Chapter 4
2218 Words
~Donella~
A witch? What does she have to do with everything? She must have upset the bloodsucker a lot to be locked up with those extreme measures. But then, the queen of the vampires has never been emotionally stable.
Donella “Hey, hey you!”
I try to get the attention of the guard.
Guard “What now?”
Donella “Who is that?”
Guard “None of your beeswax!”
Donella “Come-on. Just this once tell me something!”
Chloe “Haven’t you learned by now Donella. Your nose is too long and he is not going to share!”
Donella “Tsk! Just because you have made peace with being here, doesn’t mean I have to give up!”
I see him rolling his eyes before walking over to the cell with our plates filled with what they call food. It seems that part of my punishment is to eat dry bread and some kind of broth for the rest of my life. But hunger has taken over, I no longer care how it tastes!
Guard “She is some witch that the Alpha King has sent here to be kept under guard by our Queen.”
My heart skips two beats then start racing.
Donella “Did you just say the Alpha King?”
Guard “Are you going deaf? That’s what I said! Now keep quiet and eat or I will take your food away!!”
So, he is alive. How? They should have died out by now? I spent hundreds of years searching for traces of them, but after making sure that the offspring of the Alpha King could no longer possibly be alive, I gave up! How did they hide from me and my spies?!
One thing is for sure. This witch has something to do with it! I just need to find out what. It might just be my ticket out of here if I play my cards right. I don’t know how yet… but I have to try.
Chloe looks my way.
Chloe “What are you up to?”
Donella “Nothing. What can I be up to when I’m a prisoner just like you?!”
I’m not going to reveal anything to a traitorous general like her. She can rot in here for all I care!
~Thomas~
I receive word that Ariel is safely locked up in Selena’s dungeons and breath a sigh of relief. Should Azi now get out by any chance I know the chance of him getting to her will be hugely reduced at least?
Thomas “Azi, you better not hurt our mate!”
Azi “Our mate isn’t a blood Queen!”
Thomas “She is our mate! Can’t you feel the mate bond?”
Azi “No, I don’t feel anything. You are mistaken!”
No! What if Ariel was right that the spell would mean we have another mate out there?! I’m not going to give Selena up! I won’t! Not after everything we have been through to get where we are!
Finally, able to get back to my office I open the cupboard where the totems are kept, going through the books, finding some with totems in them, and some without. Books without are Alpha born but not firstborn. They for some reason or another don’t find a mate and stories are written in full, at least giving me some idea of the history of my pack.
I still don’t understand why cut out the inside of the book to place the totem and then wipe out all that history? Tired of going through them to find the information I lock the cupboard. One of the first things I made sure all pack members understood was that they weren’t allowed in my office without me being present.
I didn’t want a repeat of what happened to David and with what Azi did, I no longer have Lucille and Doc’s assistance to save them should they be in trouble. I look at the financial records cupboard and wish Lucille was there. I guess I better find out how much money my pack owes.
I don’t have anything to pay any debts with and the building of this packhouse will also have to be paid in some way. The guys will need food… the expenses are going to pile up and Azi can’t go around scaring supplies out of everyone. I look for the financial book from where dad took over. He was good at keeping finances up to date and I know whatever he did would make sense.
I start reading through numbers and journals, debits and credits finding different properties and accounts all over the world. Following up on these accounts to find out their current status, I start getting a picture of my financial status.
My father had made the necessary arrangements before his death for me to be able to access the accounts, which is sort of surprising on the one hand. What if I didn’t find out about my heritage? What if I didn’t meet Selena and I wasn’t bitten?
The next I find out is that none of them are in debt. My pack seems to have been very good at saving money and buying property. Adding up the amounts it starts adding up to an amount I never thought I would ever see in my life, never mind have available to use for myself and now my pack.
I no longer have to worry about taking care of the pack. All I have to do is go to the bank… Which is no longer available. I need people there to open the old bank so they can get into my records.
~Lucille~
Lucille “He wants me to do WHAT?! You are kidding me? After what he put all of us through? I don’t think so!”
Selena “Lucille, I saw him myself. He is trying to fight the Alpha King for control. If he says he needs you to take charge of the bank, he has a reason for it.”
I look at Selena thinking that she must be under Ariel’s spell in some way. Brian, David, and even Charlie I can understand, but Selena?! I think about it.
Lucille “You really think having a vampire as branch manager of a bank is such a good thing?”
I take my time looking at each of them.
Charlie “You are the most levelheaded of all of us and yes. You will be able to control your thirst for that amount of time around humans. All of us believe in you, Lucille. This is to help the wolves. Help Thomas.”
She gives me her best puppy eyes and I can’t resist.
Lucille “Okay fine!! But if I bite anyone, it's on you lot!! Now, why would a deadbeat town need a bank exactly?”
David “Well it’s going to have a bar.”
He grins sliding his arm around Charlie’s waist.
Lucille “And who is going to take over territory patrol if you are tending bar?”
Brian “I am.”
Lucille “WHAT?! Why? You aren’t the rugged running around the forest married to the pixie wolf?!”
Brian “I know, that is exactly why. I can focus on what I need to do and you can focus on what you need to do. Let the two lovebirds run the bar, looking like a newlywed couple who just found the perfect place to lay down roots.”
I don’t like this! I don’t like this at all!
Lucille “Hmmm, a town can’t only exist with a bank and a bar you know.”
Selena “Yes… we know. The rest of the details can be sorted out. Like Doc is going to take over the old doctor’s house and there is a seamstress in the pixie town. I want to ask her if she would like to take over the shop in town. A florist, a baker, we will build a proper town out of all of us. Please, Lucille, trust me if you don’t trust anyone else.”
She puts her arms on my shoulders looking me in the eyes. Why would she do this?
Lucille “Why risk us being exposed to the outside world when we just got rid of the last of the humans in town?!”
Charlie flops down on a chair, her roller-skate’s swinging down the side.
Brian “Sweetheart, this is for all of us. We talked about possibly reviving the town. Expanding our horizons.”
Selena “Why are you so against this?”
Lucille “I don’t trust the Alpha King and I trust humans even less!”
I storm out of the office, disappearing into one of the long passages of the castle until I reach an outside terrace.
***
The sun is setting and it is going to be a beautiful evening.
Lucille “Besides the fact that you are my mate and I can sense you; your nails need trimming. If you perhaps thought you were going to sneak up on me Brian.”
Turning around to look at him I find that he isn’t alone.
Lucille “Thomas!! How did you get past the guards!! How could you Brian?!”
About to attack, Brian stops me standing between me and Thomas.
Brian “Wait, please hear him out.”
Lucille “What if he changes?!”
Thomas “I won’t, not for the moment at least. I have something he needs.”
Lucille “What? You know Thomas, I don’t understand how you can talk like this? How is it that you are two separate identities? Do you suffer from multiple personality disorder or something?”
Thomas “Well honestly… that would be the best way to describe it at the moment.”
He seems to find my question an answer to one of his.
Thomas “Listen, Lucille, I might have him under control for the moment, but it doesn’t mean he will stay that way forever. We don’t have much time. I brought you this ledger. All the accounts that I need you to look into at the bank are listed here. They are still active with the main branch and I have already informed them that my personal banker will be calling them first thing in the morning to take over the administration of my accounts.”
I look at the ledger then at him.
Lucille “What made you think…”
Thomas “Lucille, you are the only person I trust to protect my financial interests. Please.”
His expression almost begging me to take the book. Finally, unable to say no, I take it from him and he turns on his heel leaving in a rush. Brian following him with a feeble quick excuse about making sure he reaches his border safely.
I open the cover to find a letter from Thomas on the inside cover addressed to me.
My dear friend,
I know what I’m asking is a lot, but you are the only being in this world that I would trust with this information. This ledger covers all my financial interests and will enable me to make sure that my pack can return to our territory and that I can take care of them.
I know you don’t trust me right now and I want you to know that I understand why. All I ask is that you believe that I trust you. Please contact Mrs. Emily Rose at the Roseville branch. She will be expecting your call as the administrator of my financial interests.
Your friend,
Thomas
***
~Azi~
He blocked me!! How did he block me for so long?! What did he do that he didn’t want me to know? I search our memories trying to find why we are crossing the border when the last thing I remember is sitting in the office. It’s almost dark and it was still early afternoon.
Azi “What did you do to me?!”
I claw at our consciousness to get through.
Thomas “I don’t know what you are talking about Azi. You must have been sleeping or something. I was feeling tired and needed fresh air so I went for a run to check my borders.”
What he says sounds plausible, but something tells me it’s not the truth. For now, I will have to play along to a certain extent… but only until I can get that witch to perform the spell, but first I want to check on the finished packhouse.
Azi “What are you waiting for?”
Thomas “What do you mean?”
Azi “The packhouse? We ordered the pack to finish it by the time the moon rises.”
Thomas “Oh, you mean the unreasonable order you gave the pack.”
Azi “It wasn’t unreasonable! And they are omega’s what does it matter what I tell them to do?!”
I hate that he doesn’t realize our importance.
Thomas “Not all of them Azi. We have two Gamma’s remember.”
He growls from within.
Azi “I want to see the packhouse! We can discuss ranks later.”
- Writer
