HELLHOUND (Book Two of the Wisteria Chronicles)

CHAPTER 10~Forgiving~

Phoebe

    Titus held me as I slept during the ride home. He woke me up gently when we pulled up to the pack house. I could see Samantha and Everlee were waiting for us on the patio with worried faces. Titus arched a brow; I was hesitant to get out. “Are they mad at me?” I whispered quietly. Titus let out a slow breath, “Well, they aren’t exactly thrilled. Their Luna ran away after one night.”

  I pursed my lips at his words. He chuckled as he pulled me out of the car. “You’ll be fine.” he murmured as we made our way up the steps, Leo and Oliver close behind. Everlee was the first to approach me. “Welcome back.” she said, hesitantly holding her arms up for a hug. I stepped into her arms and hugged her back, a sigh of relief leaving her small frame.

  She pulled back and walked over to Leo. Samantha then walked over to me, she looked pissed. “Uh oh.” I heard Oliver say next to me. I was trying to understand what he meant when Samantha’s tiny fist connected with my cheek.

   My immediate reaction was to hit back. My fist balled up as I arched my hand back. “Phoebe!” Titus panickily yelled beside me. I brought my hand forward and pivoted my feet, connecting with Oliver's stomach. He keeled over with a grunt, his body sliding back a few feet. I turned back around to face Samantha.

   “Holy s**t!” Everlee exclaimed. Samantha’s face was momentarily filled with concern for her mate. Her expression quickly changed, remembering why she was angry. “Why did you leave us?!” she screamed. I didn’t know what to say so I just stared at her. “We’ve waited for you for so long! How could you just leave without a word like we mean nothing to you?” she demanded, her hands resting on her hips. 

   “I’m sorry, Samantha. I was afraid. I thought that you deserved better.” I admitted.  She shook her head, tears falling. “If you ever do something like that again, I swear I'm gonna kick your ass!” We laughed, embracing each other. Leo let out a whistle, “I honestly thought you were going to hit her back.” Samantha looked at me with wide eyes. I folded my arms, “I would never hit a pregnant woman.” 

   “Thank the goddess for that.” Oliver groaned. He lifted up his shirt, revealing a large bruise that was already forming. I shrugged my shoulders and turned back at a frowning Samantha. “Thank you for forgiving me. Let’s go inside so we can talk. It’s time to tell you a little bit about myself.” I linked my arm with hers and led the way inside.

    We settled in Titus’s office while the kitchen staff sent up food. The girls and I quietly munched as the guys handled last minute pack business. When they finished, they sat down and joined us. I passed Titus a plate of food. I watched his eyes light up as he took his first bite into the macaroni. My love really enjoyed food. 

   Everlee cleared her throat, “So are you going to tell us how you managed to disappear into thin air?” I shoveled some collard greens onto my fork and reached out to feed Titus. He gave a surprised look at my sudden display of affection. “I just warped out.” I replied as Titus happily accepted my offer. 

  Everyone looked confused by my answer. Samantha laughed, “How can you warp? You would have to use magic.” I grinned when Titus moaned, opening up his mouth for more. “I did use magic.” I said as I piled more food on my fork. Titus scooted closer as I fed him. 

   Everlee looked down at her fork, then lifted it to Leo. He opened his mouth and cheerfully chewed his food. Oliver frowned at Samantha, flopping his mouth open. She scooped up a large amount of mashed potatoes and shoved it into Oliver's mouth. He grinned and she shooed him away. “How can you use magic?” she asked.  

   “I’m half elf. I was blessed with the ability to use dark magic.” “That’s f*****g awesome! Is that why your ears are so tiny?” Oliver asked. I subconsciously touched my ears, “Are they really that small?” Titus grabbed my hand, “Their perfect baby.” I smiled up at him. “So, we have a Luna who can use magic, that’s pretty badass.” Leo said. I giggled, that’s exactly what I thought.

  We finished our food and the conversation was light. While we cleaned up, I prepared myself for what I needed to say next. Everyone sat back down and waited for me to start. Titus gave me an encouraging nod. I took a deep breath, “Let me tell you where I’ve been for the past six years.” I launched into my past, telling them about Kyra and my search for Faedan.

    They were stunned into silence by the time I finished. I made sure to leave out the goddess, kingdoms and missions. Everlee and Samantha were silently weeping. “We’re so happy you survived. Thank you for telling us.” Samantha said. I smiled faintly; I hope they are this understanding when I told them the rest.

   Leo clapped his hands, “We will start the search for him tomorrow. You will need to tell us everything about him. Write down what you remember from his appearance to his hobbies.” I nodded, trying to contain my excitement. Titus patted my leg, “Alright y'all. It’s been a long day so let's get some rest and meet up in the morning.” Everyone murmured their goodbyes and left.

  I pulled Titus from his chair and dragged him to our room. We didn’t even bother with pajamas; we just undressed and climbed into bed. I was asleep before Titus murmured goodnight. 

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   I woke up early, wanting to start my list for Leo immediately but I lingered in bed for a few moments. I watched Titus sleep, his velvet cake scent soothing my excited nerves. I slid out of bed and got dressed. Titus was still sprawled out. I didn’t want to leave him to find the bed empty. I looked around the room and found a piece of paper and a pen. I wrote him a letter to let him know that I was going to be in Leo’s office. 

  I left the note on the pillow and dropped a kiss on his cheek. I quietly exited the room and made my way downstairs to Leo’s office. I knocked on his door then entered. He sat at his desk; his head buried in papers. “Hey Bee.” he said from behind the papers. “Hey. Do you mind if I start my list now?” 

  He looked up and cleared a space on his desk for me. He then handed me a note and a pencil. I was fully absorbed, wanting to make sure I included everything I could remember about Faedan. Five pages later, I was completely satisfied as I handed the list over to Leo. 

  He reviewed them thoroughly. “You brother is a full elf?” he asked. I nervously cleared my throat, “Yeah, he’s actually my half-brother.” Leo just nodded and continued to read. He looked up when he was finished, “Alright, I’ll head over to Hell’s Shield in thirty minutes. I’ll get my team started right away.” 

    I squealed with excitement. “Thank you!” Leo chuckled and shooed me out of the office. My heart was already starting to feel lighter. Hang in there Faedan, we’re coming for you.

Kyra

   I rested my head against my hand. The councilmen were droning on about financial expenses from last quarter. “So, in conclusion, Your Majesty, we’ve been spending too much money on personal expenditures.” I rolled my eyes; this was what they said every quarter. Apparently, my shopping was starting to affect the nation. 

    I sighed and addressed Councilman Lincoln, “What do you suggest?” He started to stammer, “W-well, I-I, ahem, I recommend a decreased budget for the royal family for the next two quarters. I also recommend selling some of the property to cover our growing debt.”

  I glared at him, “Does anyone else have any other suggestions?” Ones that didn’t involve taking my money. The room was silent. “Alright, we will just increase the fines on the land. Double the prices at the touring sites and increase the citizen dues by 15 percent.” 

     The roam erupted in chaos. Councilman Kaleb spoke, “With all due respect, your Grace, increasing everything will deter tourists.” “The citizens are already paying double the original amount in dues. Increasing it more would create unrest!” 

  I flicked my wrist, “See it done.” I stood up and exited the room. I stormed to my bedroom; these f*****g Councilmen were trying to keep me away from my money. I made a mental note to have Lincoln quietly disappear in the future. I pushed the doors to my room open; Malakai was still abed with one of the servants.

   “You were supposed to be at the meeting today. The Council noticed your absence.” I said with my hands on my hips. “You say that every meeting.” was his groggy reply. “They also mentioned the lack of an heir!” I shouted. The servant jumped out of the bed and kept her eyes down, quietly leaving the room. 

  Malakai laughed, “Well, that’s not my problem.” I walked over to the dresser and threw a vase at him. “Maybe if you didn’t put your c**k in everything, we might have a chance of getting pregnant!” Malakai dodged the vase and stood up.

   “We both know that the reason for not having an heir is not my fault.” I clenched my fist. Yes, we all knew. Malakai has spent the past two years proving that his d**k was fully capable. The palace was riddled with his bastards. Malakai had made it clear that the problem was me. I even brought in a few consorts and still nothing.

    “The best witches in the country will be here any moment. Clean yourself up for the ritual.” I ordered; Malakai just grunted. The kingdom was crying for an heir that I couldn’t provide. I had to do everything possible to ensure my family’s position. There was no way I was going to let all my plans to rule crumble because I couldn’t carry a little brat. The ritual had to work. If it didn’t, I will call upon the Fallen’s minion again.