Warmth ✔

Chapter 36

After bidding goodbye, I quickly head to Ciara's house. After entering her room, I find her staring at Trey's photo.

Upon my arrival, she looks up.

"Would you like to go on a road trip?" I ask.

"No," she says while shaking her head.

"I think we should go for the road trip. It'll be a good change for you," I try to convince her.

She hugs the photo and says, "I want to stay with Trey."

"Trey can accompany us on the trip," I say while referring to the photo. She doesn't say anything and continues to stare at her mate's photograph. "Ciara, I can't see you in this condition. And if Trey would've been alive, then he too wouldn't be able to see you like this."

"If Trey would've been alive then I wouldn't be in this condition."

"What I meant was that Trey wouldn't like to see you sad." After a pause, I say, "The reason why I suggested to go for a road trip was because I wanted to distract your mind from your current situation. I thought that distraction would improve your mood. I thought that a road trip would be a good change for you. A road trip may even lift your spirits. But I understand that you need time to cope with Trey's loss. Just promise me one thing." I take her hand in mine, "You won't isolate yourself. You won't keep your misery buried deep within you. You will share your feelings with someone. You will talk things through. If you need someone to talk to, I'm here for you. Your parents are here for you. You are not alone. We are all in this together. We'll always be there for you."

"I know."

"I know you don't want to go for a road trip but if you change your mind, then come to me," I try to end our conversation on a positive note.

Ciara smiles slightly and nods. I hug her and leave her house.

After entering my pack house, Matt and Darius ask me about Ciara and I update them with the situation.

"It must be hard for her," Matt says.

I nod.

"I can't even imagine my life without Anne. I hope that time can heal Ciara's heartache and I hope that she returns to her normal self."

Before we can talk more about Ciara, my phone starts ringing. I answer the call without looking at the caller ID. "Hello?"

"Hey, Chriselda. Is everything alright? You don't sound like your usual self. What happened?"

By the look on Matt's face, it is clear that he knows who I'm talking to.

I tell Lucy about Ciara while I receive looks of judgement from Matt. He's not at all happy with my decision and leaves the sitting room.

"I'm sorry," Lucy says. "If only I could stop Kurt from going astray, no one would've lost their loved ones."

Sensing guilt in her voice, I tell her, "Don't apologize for something that you weren't responsible for."

"Every time I try to forget about the Silver Moonstone Battle and every time I try to move on, its aftermath pulls me back and reminds me that just because of my brother, many people lost their lives."

I look at Darius. His expression indicates that he too can feel Lucy's guilt in her voice.

"Let's not talk about it anymore. Why did you call me?"

"I've got something to discuss with you," she starts. "Are you alone right now?"

I look at Darius. He gives me a curious look, wondering what Lucy might have to say. I get up to get some privacy. Once I'm in my room, I close the door behind me and say, "Now I'm alone."

"After accomplishing our vision, I have been thinking about the person who had been following us while we travelled from pack to pack to challenge leaders. I really want to find who that person is. I really want to know why he had been following us."

"I had almost forgotten about that person," I say. "I think he followed us because he didn't want our vision to become a reality."

"I don't think that's the reason. If he was following us to become an obstacle in our way, then he would've done something to stop us but he didn't. He just kept following us, keeping a eye on us. There's something more to it. I can feel it."

Flashes of my cousin, Joshua, comes to my mind. Is it possible that he might've send someone to follow me? He has always been against me so it might not come as a surprise if he sent someone to foil our plan. Now that I think about it, I haven't seen him that much. I don't even remember the last time that I met him. Is he conspiring against me? Is he keeping his distance from me so that I can't find out what he's doing?

"What do you have in mind?" I ask after a brief silence. If Lucy has called me then she must have a plan.

"I want to catch that spy," she starts with determination in her voice. "For that, I have a plan. Here's what we're going to do; We're going to tell our pack leaders that we'll be meeting each other for an important work. You, Selena and I going to assemble at my pack house. And from there, we'll be heading to the same motel in which we stayed when we first sensed someone following us. If someone is following us, we'll be able to sense him."

"How will we let the spy know that the three of us are meeting?" I question.

"If he's keeping an eye on us then he'll know for sure."

"Why are we hiding the plan from our pack leaders?" I ask next.

"Do you think they'll let us go if they know about our plan?"

She has a point.

"Okay, I'm in."

We get Selena on the conference call with us. We decide the date and time to meet. When we're done, we end the call.

I leave my room and go to the living room. I find it empty. Where are Matt and Darius? They must be in Matt's study.

When I enter the study, I find them discussing about Lucy.

When Matt looks at me, he asks, "What did Lucy tell you this time?"