off the bandages faster than I could. There, ignoring my bare chest, he noticed right away the problem, heading outside of the room. Even though I should have felt relief that he was going to find me comfort, it hurt to see him not react to my chest.

What happened in the cave must have been a hiccup for him. After all, I was nothing to aim for.

This isn’t the first time he has seen it, Rem. What do you expect? Even in your dreams…

Sitting on the bed again, I glanced down towards my breast. There I saw my spherical birthmark had turned pure red. It used to be black. It even radiated a type of warmth. One, I did not know what it meant.

This was the first time this had ever happened to me. A second later, Alijah came back in with special scissors made to remove sutures with ease. He was observing Wyatt the whole time when he worked on me.

This allowed my wolf to know where everything was. The moment his hands touched my skin to remove the stitches, I shivered. Luckily, he focused on his task rather than on how I reacted to him. It almost felt like torture to feel him so close, yet so far.

I struggled to keep my hands from pushing him away. He relieved me of every stitch in the front of my body. It bothered me how he did not react when he touched my breast. There was no reaction from him on his…

Once done in the front, Alijah moved to my back, where I subconsciously yelped the moment his fingers touched me. It startled him. He thought he had harmed me, but quickly noticed that was not the case. For a moment, he grumbled a curse, while I apologized profusely for scaring him.

When I turned around so he could see better, he suddenly pinned me onto the bed, tracing his fingers on my back. Shivers ran down my body as a small chuckle left his lips. He snipped the stitches he found there before he threw the scissors to the side.

I thought it was over, though my heart stopped when he pressed himself against me.

Is this payback for my orders or for attacking him in the cave? My heart…

“You... have such cute reactions to me. Why, Rem?” Alijah asked, curious about why I was always so jumpy around him.

It caught me off guard.

What... how... Fuck... Does he know? Why can’t I hide things better?!?

I doubted he knew how I felt. Well, truly felt, but he was noticing how he could make me react. This was not good. Although, it was obvious. How I felt... after... the cave incident. I... was in denial that he did not know. More like hoping he did not know.

“I don’t...” I trailed off, stopping by the sound of a door opening outside.

In an instant, Alijah got off me, allowing me to place my shirt on. A familiar voice erupted from the wooden walls, sending me into a straight panic.

“Caden! What are you doing?!?!” Aiden screamed at my brother, who had been dangerously close to finding us.

Instinctively, I grabbed onto Alijah, dragging him onto the bed. I used my hand to cover his mouth. Nothing was going right. Of course, they would be right behind me.

Shit...

Noticing my demeanor, Alijah stayed still while behind the closed door. A scene unfolded.

“I swear, I smelled her here. But these fucking incenses the elves are burning up are messing with my scent now!” Caden complained loudly, kicking a chair.

He was right in the living room of Wyatt’s house.

“You know the elves do this every time their loved ones die. And you can’t go into houses without the owner’s permission!” Aiden scolded Caden, who growled in response to our brother’s rules.

At this moment, he could not care enough about the rules the Cerberus order had.

“I don’t fucking care, Aiden. We need to find Rem. That’s all that matters now before things get out of hand!” Caden argued with Aiden, who sighed in response.

This was not like my carefree brother... to sound so worried about something. It was almost heartbreaking.

“Look, I know you care and are scared. I’m too, but...” Aiden tried to cool off Caden, who ignored him.

He seemed to scramble around the room.

Has he caught onto my scent? Shit…

Luckily, all I could smell was the incenses, so for their noses, it would be worse. Noticing what was happening, Alijah decided I would not manhandle him without a price. I could feel a smile rise on his lips before his tongue licked the inside of my palm.

I wanted to yelp, but I bit my lip to hold it. My grumpy wolf found the perfect way to get back at me for all the previous things I had done, barring the interruption of my brothers.

Will my heart survive this?

That was the only question left in my mind.

“No, you don’t fucking know Aiden. If something happens to her, I won’t forgive myself. I knew we should have taken her with us, but you all dismissed me, like always. And now she is alone with that psychotic wolf.” Caden snarled, angered by the lack of information they had received.

Shit...

My brother had just set Alijah to lose with that comment, though. A small, low chuckle left his lips, pulling my hands down before leaning in and licking my lips. I...

“Psychotic... I think I should live up to their expectations. After all, I have treated you too gently, Rem.” Alijah whispered into my ear soon after.

I felt my cheeks burn red. However, the annoyance on his face was present. I could not say a thing back to him. He suddenly shoved his hand down my pants, causing me to gasp before quickly pulling it out and kissing me. He pinned me onto the headboard of the bed as his tongue explored my cavity.

Caden continued to make it worse, though. Luckily, their voices were so loud that they overwhelmed any small noise coming from this room. I... was about to drown, though. Alijah’s tongue caressed mine while I clasped onto his shirt.

He softly kneaded one of my breasts, leaving it tender. My heart was racing a marathon, though. The moment left me longing and wanting more than I could have. Though... the warmth from my wolf was too addictive to get away from. I could not help myself from kissing him back.

It was hooking, and it left my mind fuzzy.

I want more... much more. No… everything.

Grabbing the back of my head, he pulled me into a deeper kiss as his tail coiled around my waist. It was almost as if I was in heaven. This was not a punishment at all. To me, it was a reward, one that I wanted to claim.

My tongue fought with his, pulling on his shirt for better support. After a few muffled arguments behind us, something changed.

“Look, I know how you feel, but we need to calm down. Doing things like this won’t do us any good.” Aiden tried to calm Caden, who seemed stressed by it all.

The tone in his voice caused Alijah to separate from me, allowing me to breathe. A saliva string connected us, as he held onto my chin, preventing me from following while he turned towards the door. Caden had caught his attention while my breath was shaky and uneven.

This wolf was not good for my heart. The stupid brothers were just enticing the already grumpy wolf to act out. Now I could not get rid of the feeling of Alijah’s lips on mine that was freshly implanted. And the radiating heat his hand left on my breast.

How can I keep myself from jumping him?

The moment I saw him lick his lips while he gazed at the door, I felt like I was about to lose it.

Does he realize I am half Lycan?

I could attack him easily yet…

The reason he can gaze away is that he isn’t interested in me.

That stung to think, especially with how warm it was. Tears were about to come out. Luckily, my brothers would save me from that pity party, giving me a distinct thing to worry about.

“I can’t calm down. Not when she can be hurt along with that psycho. Before they lit up all those fucking incenses, I smelled her, but now her scent is so weak that I... What the fuck was she thinking?!? She knows better!” Caden exploded, slamming his hands into a table in the living room.

A loud crack came from the desk. It startled me, bringing me back to this world. Though I could not help but break out in a cold sweat. After all, my brother had yet again called Alijah a psychopath.

“Your brothers don’t have good manners,” Alijah whispered, making sure I was the only one who could hear him.

Says you?!?

Sadly, I could not say a thing back to him. Tracing his finger on my lip, a soft smile rose on them. Slowly, he leaned on to me. My heart was about to race once again when someone else entered the fray outside, catching his attention again and away from me.

“She probably felt trapped by two overbearing brothers.” Sophie finally caught up to them.

So, she was with them, too. Probably Mom asked her to tag along to keep them from killing each other. Whenever it came to me, Caden did not seem to control himself much. Probably because he felt guilty over what happened the day on the roof.

Aiden hid it better, but he also was a mess. Especially whenever I got sick after that day. They would always sleep with me. My cute, adorable brothers were overbearing indeed. If they even knew half of the things I had done with Alijah, they probably would get into a fight with him.

An unwinnable one at that.

“Sophie,” Aiden called out, love-struck as always.

For a moment, there was silence. Caden always struggled to speak to Sophie, too. Part of me always thought he had a crush on her too, though Aiden had made his claim already. Though Caden always made it seem, he was not interested in her.

“She feels different...” Alijah mumbled, ears twitching a bit upon hearing her voice.

I knew what he meant. He probably sensed she was part of his family line. Dad or any of us could never do that, but Alijah was different. We believed his power came from all the anger he had stored, while Dad's strength came from love.

Though my wolf did not know who Sophie truly was. All I could do was bite my lip as I tried to push all those useless feelings away. Him knowing that right now was not important, though I had to tell him one day.

I feared if I said anything, Caden would somehow hear me. He was always the one to find me when I tried to run away from home. And right now, he was so close to finding me. I... wanted to disappear.

“We’ll find her, Caden, but the right way. Rem will be fine. After all, that spell Vera helped her make appears to keep Alijah in line. I mean, the villagers seem to have been saved by him too.” Sophie tried to soothe the situation, but it just triggered Caden more.

He was a free spirit, just not with me.

“That’s what they think! They don’t know how dangerous that Lycan is. Even worse, with Rem! She is a hazard by herself. She shouldn’t have left home!” Caden shouted, angered because I faced a shadow demon.

Without him there to protect me. Alijah had done so in his place. It reminded me of my burning birthmark. It had quelled a bit since I woke up, but it still bothered me somewhat. I did not know what the shadow demon tried to do to me. But surely, it was nothing good.

What was worse, though, was that they were talking extra! Alijah did not need to know I was a hazard.

Fuck... Please... Shut up you, idiots!

“Caden, this isn’t like you.” Sophie tried to calm him.

He was difficult to deal with when he got like this. Probably seeing the scene of what had just happened did not help him find peace. I had run around the entire village after Alijah and the beast. It was why my scent was practically everywhere but the blood. The blood set Caden off worse. Though they knew more than I thought.

I always knew they were right on us, but for how long would surprise me.

“What the hell do you know how I am like?!” Caden snapped.

He was lashing out at everyone, not that he meant it.

“Okay enough, you know she doesn’t mean any harm,” Aiden growled at the frustrated twin.

“Look, you saw what happened in that raiders' camp, right? She did it without having to...” Caden stopped, not wanting to finish that thought.

A moment of silence passed as I wished I could bust down those doors and shut them up. However, that might have been exactly what they wanted.

“From what those survivors told us. I... can’t let her fall into darkness anymore. Not like this. Not my baby sister. Not when I swore to protect her. I will not fail her again,” he finished, sitting on what sounded like the couch outside.

Are they planning on staying?

Though his words kind of touched my heart. It made me realize how scared my family was for me. And of what I could do if something went wrong. Alijah noticed my change in demeanor. He pulled me into his chest, allowing me to snuggle myself into it.

His tail wrapped around my waist protectively. He did not seem happy to see me like this. Though he was paying close attention to what they were speaking about, too.

“Then we need to kill Edna. It’s the witch’s fault all of this is happening.” Aiden pointed out.

Caden seemed exhausted. If only they knew how close they were to me. If they had seen what happened in the raiders cave, then... they were right to be desperate to find me.

“Rem... is not making things easy for us, huh?” Caden sighed, getting up from where he was.

“Nope. Just like her. Annoying little brat.” Aiden huffed.

I knew deep down that he was trying to hide how scared he was. Though I could not help but feel annoyed by the way he mentioned me.

“We have to report this to Dad and there is no fucking signal in this village. All the fucking incenses are messing with my nose too. I won’t find her in this mess.” Caden growled, annoyed by the tradition of elves.

They always burned different scents to send off their dead. They usually celebrated their deaths, too. In their eyes, these loved ones would never feel pain again, thus they needed to remember all the good times. Something weird for everyone else, but it was something we had to respect.

Though my brothers were annoyed by the fact it was stopping them from finding us. It covered the entire village in smoke. So, it had to have been hours since the showdown with the demon. It made me wonder if it bothered Alijah, too. Though he had not complained at all.

“After the collapsed cave, I thought I had her too. But all I could smell there was him. He is a monster, isn’t he?” Aiden huffed.

Someone walked around the room.

“I don’t understand why they took that cave though,” Sophie noted, knowing they advised it to stay away.

“Because it was abandoned. The miners made the whole thing unstable for tourists. Rem is brainless, but she isn’t a lost cause.” Caden commented.

Again, there was more movement around the room. Though, I could not tell who was doing what.

“Well, I would put a point on brainless. The cave collapsed on them.” Aiden chuckled.

It triggered me a bit. That entire plan would have been brilliant if I had not allowed my emotions to overcome me.

“Until that wolf destroyed half of it.” Sophie pointed out.

“Fuck it. Let’s look around this house before we leave.” Caden opened the door next to us.

Oh, Fuck! Fuck! We are so screwed.

If we moved, they would hear us, but if they opened the door, they would also see us. They pinned Alijah and me down. Caden searched around before moving towards us. The moment the doorknob twisted, someone interrupted them.

Years of my life were shaved off at that moment.

“Excuse me, what are you doing here?” Wyatt questioned the trio, who were caught red-handed.

They were all invaders in his eyes.

“Oh, sorry... Are you the owner of this clinic?” Sophie quickly countered him with her question.

She was always smart. Reminded me of how cunning uncle Liam was. It made me wonder if he was also looking for me. I was too much of a handful.

Wyatt was not happy about the intruders in his house, though. It reminded me of when he told me they did not take lightly to strangers. Luckily, whoever was about to open the door to our room stepped away.

I clung to Alijah tightly. It seemed impossible to push off the kiss he had given me. I knew he did it to tease me after being insulted by my brothers. But my heart could barely stop being hopeful.

“Yes... Somehow it stayed up during the fight. What could I do for you?” Wyatt asked, not appreciating them.

I had not heard him be this hostile towards us.

“Have you seen this girl?” Aiden stepped in, probably showing him a picture of me.

Shit... we are doomed.

“I have...” Wyatt began.

My heart stopped for a moment as he continued.

“But they left the village after the beast attacked.” He finished, surprising me.

Why did he lie to them?

Before I could even try to understand, they continued to speak.

“Ah, I see... could you show us where?” Caden asked.

Wyatt sighed, not liking the fact they were wasting his time like this.

“I didn’t see where they went, but I’ll show you where I last saw them. Follow me.” Wyatt sounded somewhat annoyed.

Though he tried to stay polite towards them. The door closed shut behind them, allowing us to breathe freely. Alijah and I stayed there in silence for a bit. After a few minutes, he turned to me, curious about what my brothers were talking about.

“Rem... what was all that?” Alijah asked.

I did not know how to answer him.

“My brothers have been right behind us the whole time, it seems,” I answered, trying to see when they caught onto our tail.

Probably was those survivors from the raiders like they had recalled.

Have they reported to Dad? Surely, they did. All of that iris and sedatives are an issue for him to fix. If there was a fix.

For all we knew, humans could have been selling it to them, too. Celestelia was lawless lands after all.

“I knew since if they are anything like Fenris, it’s predictable. No, what I want to know is why did they call you dangerous?” Alijah studied my reactions.

I tried to hide my true nature. He could not know that I...

“Ah... Well, you know I can’t control myself well, especially when I shift.” I tried to change it towards where I wanted it to go.

Though Alijah was not falling for it. He knew better. Something like that would not have bothered me too much.

“Sounds like it is more than that.” Alijah grabbed me by my hand.

I could not tell what expression I had on my face. Probably nothing convincing, which was bad.

This is terrible.

I had to be strong when I tried to lie to him, but I... could not help myself anymore. It would be impossible, yet I tried.

“Nope... Nothing else.” I lied through my teeth only for Alijah to catch on quickly.

His expression changed to one of annoyance. Even eyes turned colder towards me. I could not stop saying all the wrong things.

“You’re lying to me, Rem,” Alijah growled.

I turned my face away from him. It was impossible to lie to him anymore, so instead, I kept silent while he pulled away from me, frustrated by that too. However, this time, it seemed different. It felt like if I did not chase him, I would never reach him again.

Unable to stay behind, I followed him out of the door. He rummaged around the house where my brothers had been. Their fresh scent was all over the place. Luckily, the incenses were still on too.

“What are you doing?!?” I questioned.

He ignored me, continuing to search around for something in the cabinets.

“Alijah!” I called out to him, hesitating to grab onto his shirt.

I should have stopped him. He suddenly picked an unlabeled bottle out of the shelves. Opening it, he sniffed it a bit.

“It smells like it...” Alijah mumbled, suddenly gulping it down.

Stunned, I stared at him.

Just what the fuck does he think he is doing?!?!?

Wyatt had been so nice to us. This was unacceptable!

“What are you doing!?! You stupid wolf!” I yelped, snatching the bottle away from him.

He licked his lips, suddenly feeling woozy. He had bottled almost the entire thing down.

“Fuck! I thought it was alcohol,” Alijah muttered, feeling off right after.

It triggered me to take a whiff of the contents inside the bottle. It smelled like ethanol, but there was something off about it, too. I mean, there were many types of alcoholic flavors. I did not know what it was, but it also smelled somewhat familiar.

I could not place my finger on it, though.

“You wanted to get drunk?!?” I growled loudly.

He suddenly lost his balance, only for me to catch him before he hit the ground.

“Alijah, are you hammered?!?” I worried.

This was impossible for it to happen so soon. Yet he could barely stand up. Grabbing hold of the desk beside us to help himself up, his breathing had become unstable. He did not seem okay. All of this because of my stupid brothers.

Though I could not blame them alone. I had hurt Alijah before they even came around. All of this was my fault. I could not even blame him for wanting to get drunk to get away from me. I tried to take a few steps towards the room we were in.

Alcohol usually would not affect Lycans this quickly, even when they drank an entire bottle. So, the thing he downed left me worried. Opening the door, Alijah seemed to get heavier, panting for air. His face was flushed red, too.

After I laid him down, I would have to rush to find Wyatt without my brothers finding me. Though, it would be much worse than that.

“Rem... get away from me,” Alijah warned in a husky voice.

I refused to do what he wanted. Yeah, I lied, but I was not about to let him fall flat on his face from getting drunk. It was a bit of a struggle, and Alijah muttered a few incoherent things. But I got him back onto the bed. The moment I laid him down, he suddenly pulled me onto the bed with him.

The bottle fell out of my hands and onto the floor. In an instant, everything changed when Alijah towered over me. His eyes seemed so different. He was not fully there.