With my hand in his, i trailed behind him, almost jogging to catch up with his long strides.
The sun was blazing- bright and pleasing contrast to how i was feeling on the inside.
I almost tripped on fell face first on the hard ground but thankfully Xerxes was there to hold me. He pulled me close my waist and made me walk beside him, his steps now matching mine. Though, his face was blank, void of any emotion.
I was glad, i didn't come barefoot and Xerxes had advised me to wear shoes before we exited the house to where Lisa was.
My eyes noted the surrounding we were heading too, i wasn't exactly familiar with this part of the pack.
"Where are we going?" My curiosity got the best of me and i couldn't help but ask breaking the silence between us.
"Dungeon." Was his reply.
"But...but that's where rogues or werewolves who break the laws are kept..." No one can't be this cruel to his own pack members, but it was Xerxes, so he probably can.
Xerxes didn't respond, his face looking straight ahead as if he didn't hear me.
Oh Lisa. My heart pained for the troubles she had to go only because of me. I would make sure, she gets justice and no longer suffer in my place.
The remaining distance to the dungeon ended in heavy silence. The place was heavily guarded, but when they saw Xerxes, they bowed before opening the heavy metal doors for him to pass.
Xerxes ushered me in before following close behind me, he turned around to face the guards who stood stiff by his mere stare, not meeting his eyes.
"Who is on the duty?"
"Thomas and Luke." One of the guards answered.
Giving a nod, Xerxes spoke up. "Make sure, no one comes in until i say so."
"Yes, Alpha King." The guard answered automatically.
Xerxes turned around and pulled me along with him. I looked around the dark hallways, dimly lit by the bulbs on the walls. Our footsteps echoing loud, the walls were dirty and turning black.
A strong stench of blood hit my nostrils making me cover my nose and mouth. My brows furrowed as i took in our surrounding, slowly and anxiously.
I pushed myself further into Xerxes side unintentionally, making his hold over my waist tighten.
"We can go back if you want." He suggested, looking down at me. His eyes held a tinge of worry for me.
I shook my head at him. "I want to see her." I wasn't going to run away anymore, i will face my problems fair and square, nor would i hide behind people's back anymore.
No words were exchanged after that, and soon I saw another metal door, guarded by two huge wolves. My legs stopped moving as i stared at the two wolves with wide panic eyes.
Xerxes looked down at me, before urging me to continue walking. The wolves stopped prancing around the door and growled lowly when they heard our footsteps.
They bowed their heads when they realised it was Xerxes.
It wasn't my first time seeing a wolf but it was my first time seeing such a huge wolf. They almost reached my shoulders and i was 5'2. Their fur was a dark shade of brown- coffee coloured, with a strip of White on their chest. The two wolves were identical unable to distinguish.
They moved aside and let Xerxes open the door, i followed behind him closely, my eyes wary of the wolves.
Once inside, the first thing i saw was doors and more doors. Xerxes stood before me and blocked my vision but looking at the each side of the room, it was a very large room, more like a hall which had doors on the wall, likely to lead to another room.
I heard a low groan of pain, my ears perking up at the sound. My senses heighten and i tried to recognise the familiar scent.
The stench of blood- both dried and fresh, was too strong, overwhelming my senses but i caught a whiff of a familiar scent- Lisa.
I gripped Xerxes shirt as i stood behind him, my eyes brimmed with tears when i realised she was in the room, with us. And the chances of the fresh blood that i smell was hers.
Bracing myself, i stepped away from behind him and stood beside him.
A sob escaped my lips when i saw her, the state she was in. "Li...sa..." I made a move to walk towards her but a hand over my wrist stopped me from taking any step further.
"Is she awake?" Xerxes asked, it was then that i noticed the two person who were standing at a five feet distance from Lisa on either side. Thomas and Luke.
My eyes stayed on Luke, who didn't meet my eyes. His face blank, his eyes cold and unwavering.
How can he do this to his own sister? How can Xerxes let him do this? How can anyone be this cruel?
"She's awake." Luke answered, his voice levelled.
"Did she say anything?"
"Not yet." Luke answered without making an eye contact with him.
"Leave us alone." Xerxes commanded. Thomas and Luke nod before leaving their position and walking out of the room, leaving us alone with Lisa.
"How can you do this to her brother?" I hissed at him, my eyes glaring at him. I know he was cruel, merciless and cold blooded but he couldn't possibly make a brother witness such cruelty done to his sister.
"Luke is a great warrior." Xerxes answered, looking down at me with a glare of his own. "As a warrior, he would do anything for his Alpha and his pack."
"But that's his sister." My glare wavered and so did my voice. I could never win against him.
"Who is a traitor." His tone was harsh and held so much hatred, his eyes glaring at Lisa.
"Wha-"
Lisa started coughing, her body shaking slightly before letting out a painful groan.
I wrung my wrist free from his hold and rushed towards her. My knees bent and my hands rested on her thighs as i peeked at her.
"I am so...sorry, so sorry... Lisa..." I cried on her lap as i asked for forgiveness.
She was chained to a metal chair, her head downcast, her hair blocking her face from my view. Her clothes were covered in blood, her feet bare and covered with dirt there wasn't an inch of clear skin, she reeked of blood.
"Me...ryl..." Her voice was low and strained as if it took a great amount of strength for her to utter my name.
"Lisa, i am here..." I cried pushing her hair back and lifting her face to look at me. "I am....so sorry." I whispered when i saw her battered face. She had a black eye while the other eye was swollen. Her arms had cuts so did her legs, some were fresh while some looked like old wounds.
I felt Xerxes presence behind me, and turned to glare at him. "How can you do this to her?"
Xerxes wasn't looking at me but at Lisa, his cold eyes set on her. "Who is your mate?" Xerxes asked.
Mate? Lisa have a mate? She never told me she had a mate.
Silence stretched around us before Lisa lifted her face and stared at Xerxes, through her swollen and black eyes. I watched her closely and saw how her expression changed for pained to a smug one.
Her lips pulled up in a smirk and she let out a laugh before coughing. As he cough died down, her eyes shifted to me, on my kneeling form and she smiled at me crookedly.
"Lisa..." She wasn't the same old Lisa who was a my friend, she felt like a completely different person, someone i never had known.
Xerxes gripped my arm and pulled me up on my feet, keeping a protective at my back.
"Your brother." Lisa emphasized each word in a breathy whisper, taunting Xerxes.
"Who?" Was his short question.
"Zues." Lisa whispered, her eyes gleaming evilly as she watched Xerxes closely.
I felt Xerxes stiffen beside me but he soon regained his composure. What she said left me baffled, her mate was Zues. But then why would Zues let his mate suffer in this way?
"Wait... Was it Armenes?" Lisa mused, feigning a thoughtful expression. "Or Roman?" She titled her head. "Oh wait it was Nickolai." She declared then said, "or was it?" She breathed out, before hissing painfully. She gulped visibly as she tried to bear the pain. "I am not sure." She smiled painfully, playing along with her act.
I couldn't look away from her, she was not the Lisa i knew, she seemed like a completely different person. Which one was her real self? Was i fooled?
"You're not far from your death yet your mate has still not yet showed up." Xerxes' tone was mocking, a sinister smile on his face. "Did he leave you here to die? Or was this his plan all along, to use you as a shield and protect himself?"
"He would never do that." Lisa snapped, her eyes narrowing on Xerxes, filled with so much hatred. "He loves me unlike you, who can never love someone." Her tone was harsh.
She was glaring at him one moment, and the next she was fighting for her life as Xerxes choked her, squeezing her neck as his cold eyes glared at her. The intensity of his glare racking a shiver down my spine.
Lisa face grew red as she tried to break away from his hold, her hands and legs tapping against the metal bar and the hard ground as she fight to breathe to save her life.
Her eyes rolling back as she struggled to breathe. My heart was beating wildly as i watched the scene before me, Xerxes was going to kill her... He couldn't, i can't.
My hands gripped Xerxes' arm that was strangling her neck, and tugged on his arm trying to pull his hand away from her neck.
"Don't...please." I begged crying softly when i couldn't pull his hand away. I don't want to witness someone dying, nor did i want to see him kill someone.
Xerxes let go of her neck instantly, and took a step back. His composure calm and collected, as he smother his shirt.
Lisa started to cough as she breathed in deeply, trying to fill her lungs with fresh air. Her eyes were red as she looked at me in sympathy.
"I just wanted...to help you...away from him...new life..." She gasped trying to bring her breathing back to normal. Her words were incoherent and didn't make sense but i got what she wanted to tell me.
"Don't fucking lie to her." Xerxes snarled, his voice booming in the room. He gripped Lisa's face and squeezed her cheeks. His fingers dug into her skin making her let out a hiss of pain. "Nothing you did was for her. You were merely following someone orders and was using her for your own benefit." He growled lowly and let go of her face roughly.
Lisa's shoulders shook slightly and i thought she was crying but instead, she threw her head back and laughed loudly. Her airy laughter filling the room, echoing through the walls sending a chill down my spine.
"In a way, i was helping her to get away from you but..." She left her sentence hanging, her eyes averting to me. "...here you are, still with him."
"Who ordered you?" Xerxes maintained his calm demeanour.
"I'd die before i rat him out." She gritted the words out before a smile took over her face.
"You're going to die either way." Xerxes said with a sadistic smile on his face.
Lisa smiled, yet i sensed a hint of sadness in her eyes. "I will gladly die for him, over and over again." She whispered.
"That's good to know because he's not coming to save you." He taunted.
Something flashed in her eyes, was it doubt or hurt, i couldn't put a finger on it, perhaps both.
"Why did you do it?" I asked, my voice a mere whisper. I couldn't and didn't want to believe what i was hearing nor did i want to accept this side of her.
She was sweet, caring and overall my friend, like a sister, i couldn't wrap my head around the fact that she used me or had any intentions to hurt me.
I felt two pairs of eyes on me, but i met with Lisa's cold blue eyes that stared right back at me.
She didn't u by utter a word, her cold eyes staring right back at me, unwavering, unflinching. I held her stare and noticed how her eyes subtly shifted to Xerxes, before they were back at me.
Swallowing hard, i faced Xerxes. "I want to talk to her." I whispered avoiding his eyes. "...alone." My eyes met his briefly before i looked down at his chest.
"No." His response was instant and clipped.
"Please." I pleaded.
His eyes narrowed on me as they roamed all over my face. He studied me for a while before his eyes went over to Lisa, hesitation clear in them.
I sensed his worry.
"She's chained to the chair." I swallowed hard at the fact and the manner she was bound in place. "She couldn't possibly do anything." I assured him, wanting him to give me this moment with Lisa.
Xerxes eyes were back on me, he gave me a stiff, reluctant nod. "Five minutes, not more than that." He bargained and i took it without any complaints.
"Okay." I nodded in understanding.
"I will leave the door open, just in case." He informed me, his voice low and soft. " I will be here if anything happens." He let me know before giving me one last look and turned to leave.
Like he said, he kept the door slightly open and disappeared behind the door, leaving me alone with Lisa in the room.
I was grateful he at least gave me that and respect what i needed at the moment.
"That's a sight to behold." I turned to face her when i heard her comment. A sad smile was playing on her lips, her eyes looking at the door where Xerxes was, behind.
I cleared my throat, getting her attention. Her smile vanished almost instantly and she regard me with a cold stare.
"Why did you do it, Lisa?" I asked her, hoping this time she will answer me but she didn't. Her eyes were blank so was his face, she didn't utter a word pretending she didn't hear me.
"Was everything a lie? Our friend..." I paused, emotions coursing through me as the times we spent together flashed through my mind. "...our friendship, the time...we spent with each other, were you lying to me...everything is a lie?" It was hard for me to say the words out loud. It was hard for me to ask her such things but she left me no choice.
She was the only one from this pack who i considered a friend and a sister. Someone i depended on, someone i trusted, someone i loved and someone i was ready to put my life at stake for.
She turned her face away, avoiding my eyes. "It doesn't matter anymore." She whispered.
"It matters, to me." I retorted, i wasn't ready to give up on her yet. I wasn't ready to believe every moment we shared was a lie. "Lisa, please..."
She turned her head and met my eyes squarely. They way she was looking at me, made me feel anxious and nervous for some reason.
"Do you remember the girl who was with you when you were kidnapped?" She asked out of the blue, her eyes unblinking.
"How do you..." A gasp left my mouth when i caught onto what she was implying. My eyes grew wide as i took in her calm expression.
"Yes, that's me." She confirmed my doubts. "I helped them kidnap you." She informed me. "The rogue the Alpha King mentioned, yes, it was me, he was suppose to kidnap you but he failed to do so and i had to step in and make you somehow run away from the pack willingly." There was no remorse, no emotion in her voice.
Was that why i was able to escape from Xerxes pack without any hurdles? Was that why she had the escape route map and the potion with her? Did her mate make her do this? Who was her mate?
There were hundreds of questions running in my head but i managed to utter only a word.
"Why?"
Lisa regarded me with a confused stare before looking amused. "You don't know?" She asked before letting out a light laugh as if i just cracked a joke. Her laughter died down and she regarded me with a serious face. "You seriously don't know?" She asked again.
When she saw my face, she smiled- taunting and amused.
"You are not who you think you are." She whispered, leaning forward.
"What... do you mean by that?" Nickolai's face flashed in my head and his words replayed in my head. Who was i then?
Lisa shook her head, turning away from me. "Go away. i don't want to see you anymore."
"Did you mate make you do this, all of this?" I asked not ready to give up yet. "Who is he? i will help you... I will try to pursue the Alpha-"
Lisa let out a snort, laughing quietly. "He will kill us both."
"He won't, i will-"
"He will." She stated, emphasizing each word, her eyes filled with hate. She let out a sigh as if she had given up on herself. "My mate didn't force me to do this. I did it willingly because i wanted to make him proud and happy to have me as his mate." I understood her at some level. She just wanted her mate to recognise her and he proud to have her.
Weren't we sort of in the similar situation? We both were trying hard for our mate to acknowledge us.
"I have no regrets even if i die." She whispered, her head downcast. "But just because i fail..." She paused, lifting her head to looked at me. "...doesn't mean he will fail too. He will find you and he will rule the world." Her cold voice and the words she said send a chill down my spine.
I took a step back instinctively, suddenly fearing the wild look in her eyes. She sounded so sure that her mate will find me, and will rule the world.
What was the connection between finding me and ruling the world? Who was her mate? Could it be...the one who kidnapped me? Was the mastermind who planned my kidnapping her mate?
I shuddered when my mind took me back to the dark room i was held captive in, the familiar sinister laugh rang in my ears and i felt goosebumps rise over my skin. I don't ever wish to go back there never.
A lump formed in my throat and i swallowed hard. There was no tears, i couldn't cry.
My body felt languid and i couldn't stand to be around her or in this room anymore. The urge to get out of here consumed me.
Turning around slowly, i walked towards the door in daze, her words replaying in my head over and over again.
My legs halted in their tracks when i heard Lisa's voice. "Don't come back here, ever." Her voice cracked a little at the end.
Without turning around, i nodded my head resuming my walk towards the door.
If only i had turned around at that time and faced her, i would have seen her tear streaked face, as she cried silently.
***
So Meryl and Lisa talked and she got to witness the real Lisa. Or was this the real size of Lisa?
And why are they behind Meryl? What could be the reason? Guesses, anyone.
Comment what you think about this chapter and the story so far.
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