Lucien Volkov:
The punching bag swung violently after another punch landed against it. I could feel my sweat dripping down my neck as I vented my frustration on it.
The gym door suddenly opened, but I didn’t stop. Bradley walked in and stood there for a moment watching me.
I ignored him and watched the bag swinging back as I slammed my fists into it. Eventually, he sighed, "The council meeting is three days away. The alphas have already arrived at the capital."
My only response to him was a grunt.
"Lucien. We still need to finalize the security. Rogues usually like attacking on such occasions."
When I didn’t answer him, he suddenly went quiet. I knew this silence, and I was aware of what he would ask next. After all, he was my Beta for a reason.
His eyes narrowed as the realization dawned on his face, "Your Lycan isn’t with you. Not a good sign, Lucien."
The chain above the bag rattled violently when my next punch landed harder than intended, "Yeah. It isn’t," I said in a clipped voice.
Bradley was still staring at me, but I refused to meet his gaze. I knew my damn beast wasn’t with me. Zorro had vanished the moment I let my guard down.
The fucking beast must be lurking somewhere near that slave’s room. Probably staring at her from a distance like some fucking obsessed idiot. A low growl echoed inside my head.
"I heard that, Lucien!" I clenched my jaw when I heard Zorro’s voice in my head. I was right. He was with her.
"She is not her, Lucien. She’s our mate..."
"Is Zorro following that slave around?" Bradley crossed his arms on his chest.
"Unfortunately," I shrugged.
Calling that girl a slave was okay with me unless someone else wasn’t doing it. Hearing Brad actually say the word didn’t sit well with me.
Her presence kept my Lycan calm, and I couldn’t keep him chained to me all the time. I finally stepped away from the punching bag and grabbed a towel from a nearby bench. Bradley watched me silently as I wiped the sweat from my face and neck.
"You know this isn’t normal. Right?" he said, his gaze drifting to the torn punching bag hanging from its chain.
"Neither is having a wolfless mate," I snapped. Bradley seemed to wince and rubbed the back of his neck.
"I wasn’t talking about the bond, Lucien. You don’t hate her because she is wolfless, and we both know that."
I threw the towel aside and pulled a black shirt over my head.
Bradley pushed himself away from the wall, "Lucien. Your Lycan would rather spend time with her than with you. We both know this is dangerous," he paused before continuing, "A mateless Lycan King. And now his beast isn’t with him," he stopped in front of me, "You need to take Zorro on the same page or we might face a big loss, my king," he bowed in respect, "This might attract more rogues. If the people inside the palace realize that Zorro is wandering through the corridors, soon the rumors won’t stay inside these walls for long."
I didn’t react and kept staring at the wall. Bradley placed his hand on my arm, "Sooner or later, those rumors will reach the neighboring packs."
My jaw tightened. The bastard had a point.
***
We left the royal quarters and followed Zorro’s scent to track him down.
"Wait until I get my hands on him," I muttered.
We were passing through the main hall when a familiar voice stopped me, "Lucien!"
I turned and found my mother standing near a large window overlooking the courtyard.
"Mother," I headed to her and held her shoulders, "You haven’t slept yet."
"My queen!" Brad bowed and then stepped back, allowing us a little privacy.
She shook her head and offered me a tight-lipped smile, "I was just missing Anika."
The mention of my innocent sister made something twist inside my chest. I patted her shoulder with a tight smile, "Go to sleep, mother," I said softly.
That was what I could say. That was the only comfort I could offer to her.
"Don’t worry. Her murderers will pay."
Her eyes glistened, and then something shifted on her face, "Lucien. I heard what you did to her hands and cheek. Well done, sweetheart," she smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes, then she hesitated a bit, "Umm... Lucien. The remote of that slave’s collar..." she trailed off as if she didn’t know what to say.
My hand on her shoulder drooped down, "What about it?"
She shrugged casually with a chuckle, "Where is it? How am I supposed to use it if I don’t have it?"
My eyes narrowed as I searched her eyes, "What do you need it for?" I knew that was a stupid question to ask, but I couldn’t give that remote to anyone. My feelings for that slave were still conflicted.
She looked away, "Oh, you know... just in case she becomes troublesome."
This was bullshit! Even Brad knew it.
A second later, his voice entered my head, "Don’t you dare give it to her."
I ignored him.
"Lucien. I’m serious," Brad spoke again through the mindlink, "Your beast will kill your mother if she ever tries to use it."
The scary thing was... he wasn’t exaggerating.
I looked back at my mother, whose smile faltered, "Lucien—"
"I already placed her under your authority, mother," my voice hardened at the mention of her, "Keep her with you if you want. Make use of her. Assign her bathroom duties if you want. But the remote stays with me."
Mother’s face paled a little, or maybe I was imagining it. She looked genuinely surprised by my refusal.
I didn’t give her a chance to argue, "Goodnight, mother."
I turned around and walked away without waiting for her reaction, with Bradley following close behind.
The moment we rounded the corner, he exhaled, "That went better than we expected."
"It didn’t," I retorted, following Zorro’s scent.
Once we reached the Omega quarters, his scent grew stronger. Bradley raised an eyebrow, "He seems obsessed with her."
The scent of my beast lingered heavily in the corridor. Then another scent reached me, which was only meant for my nostrils. Butter croissants and fresh lime.
My steps slowed until we reached outside a small wooden door. Zorro was inside.
Bradley exchanged a look with me and then pushed the door open.
"What the fuck!"
Zorro was sprawled across half the room, fast asleep. Curled against his massive body was Arabella.
They both were sleeping peacefully as though the rest of the world didn’t exist. My Lycan’s enormous arm was draped possessively around her tiny waist.
Bradley slowly turned towards me, his expression priceless, "Lucien..." he whispered.
I didn’t answer because at that exact moment, I was seriously considering murdering my own Lycan.