Heart Of A Lycan King
Chapter 36

NATASHA.

A slow migraine was beginning to form in my head. I gripped my head and massaged my temples slowly as I examined the papers in front of me. I was exhausted, and my eyes were beginning to water from staring all day long at the documents.

And yet, we still hadn’t gotten anywhere.

“Like I said before, when Donald and I arrived at the scene, the other car was empty. And there were no trails anywhere around,” I explained, watching the clip of the accident scene Kane had filmed.

“I think I’ll need to go there and take a look,” Sherneil mumbled, her eyes pinned on the computer before her. “That way, I can see if there’s anything I can take to the lab and run a test on.”

“I’ll need to take a look at the scene again,” Ivayne said. “And I also need the license plate of the other car so I can replace out who the owner is. They didn’t include any of that in the files we have right now.”

“We could go visit the woman and her son. Since nothing here states that she had been questioned, we can ask her what she remembers from the accident.”

“Yes,” Ivayne nodded thoughtfully. “I wonder why they said they had some replaceings when there’s really nothing here,” she grumbled. “We might as well have carried out the investigation ourselves, because there isn’t anything here we can use. It’s just a load of rubbish.”

It’s been four hours since we started this, and we’ve all been going in circles because there wasn’t really anything to give us a lead in the files Kane had compiled. And for some weird reason, I had a feeling he did that deliberately. I could imagine him trying to hide his smirk as he knew exactly what he was doing, putting me in a difficult situation like this.

Perhaps, he wanted me to do everything from scratch myself.

“Okay, it’s a girl’s day out tomorrow then,” I smiled as I shoved the papers aside on the table. I could have sworn that I immediately felt somewhat relieved as I didn’t have to work through anything anymore. Not yet, at least.

Instead, I stared around at the room Aiden had prepared for us. It was large, and there were four computers, four desks and chairs for each of us. A fridge sat at the far end of the room, with a fluffy rug that carpeted the expanse of the room. The curtains were drawn over the window, which blocked out the sun from streaming through.

Right outside the door, it had a sign that read ‘Nala’s Office’. I recalled how I beamed the moment I saw it, and how Tiff had pinched me as we giggled, but stopped when we saw the way Ivayne was staring at us, while Sherneil still maintained the grim look on her face.

Ever since she got here, she didn’t say a single word without being asked, and no matter how many times I’d left the floor open so they could throw in their suggestions, she never said anything. She never did anything without being told to, and I found that really odd.

It was like she didn’t understand how to take a hint and she only responded when I gave her a direct order.

“We may have to cut going fully into the investigation for now. The Kalmanshe festival is in three days and you need to prepare for that as well. Like make your hair, select clothes, work on the speech you’ll give and…”

Tiffany’s voice drifted away as I pictured myself shaking before all the people that would be attending the festival. Panic suddenly seized every working nerve within me. And then, like a flash, as though I had imagined it, a voice in my head spoke.

‘Suwali Kuna.’

But it wasn’t Erin. That was not Erin. It was the same hallowed voice I had heard from the Shadows, and when I tried to reach for Erin, I could still feel her. But I was certain she didn’t feel this. It was as though it was meant for me alone.

Shaking the image off, and the eerie feeling it caused to run through me, I pushed away the thought of messing up the ceremony. As Dr Lily had said yesterday, only when one embraces one’s fear can one overcome it. I can only do this if I embrace it. So, I was willing to try.

“Will you girls be coming with us?” I heard Tiffany ask.

“I don’t want to,” Sherneil was saying as she shook her head, stood up and gathered the paper before her. We watched as she arranged everything on her desk, how she changed the position of her pen holder thrice, and how she made sure every single paper on her desk had been arranged neatly to the side.

It looked like she was a perfectionist.

“If that is all, I’ll be going home now,” she nodded, as always, not meeting my gaze.

“You can stay for dinner…”

“No. You are all too loud,” she said bluntly.

I felt both Ivayne and Tiffany’s gaze on me, but I didn’t look at them. While the way she had said it may have hurt me, I didn’t show it. I recalled all that Aiden had told me about her and decided not to dwell much on it.

“Sure. See you tomorrow, Sherneil,” I smiled and she was quick to walk towards the door as though in a hurry to leave.

“Wait up!” Ivayne shouted. “I’ll go with you. See you tomorrow, Natasha, Tiffany,” she shouted behind her as she closed the door with a thud.

“Well, that went better than I thought,” I sighed.

“Sherneil is weird,” Tiffany grumbled. “I wonder why she acts that way. She’s so different from anyone I’ve ever met,” she added.

“Or special,” I winked, picking up my phone to check up on Aiden. But then I recalled he had said he’d be busy and so, I decided not to call anymore. But as soon as I set the phone back, it buzzed.

Speaking of the devil.

“Hey, Nala,” his voice drifted across the moment I picked the call. However, it wasn’t his usual voice. This was gruff, and sounded sad. Or was that rage? I didn’t realize how much I missed him until I heard his voice. Suddenly my migraine was gone, and I leaned back with a smile on my face.

“Hi,” I whispered, wondering if I should ask or wait for him to tell me. “Are you done with what you’re doing?”

“Yeah,” he sighed, and I imagined him running his hand through his hair as he did. “How was your first meeting with your team?”

“Well, we got to understand the case better. Besides, it seems we’ll have to do everything from scratch. All the files Kane provided had nothing helpful in them.”

He chuckled. “You can show him how a Queen does her thing by replaceing everything out.”

“That is the plan!” I laughed. “I think the girls and I are going to make a perfect team.”

“I knew you’d like them. Anyways, just called to let you know I’ll be home late tonight.”

“Everything okay?” I asked. I didn’t like the way he sounded, or the fact that I may end up sleeping before he got home tonight. It was silly of me, but I wanted to be sure that he was home safe before I went to bed. It was easier to sleep when I knew he was in the room even if we don’t share the bed and I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep until he was home.

“Yes, Nala. I just have a lot to take care of, and with the ceremony three days around the corner, I have lots more to do.”

I was quiet for a moment. Something was wrong, or maybe, it had something to do with the past two days?

“I am sorry, Nala,” I heard him apologize. “I’m doing this without asking for your opinion, which is wrong. I know it is wrong, but I promise you I’ll go insane if I don’t do anything. So, I hope you understand when I tell you about what I did later on.”

“I told you I trust you,” I forced a smile. “And I know you’ll not deliberately do anything to hurt me,” I added.

“Thank you,” he replied, relief evident in his voice. “And Nala?”

“Hmn?”

“I love you.”

And that was it. He ended the call while I sat there with my phone in my ears.

AIDEN.

I slipped the phone from my ears with a small smile playing on my lips. My chest still hurt from anger, and I could still feel Leo prancing around in my head, desperate for a way to escape and finish off Matteo before the day of our fight. Whenever I remembered how he looked, Leo would growl menacingly, and I would have to struggle to keep him at bay. A few times, I considered just handing the reins to him and allowing him to do whatever he wished for Matteo.

But that wasn’t how I wanted to do it. Challenging him to a fight was one way I could humiliate him, and show him nothing matched the honor of my mate. I could’ve ripped his throat out, or broke his limbs like I wanted to, but I wouldn’t be happy with that. At the end, it was just something I had done in the spur of the moment without making him suffer for his crimes.

I planned to slowly deal with him during the fight, without killing him off, of course. That would be too soon. I’ll strip him of his title as an Alpha first, embarrass him before his people, and make a clear example of how fools like him would be treated in my kingdom.

“Are you okay?” Baba’s voice drifted from behind me. I turned to see him walking towards me, a worried look in his eyes.

I had stepped out of the grand hall after everyone had left. Kamal went with Matteo and his Beta to keep him under house arrest, while summoning Matteo’s father so I can ask him to take care of the pack before I’m done with Matteo.

“I am fine, Baba,” I replied quietly.

He stood beside me, then tapped on my shoulders before his hands fell. I winced a bit as his fingers touched my back.

I hated when the scar did this. I carry it like a curse, its pain intensifies the more I get angry. It was like a slow, searing heat, burning right through my flesh. I tried to ignore it in the hopes that it would fade away, but that proves futile.

“Does it still hurt?” Baba asked.

“Yes,” I nodded, tucking my hands into the pockets of my pants. “It does.”

“Which means fighting is not an option…”

“I will fight whoever I can to save my Mate’s honor, Baba,” I cut him off. “The pain doesn’t matter. It doesn’t hurt as much as the insults do.”

“Amari…”

“You know how I feel, right Baba? If I don’t do this, I’m not sure I can continue holding on. I already suspect that he is responsible for the scars she has, which means he had been torturing her,” I g*****d, thinking of all the ways I could have tortured him today before the fight. Whenever I saw the scars on her body, I would feel my anger spiking immediately, and the scar would burn once again.

“But you come first before anyone to me, Amari. Your health matters. For all we know, this isn’t a normal burn. It’s been years already, yet it still looks raw and painful. I can have Matteo locked away forever and you won’t have to fight…”

“But you come first before anyone to me, Amari. Your health matters. For all we know, this isn’t a normal burn. It’s been years already, yet it still looks raw and painful. I can have Matteo locked away forever and you won’t have to fight…”

“I will fight, Baba,” I cut him off again. “I am sorry, but I will fight. This time, I won’t be the one yielding.”

“If only that useless boy didn’t get in the way and made you fight, you wouldn’t have gotten that burn…”

“His name is Maverick, and he’s your son!”

“He stopped being my son the moment he left!” Baba thundered. “I have only one son right now and that is you.”

“When have you ever considered him to be your son?” I asked bitingly, hating the hiss in my tone. Regardless of what this was, I shouldn’t be talking to my Baba this way. This wasn’t how we were taught.

“I am sorry, Baba,” I dropped my head, the burn intensifying.

I knew the pain was coming, and it would last for days. It always does, like a f*****g curse which I had to carry around. Most times, it stirred up for no reason, other times, it stirred up after I got too angry. If I recall clearly, I had gotten burned due to my anger.

“I’ll go home now,” Baba mumbled. “We’ll talk more tomorrow,” he ruffled my hair and walked away.

I spent the rest of the day locked in my office, signing petitions and documents for the ceremony. I also investigated Elder Manze and the possibility of where he had run off to. I didn’t want to go home to Nala this way. I was still angry and I’d hate for her to see me this way and assume she was the reason. Plus, I felt guilty for doing this without her knowledge, knowing fully well how much she hated violence.

“You should rest,” Kane had said, but I ignored him.

At some point, I had to stop and train just so I can ease the pain that was slowly trying to drown me. By the time I decided to go home, it was already late, and the pain was slowly eating me up. The scar was stretched taut now, and with every movement I made, it was as if my limbs were going to rip apart at any moment.

Throughout the drive home, I didn’t know where I was, or what was happening to me. My body was hot, and I could feel my head pounding. I curled my fingers unknowingly to ease the pain in my shoulders. Every time this happened, it felt as though I was reliving the same day I got burned. Sweat formed across my forehead and my brows, and I had to grip my forearm to keep myself from screaming in agony.

‘We have to get through this again,’ Leo howled in pain. He was feeling the effects too, and I felt him wither and shrink away from the pain. He never did well when I got like this, and he grew restless and frantic. For me, the burning sensation was the worst part. For him, it was magnified a thousand times over because he had to feel my pain as well as his own, while I could only feel mine. I felt sorry for him, and wished that I could do something to relieve his pain. But there was nothing I could do, and as he continued to howl in pain, I cursed myself for allowing this to happen again.

But if the past should repeat itself, I won’t hesitate doing the same thing again.

By the time Kane stopped the car and I staggered into the house after telling him I could do it, my back was burning. I ripped my shirt off my body, turned my head back a little to look at the scar, and just like I had assumed, it had turned red, like it had when I first got it. It was as if someone had poured a bucket of hot water over my back, then ripped the skin off and left the place red and raw. The pain went all the way to my head, wrapping around my entire body until I began to feel faint.

As always, Leo couldn’t do anything about this whenever it happens, we just have to wait it out.

The living room was dark, and all the lights were turned off, which meant that Nala was already sleeping. I contemplated going to the other room so I wouldn’t disturb her, but the urge to see her briefly took over and I stepped into the room we shared.

There, I saw her curled up in the middle of the bed, a quilt pulled over her. But she wasn’t asleep.

“Aiden?” she called, as soon as I got closer. She sat up, turned the lights beside her bed on and gasped as soon as she saw me. “Are you okay?”

I wanted to reply. I worked hard to make my throat move. But nothing came out but a soft whisper. Instead, I felt the overwhelming pain curl itself around me, wrapping me, embracing me. The fire was under my skin now, trying to replace a way to escape. It burned so much that I felt tears welling to my eyes instantly, and I had to bite my tongue to keep from screaming.

I hissed as I bent over, then dropped on the bed, my back up as I laid flat on my stomach. I was slowly letting the darkness take me. Nala reached over to touch my forehead, recoiling at the heat she felt. She looked at me with her eyes widened in shock, but my vision was already beginning to blur.

“Aiden!” I distinctly heard her whisper before I welcomed the darkness, and the slow reprieve from the pain.

Finally.