Sleep was miles away. It had to, knowing my sisters were just few steps away.
Eva had signed the words.
Alpha is coming.
Did that truly mean that the southerners had actually arrived here? I couldn't believe it. Was Pete really crossing the border?
But how? When?
The imaginations in my mind were running wild.
After all, I had seen Lysar taking Keira away just like that. Eva had went away with a man too.
I felt anxious.
I had wasted enough time by laying on the bed, pretending to be trying to fall asleep. So, Karam won't be suspicious.
Tonight, I actually realized how he would make sure we were sleeping before falling asleep himself.
I could never lie to him successfully. Thus, I really closed my eyes and didn't open them until I felt my eyelids started getting heavy.
But my senses were awake and so was my fear of the unknown.
This was huge. Those signs, those faces of my sisters— I wasn't hallucinating. It was all real. They were here for real. I couldn't understand. How? Did they shake hands with the Mystics to enter the territory? If they did, then how did they come to know about this huge secret. Moreover, how would they return back to the border?
What if they got caught?
No!
My eyes squeezed shut at the thought. I opened them and looked around in the dark. Focusing hard and because of the faint moonlight coming through the window, I managed to observe Karam's back facing me and Keev.
The pup was deep in slumber, open-mouthed and fingers curled, snuggled into the fur and trying to get under his father's back.
Karam's breathing was uniform and relaxed. His hair were spread all over the pillow while big shoulders were blocking all of my view of the cupboard stuck to the wall on the left of the bed.
This was the moment.
I took advantage of not wearing a single jewelry to the bed and removed my hand from Keev's little chubby waist.
Slowly, sliding away from the bed, I put my toes on the cold floor carefully. Biting my lip, I didn't even breathe to make any possible noise.
There was no time to take the cloak to save myself from the mountain freeze. Thus, I took a hand full of the skirt and brought it up to clear my path. Reaching the door, I took a moment to collect the courage.
The targets were clear in my mind.
I had to reach my sisters before the males could touch them. Eventually, it would lead me to knowing what was actually happening. Even though, I knew that something big was definitely coming up.
Leo didn't think about his life for even a second to stop Pete from crossing the border. Why would he take such decision? It couldn't be to save me only. Could it? Otherwise, why would he throw me like that the fourth night?
My heart shook a little. I couldn't expect the world on just some assumptions. Things never went my way.
Clutching the big iron needle, I pulled it out slowly from the loop. From my peripheral vision, I could see nothing in the dark.
Both father-son were warm in the blanket. I sent a quick prayer to the God to not let Karam wake up any soon. He would read my face so easily.
Because I knew that I won't be able to hold myself after meeting my sisters.
Pulling the door, I gritted my teeth to avoid cringing as the heavy wooden door made a little noise. I opened it enough to slide myself out. The cold air didn't wait to slap my bare skin.
I shivered and shut the door after me as quietly as I could.
The moment I looked at the right to check on the venue where the whole bonfire party happened, the wind brought the smell of wine and dirt along.
The mess was real. The boots, fur jackets, breeches were all there. Broken glasses, horns, utensils, meat, everything was here and there. The tables were filled with stench of wine and burnt meat. The bonfire was out and only the lanterns hung outside the walls of homes were torched.
I crossed my arms to cover myself from the cold wind and thought about the way. The main Street was already filled with chairs, tables, boots and what not. I would surely fell over in the dark and gain attention. It was best to take a shortcut. But the street that I had to take was right in front of Nysa's house.
I would face anything but not the fear of getting peeked by a creepy looking Nysa from her window. But anyhow, I collected courage and walked towards the left of Karam's room. Taking the right side to hide from the faint moonlight, I hurriedly glanced at Robin's big bricked house.
The windows were covered with curtains. The door was shut and there was not a single ray of yellow beam visible from any window. It meant that no candle was lit. They were asleep. Only I wasn't sure if Robin was here or with the other drunken brothers.
Reaching the street, I turned my back to Nysa's house and started jogging quietly. A pebble nearly pierced my left foot. That was when I realized that I was barefoot. Now that I started paying attention, the wet ground started to feel like I was walking on the glass shards. It was that cold and rough.
But it would be all worth it.
The street was long. But when the wind brought hoots from far away, I fastened the pace of my footsteps. The eagerness started rising and so did the struggle to breathe.
I ran as fast as I could when the street ended and finally the big tents were visible. There were little bonfires there, started to get off by the cold wind and no one to pay attention to them.
There was this one big tent from where the loud hoots were coming. I was too scared to even imagine what was going on inside, knowing what the occassion was.
Females were here to please the Lycan men. The cavemen. The arrogant, ruthless and drunken cavemen.
Some were passed out outside the tents, while some were standing in the groups, playing games. They were far from the way I was walking to. But everyone seemed too lost in fun to pay any attention to the surroundings.
My heart started to beat faster when the lane of trees I were walking behind to cover myself from the sight of the males standing in front of the tents, ended.
I waited at the last tree, bending down to get a peek.
By narrowing my eyes, I couldn't really recognise the males to be anyone from Karam's brothers. But they were surely of the same age.
No matter how many times I had had experience of walking in these jungles in the dark, I was still a scared little human. Knowing that there were lines of trees behind me joining the street where the Alpha family lived, I was paranoid. Looking back and forth, I was slowly giving in to the cold and fear.
My gaze caught the males fooling around outside with torches, went to the other side of the big tents. The figures of the shadow formed were of dancing females and males.
My eyes closed in sudden shame. What could be happening? Were Keira and Eva there too?
I shook my head and looked around carefully. Collecting some courage even though I was close to having a panic attack, I jogged towards the first tent.
Unlike the tents one would use at camping, I forgot that I was living on a medieval territory now. These were just large woollen shawl draped over pyramids made from the thick wooden poles.
I hid behind the tent that was in the far left and stood in the dark. The male inside was too drunken to recognise my scent or presence. My ears turned red and heart started falling in fright when the sound of continuous grunts and eventual claps reached my virgin ears.
Oh God!
Even though the female sounded like she was enjoying this, I was hell worried. Moreover, I felt too ashamed to be eavesdropping.
I didn't have the heart to peek inside the tent. But I would have to. I had to know where Keira and Eva were.
Wasting no more time, I leaned down on the grass to bring my face closer to the ground. I nearly stopped breathing and picked up the tent a little enough to peek. Thankfully, their clothes were put right in my sight near the two big lanterns. The skirt and blouse were of red silk.
Neither the yellow that Keira had worn, nor the royal blue Eva was in.
Heaving a sigh, I removed my hand and gaze before I could see much. Getting up hurriedly, I checked eight to ten tents like these with my heart in my throat.
It couldn't be possible to peek and not end up watching the show. My whole face was red from the embarassment. This was something I would have to take with me while leaving this world. I couldn't share this with anyone further in life.
My mind didn't wait to judge either. I ended up noticing that each one of them were as aggressive as it could be. It scared me to think of all the times Karam had approached me for the purpose.
Walking towards the eleventh tent, I looked around, knowing I was slowly getting into the middle of this group of the tents.
The sudden gust of wind made me shiver in the cold. I rubbed my forearms while bending down to pick up the hem of the tent. There was no action going on I was sure as there were no noises like the ones I was scared to hear. Either this pair was asleep or talking. The faints voices were slowly reaching my ears. I was about to raise the hem and peek curiously.
"What are you doing here?"
The sudden rough and deep voice made me jump on the spot. I stood straight and turned towards the intruder. All the courage melted right there at seeing Beta Barald standing there all broad and tall, giving me a look full of suspicion.
He won't buy your lies!
I blinked calmly, trying to keep a straight face despite the havoc that was going inside my stomach in fear.
"Why? Am I not allowed to be here?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.
Beta Barald narrowed his eyes while looking like an older version of Victor. Grey hair and beard, muscular physique, intense eyes showing life lived from so many years—it was impossible to not feel intimidated by him.
"It's too cold for your human skin," he stated, giving me the dead eye. "You didn't walk all the way to here barefoot, to witness the deeds happening inside these tents."
My face warmed up from the embarassment and lips quivered. "I. . . I was looking for Lysar," I said immediately. The lie came off smoother than I was capable of. "He shouldn't be here when he hasn't find his mate. . . and I would walk barefoot rather than those leather slippers. They bite my skin."
It wasn't a lie. The leather must be too pure to have affected my skin like that. There were faint rashes around my heels and toes.
His eyebrows raised and he nodded slightly. Giving me a silent calculating look, he pointed towards the tent far away in the corner. It was one of tall ones around here.
"You should let a man decide his own actions," he muttered while pulling his finger back. His rough voice rumbled through his chest when he said, "Not everyone learns from other's examples."
It felt awkward to discuss the topic with him. So, I stayed quiet.
He understood the environment and gestured towards the tent far away. "Leave it to him if he is drenched in wine. No one is more stubborn than a drunken Lycan."
"Thank you," I mumbled while turning around to walk away.
I wondered if he really was letting me approach Lysar. Did he notice that it wasn't my actual intention? Even though it was, in some way. For now, I had too many tasks to be done at hand than taking care of his actions. It wasn't like we were close enough for him to even listen to my words. I was here to catch Keira before anything worse could happen.
"Pup?"
I looked back at him, turning confused and a little scared. Had he caught my intentions? Was I doomed already?
Beta Barald gave me a blank look. "Is it true that Valeria's nephew died because of—"
I nodded when he couldn't say it further. ". . . the border. He had a Lycan mate."
He looked disturbed a little from the way his eyebrows twitched. "Her brothers remember her?"
My heart calmed down a little from the sudden topic. It looked like he was curious about it. This was the kind of moment that was a chance for him to ask these questions without any embarassment. I could see a mate's concern behind that intimidation in those old blue eyes.
"They do. But in a way one would remember a dead relative," I told the truth, giving him the stink eye. He had to face it and I couldn't be resist being petty.
I waited and turned back to begin walking when his cough reached my ears again.
This time, the question sounded like he had asked it while controlling his ego as hard as he could.
"Do my females feel happy in the temple?"
I turned around properly, finally observing his blank face. "Rosetta owns the place because of her seniority. After Lucine, it is her who rules there."
He didn't react.
"Janine," I started, making his cheeks twitch a little. He was afraid to hear anything about her. "She is a quiet one but she enjoys it there."
"The sisters don't get along," he mumbled more to himself.
I blinked, remembering the glimpses of my stay at the temple. "It's not Janine's fault. Rosetta is just like you and Victor."
I turned around before I could even see any flick of anger on his face. Increasing the pace of my footsteps, I reached the tent and looked around.
Males were drunk and walking around here and there. Some were stumbling outside the tents, laughing and goofing around. Some were inside the tents with the dancers. The women were not outside and it made things more difficult.
It further worried me, knowing that Beta Barald was patrolling around too.
What could I do now?
". . . keep doing that. . ."
The familiar manly voice caught all of my attention. I jogged towards the tent and peeked from the entrance, removing the curtain a little.
The white quilt was all messed up. There was wine poured over it while dark cloak was lying on the other side with a brown shirt. Leather boots were thrown carelessly.
My heart jolted inside my chest as I noticed Lysar's long legs straightened out towards me. He was lying on his stomach with his head on the lap. His big left hand was caressing the feminine bare legs and my jaw dropped.
Raising my gaze, I followed the movements of the soft-looking hand running fingers through his long hair. Looking up further, my heart dropped at seeing Keira staring at me only.
While I was all stunned by seeing her, she seemed calm and clever in that mystic look. She put a finger on her lips while giving me a sign to walk inside.
Lysar had his eyes closed and his face was turned towards the left side of the tent.
"Why does it smell like my sister-in-law is around?" He mumbled with a groan, lost in exhaustion and being all tipsy.
I was too numb to understand anything when Keira pointed towards the big lantern placed behind me near the entrance.
I looked back at her as she said, "The new bride?"
Lysar hummed tiredly. His groans turned loud when Keira started massaging on his shoulders too.
"Ah! Your touch feels so good. How could your mate leave for the Moon without having you?" He mumbled to himself, trying to raise himself up. "You are so young."
Keira gave me a worried look while I too got alert.
I stepped back quietly to hide myself with the curtain and reach the lantern.
Keira started looking at Lysar to not let him look at my side by any chance. "Fate."
Lysar groaned in frustration. He growled a little before looking at her. "At least, you saw his face. You reached his pack and devoted yourself to that land. I doubt if she even exists. I get no signs. Ah! I feel like ripping my hair out."
Keira smiled nervously. Anyone could tell that she was uncomfortable with the way he had started to look at her intensely without even blinking.
"I wish she had been a Lycan only. It would have been easier," said Lysar, his tongue barely moving because of the alcohol in his system.
Keira shook her head with a sad smile. "Believe me, that is not what you want. Finding someone whom you have seen growing up in front of your eyes all these years, having no thought of her being your mate—to suddenly become the most important soul in your life. It is painful. You regret all those years of not knowing her dearly. You regret not claiming her before the time."
Lysar hummed in agreement, sulking in exhaustion. Being shirtless, his bare physique was the highlight. To be honest, until now I had never noticed how fine he looked. The chiseled chest, abs, the tanned muscular arms were saying it all. He was fine.
I won't deny that I had caught Keira stealing glances down at his abs in between.
"I wonder if the Moon Goddess has chosen me to claim your purity," he whispered, staring at her through half-opened eyes.
The red alarms started blaring in my head.
Keira gulped and turned stiff immediately.
Lysar was so fast in not giving her even a second to think about it. He grabbed her by the neck and pulled her in for a deep kiss.
My eyes widened. Oh God! No!
"Lysar!" I screeched, removing the curtain and stomping towards them.
The man was startled, would be an understatement.
If it hadn't been such a serious scene, I would have died laughing at him pulling back from Keira and choking at the sight of me appearing all angry.
Lysar staggered back in shock. His light cat eyes were wide in fright. He gave me a look of ultimate frustration then. My eyes moved down to his breeches and my face warmed up at the sight. I immediately raised my gaze to his eyes.
"Goodness! How dare you!" I scolded while picking up his shirt and throwing it at his face. "You have a mate waiting for you!"
"You are not my mother!" He whined, throwing his legs in frustration. "Go back to my brother!"
"I am not letting you having any fun! Wait for your mate" I shouted while covering his view of Keira.
Lysar was too mad to notice that I had put the lantern right in front of Keira behind my legs.
"And what? Get a mate as annoying as you!" He retorted and laughed like a maniac. His lips curled when I gasped in extreme offence.
"So that rose was just some act. You think I am annoying?" I couldn't believe his behavior.
He rolled his head wildly to emphasize. "A brat!"
"Shut up!" I spat back and clicked my fingers. "Either you are getting up right now or I am calling Amelia!"
His eyes widened and it suddenly looked like he would cry any minute. Cupping the space between his legs, he closed his eyes in pain and rolled over. Stabling himself, he gave me a dead look. "I knew you would be a pain in the ass. I really want to throw you in the lake!"
"As if you can. . ." I mocked while clapping my hands. "Get up and stop your cousins too. Oskar and Adam! Where are they?"
Lysar groaned painfully while getting up. The anger and frustration in his eyes scared me a little. He pointed his finger while walking towards me. "Enough! Leave now. You can't rule over me just like you do it to my brother. He is too mad in love to understand your cleverness. I see how you circle things around to fool him."
"You call him a wimp!" I reminded, giving him a confident look while still stepping backwards.
We were about to reach the curtain and I just knew that he was about to push me out forcefully.
"It doesn't hurt him. But when you call him a caveman, he gets sad. He wouldn't even take your name from his mouth to give you such respect." Lysar said while glaring at me with his bloodshot eyes. "It is my choice if I don't want to wait for my mate. But brother was innocent. He didn't fool around. It was a night full of bad luck. He was the victim. But you don't believe him!"
I flinched from the outburst. He looked mad for a second. Way too mad to literally choke me to death.
Lysar took a long breathe to calm himself and grabbed my wrist. He started dragging me towards the entrance of the tent. I struggled hard to fight him.
"What the hell are you doing?" I screeched fearfully.
"Not letting you ruin my fun. I finally got this night after an year of wait!" Lysar yelled angrily while giving me an annoyed look.
I flinched and nearly fell back in the intimidation. Lysar turned around and the sound of glass breaking echoed in the tent.
I covered my arms from the shards while Lysar staggered towards the right, holding his head. The painful growls that escaped him were real and genuine. His confused eyes moved off mine to look around and catch Keira glaring at him.
He fell on the quilt, giving her enough time to put her legs on each side of his body and hit his head with whatever was left of the burning hot lantern twice.
The scream was stuck inside my throat. "Don't kill him," the words came out shakily from my mouth.
My eyes widened when I saw a trail of blood leaking down from his forehead to his ear. His hair spread around while his eyes rolled backwards.
My heart started jolting inside with extreme fear.
"He is just weak because he is drunk. If he had been normal, you wouldn't have been able to see me in one piece the next second." Keira mumbled while I finally looked at her.
Tears welled up in my eyes as soon as I realized that we had finally got the time.
She looked at me up and down. Pointing at her nose, she raised her eyebrows with a sly smile. "It suits you," she said, observing my piercing.
I took a shaky breathe.
Keira got alert immediately at seeing me losing myself. She put her fingers on the lips and mouthed, "We don't have much time."
I wiped my tears immediately and nodded when she neared me and whispered, "We need to hide him up before anyone sees him and gets suspicious."
I glanced at Lysar who looked like he was in another world except for the wound on his head was able to describe that he was passed out.
"Come on," she said while bending his arms and tying them up tightly using his own shirt. "Give that wire from the lanterns."
The wire that was used in making handles for the lantern was thin but strong. I removed the hooks with some effort and hurriedly passed three of them to her.
"Put them off."
I sprinkled the water on the lanterns to create the darkness.
Keira tied his bent legs individually. "He won't be able to even squirm," she hissed while looking at him blankly. "I almost fell for his cat eyes."
I chose to ignore that, understanding the horror I was feeling at the moment. The sudden noise of harsh wind outside the tent made it more intense.
The hem of the tent blew because of the air, bringing chills down my spine.
I rubbed my forearms while Keira passed me her cloak.
Far away, a flash appeared all around letting us know that lightning was being struck across the sky.
Keira stiffened.
I wore the cloak hurriedly while she picked up the large fur blanket and put it on Lysar before bringing two pillows together to form a shape. Pulling out a little bottle from the belt of her skirt, she sprayed it all over the place.
It looked like a couple was sleeping after doing the fun.
"Wine?" I asked hurriedly about the spray because it smelled that way.
She nodded and put the bottle back inside the inner pocket of the skirt. "Let's go," she said while grabbing my hand. "When I hiss, pretend like you're taking me to one of your mate's brothers."
"What's happening?" I whisper-yelled in extreme restlessness when she literally dragged me out of the tent because I was so lost.
She glanced at me in the dark and mouthed the words.
The loud thunder ran down my spine to across the big dark sky, followed by another strike of lightning.
Loud and clear.
I couldn't help but shudder in suspense.
Keira's pale face and determined eyes was visible for a second, facing the narrow raindrops hitting her skin.
"The Escape."
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"What do you think?"
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Will update soon.