The Lunar Destiny Series

Chapter 33

I tried going to sleep but I couldn’t. I looked over at my digital clock on the night stand and it read, ‘twelve forty-five a.m.’. I sighed and turned over on my back, staring up at the ceiling. After a while my eyes began to feel heavy and I slowly fell asleep. Two hours had passed before my sleep was interrupted by the phone ringing. I turned over on my side and picked up the phone from its receiver.

“Hello?” I said, still half asleep.

“Astraia wake up! Wake up now!”

Naremi’s panic stricken voice shouted at me on the other end of the phone. I sat up in my bed and rubbed my eyes with my free hand.

“Alright calm down Naremi, what’s wrong?” I asked.

“Turn on the news! Hurry up!”

She sounded so scared; I’d never heard her like this before. I started to feel around through my blankets for the TV remote and once I found it, I turned to the local news station. ‘BREAKING NEWS: MONSTERS DOWNTOWN?’ The headline read on the bottom of the screen. A video clip of a huge wereleopard and Lio in wolf form thrashing at the cameras and trying to flee while police shot at them was on a loop. I dropped the phone in shock.

“Oh no…No, no, no this can’t be happening…No…” I said, starting to lose my senses almost instantly.

I picked the phone back up quickly remembering Naremi was still there.

“Astraia? Astraia?” She kept saying my name but I was still stunned and couldn’t find my voice.

“Astraia listen to me, Ba’al and Githinji went to help them a long time ago. They came back because they couldn’t find Lio.” She said. Her voice was very careful. My own panic set in then.

“What? What do you mean they couldn’t find him? Didn’t they have his scent? Feel his power?” I asked.

“Yes but, Lio’s scent didn’t go beyond the jail. The police have either captured him or something went very wrong.” She said.

My heart must have dropped down into my stomach when she said that last part, that’s how worried I was.

“He’s not dead, I know he’s not. The police are no match against him, Naremi.” I said, starting to get even more upset. My eyes stung with the beginnings of tears.

“Of course he’s alive, we just don’t know where he is right now that’s all. Hey, I know you two had a disagreement and you left but, I don’t think you should be alone right now. If Lio was caught you know that crazy officer will be at your house at some point today. Would it be alright if Githinji picked you up and brought you back?”

Naremi asked in that same cautious tone. My mind was surging with ‘what ifs’ in that moment and it was hard to think.

“Pick me up…Okay, yeah.” I said finally.

“Good girl. Everything will be fine Astraia. We are just as worried as you, but we have to believe that our King will return just fine. We have to think things through carefully, we can’t have chaos can we?” She asked.

“No, we can’t.”

“Githinji is on his way now, be ready.” She said.

“I will.” I hung up the phone slowly and tried to calm down so that I could think clearly.

Iericho was with Lio and he hadn’t even had the decency to call me. Had something happened to him as well? I picked up the phone again and tried to call Iericho’s cell phone number, but there was no answer. I began to fear the worst for them. I got up and packed my duffle bag full this time, I had no idea when I would be back. The whole world would soon know about Lio’s secret now. Whatever happened at the jail tonight would change the way everything would go now. I thought things were complicated before, but I wasn’t expecting all of this on top of everything else.

Githinji showed up about twenty or so minutes later. When we got back to Lio’s house the mood was just as I’d expected it to be, uncertain and devastated. The whole pack was at Lio’s house talking about what they should and shouldn’t do, all while watching the news. I assumed they had all come here after they took their true forms because most of them were nude while only a few of them had on clothes. Kyra and Priam came out of the living room and walked up to me, embracing me. Kyra rubbed her cheek against mine while Priam buried his face into the side of my neck. They both held me tightly, comforting me.

This would usually freak me the hell out but I really needed a hug or two right now. Even if it was a naked hug. They soon let me go and looked at me sympathetically.

“Before you say anything, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Lisette being pregnant. Lio’s orders.” Kyra said.

“It’s alright. I understand you have to obey him no matter what.” I sighed.

Lisette came from the living room scowling at me with her arms crossed under her breasts. Kyra and Priam looked at her cautiously.

“Why are you two apologizing to a lowly human? Would you apologize to your prey before eating it? Lio is our King; to obey him is an honor. If anyone should be apologizing it’s her. This whole mess is because of her.”

Lisette huffed at me. Kyra stepped up into Lisette’s face to defend me. Things were getting ugly fast.

“Leave her alone Lisette, go be a b***h somewhere else!”

Lisette’s eyebrows scrunched with anger and she uncrossed her arms.

“I’d watch whose face you get into. I’m the alpha female in this pack. The moment you forget that will be your end.” She said before shoving Kyra to the side.

Kyra was about to step back up to her but Priam grabbed her arm and shook his head no.

I had enough of this. If I was going to be the King’s woman, I couldn’t let everyone else keep defending my honor. That was my responsibility.

“You know what Lisette? You’re right.” I said, Lisette looked at me confused.

“What?” She said.

“Really, you’re right about me. I’m just a mere human with nothing particularly special about me, compared to all of you anyway. Sure, I don’t have a powerful animal form, no superhuman strength, no heightened senses, and I don’t even know your pack’s native language fully. But all of those things aren’t even close to the real problem you have with me.” I said taking a step closer to her.

Our little conversation was starting to attract the attention of the other pack members. Almost everyone had their eyes on us.

“Isn’t it Astraia? I’d say you got it right on the first try.” Lisette taunted.

“No Lisette, the real problem is the fact that Lio chose a powerless human over you. Even still? The woman you use as your emotional punching bag turned out to be his true mate. That is what eats at your very existence. THAT is your problem with me.”

I heard whispers and gasps when I said that last bit. Lisette suddenly became so angry that she started shaking. Naremi came up behind Lisette from the kitchen then.

“Lisette calm down, you’ll shift. If you do, I'm going to have to fight you to keep you from hurting Astraia. We have bigger issues at hand.” She said. Lisette didn’t seem to be listening.

“I should teach her some respect for our kind. So what if he chose you!? I have something that he’ll always want more than you, this child that grows within me!” She shouted.

That truth stung every time I heard it or thought about it. She would always hang this over my head as long as she knew that it bothered me.

“That’s enough ladies, end this now. Naremi said, but Lisette continued to ignore her of course.

“Oh no, that’s not nearly enough. Listen human, you may bear the mark of Lio’s true mate but you are not even close to being a REAL mate to him. You don’t even have what it takes…”

She said before she walked off towards the kitchen, shoving anyone in her path out of the way. Naremi shook her head as she walked over to me.

“Don’t listen to her, Astraia. She’s just upset about what happened with Lio. We all are.” She said, I simply nodded and sighed as I ran both of my hands through my hair.

“Is Lio’s bed occupied? I really just want to go to sleep.”

Priam, Kyra, and Naremi looked at each other and then back at me.

“When Vasilios brought you in front of the entire pack announcing that he’d chosen you as his mate, no one was allowed to occupy his bed but you and himself. In every sense.” Priam said. Kyra shook her head.

“You’d better do your damndest to remember important things like that. There are those who would use your ignorance against you.” She warned.

Naremi, being her usual self, smiled warmly at me.

“Come on, I’ll go down there with you. There’s something I need to say to you anyway.”

I was curious what that something was, so I followed her down to the basement with my bag silently. Once I stripped down to my shirt and got under the blankets, I laid down on Lio’s side of the bed. The scent of his cologne and body wash still lingered on the sheets and pillows. I rubbed my face against the pillow inhaling his scent. I felt calmer, more relaxed. Naremi sat on the edge of the bed next to me, watching me.

“His scent comforts you, doesn’t it?”

I nodded. “Yes, it does.”

She stretched her arms above her head and sighed.

“Astraia, that was a very brave thing you did upstairs. It was also very stupid.” She said.

“I know, but I just couldn’t stand there and let everyone keep fighting my battles for me.”

“I’m glad you did that because now, Lisette sees that you do have strength in you. Continue to show all of us that you are more than a mere human and she’ll ease up little by little.”

Naremi gently shook my leg.

“You are so kind to me Naremi, thank you for being here for me.”

She gave me a nod.

“You make my King happy and that makes me happy. I can tell that you are a good person with a big heart. You two are meant for each other. You draw from his strength and he keeps his humanity with you.” She said.

I never looked at things quite like that but, it sounded very romantic and sweet.

“Well I’ll let you get some rest. Ba’al and Githinji will be watching over you tonight. We don’t trust Lisette to seize the opportunity to hurt you in Vasilios’s absence.” She said getting up from the bed.

I wasn’t going to argue with her on that. She left the basement, and I drifted off to sleep soon after.

When morning came, it wasn’t a cheerful feeling that came over me. It was another morning that Lio wasn’t by my side. As I lay awake I tried to think of what I could do to help him. I wanted this to be the last morning without him but I was well aware that things were far more complicated than I knew. We had been fighting prior to this incident and now all I wanted to do is make things right between us. I could hear footsteps coming down the basement stairs but I didn’t make an effort to see who it was.

“Hey, you alright?”

Baltasar said, coming to crouch down in front of me.

“No, I’m not. I want him back, Ba'al. My imagination is running wild thinking about what’s happened to him.”

Baltasar reached up and patted my arm.

“Githinji and I are going to find out what happened and what conditions the police are keeping him in. We know for sure that he hasn’t left the jail. In the meantime, you try to live as normal as possible. Go to work, spend time with Celeste. Whatever you do, don't talk to the police no matter what. Understand?” He said. I just nodded.

“Alright then. Naremi will take you to get your car when you’re ready.” He said before leaving me alone again.

I hoped Githinji and Ba’al didn’t get themselves in trouble too. I sat up slowly so my head wouldn’t spin. The moment I got out of bed, I had an idea. A crazy idea.

I got dressed and told Naremi I was ready to go. Once I got back home to my own car, I drove downtown.

My life was no longer normal or simple, it never was. Lio had saved me more times than I could count. Now, it was my turn to save him. I wasn’t dressed for work; going to work hadn’t crossed my mind. I haven’t missed any days for a long time so I wasn’t too worried. I made a quick sick-call before I left anyway. I was wearing a sporty, blue and white t-shirt that looked like a feminine version of a jersey. My jeans were slim fitting boot cuts that came down just over the top of my blue & white pumas. I left my messy hair free flowing, no makeup, only clear lip gloss.

I parked my car two blocks away from the jail and just sat there for a moment. I looked down at my arm rest, lifted it up, and took out the business card of Lio’s lawyer. Azzo Eckehard, lawyer and legal counselor, read the card. I’d called him before I came down here so that he could come inside of the jail with me. I had no idea what I was walking into. Also, I had no idea how much he knew about the situation, or if he knew Lio’s secret.

After about fifteen minutes of waiting, a cherry red Jaguar parked behind me. I stared into my side view mirror and watched a man with an Italian made suit get out with a briefcase. When he approached my car I got out, assuming it was Azzo. He walked up to me with a neutral expression but reached out to shake my hand.

“You must be Astraia, Vasilios’s fiancé.” He said. I took his hand and shook it briefly.

“Yes, I am. It’s a pleasure to meet you Mr. Eckehard.”

That last name of his was a doozie.

“Just Azzo, please.” He said. I simply gave him a nod.

“Let me try to give you the shortest version of what’s going on. But before that I have two questions.” I said.

“Sure, shoot.” He said calmly.

“Do you know about Lio’s secret?”

I asked. Azzo smiled and nodded.

“I know what he is. I wouldn’t be able to properly represent him otherwise.” He said.

“Great. Secondly have you seen the news?”

I asked nervously. Azzo nodded before he sighed heavily.

“Oh yes, I’ve been watching the news since I got up this morning. Him and that wereleopard have the whole media in a frenzy, they are on every news station. I’m glad I got your call because I haven’t heard from him since last night. None of his people are able to do much for him legally because they’re not his blood relatives in the traditional sense.” He said, rubbing his forehead.

That was very bad news. The police must not be letting him use the phone. Legally everyone gets one phone call as I understand. Also, since the reporters from every station were swarming around the jail they probably weren’t going to let anyone in to see him.

“Tell me honestly Azzo, does he stand any chance of getting out today?”

“I’m very good at what I do Astraia, but with this particular case I’ll be lucky if I can get him out this week. This story is all over the media now. People are praising the police for locking up the so-called ‘monsters’. This won’t be easy but I’ll give two hundred percent.”He said.

I was happy to hear that he was going to give his all to help Lio get free, but things were not as simple as they were when the world saw Lio as a human. The video they caught of him didn’t show his human face, only the cops saw that; which was even worse.

Azzo and I walked down the street to the jailhouse and it was a media frenzy. The police had set up a barricade to keep the onlookers and reporters at bay, but they were all determined to stay put. Three officers were in different spots along the barricade and they all had their hands hovering just above their guns. They were on high alert, rightfully so.

Azzo and I shoved our way through the large mass of reporters, journalists, and cameramen. When we reached the barricade line two of the officers approached us with their hands up to stop us. One’s name plate read ‘Stills’ and the other’s read, ‘Barren.’ Officer Stills was a middle aged Caucasian male with a thick ginger mustache and the hair on his head matched. An explosion of freckles covered his cheeks and brought out the green of his eyes. It was clear he had a habit of eating high carb meals for breakfast because he had quite the stomach bulge on him.

Officer Barren was a man of medium build, African American, and had dark brown eyes that almost looked black. His face was clean shaven but a small mole stood out on the side of his nose, he looked to be in his late twenties. Possibly younger. Azzo took out his business card and handed it to Officer Stills.

“Azzo Eckehard, I’m here to see a client. She’s my client’s fiancé.”

He spoke loud enough for them to hear over the crowd. The two officers looked at each other for a moment before they waved us through. Officer Barren escorted us inside the jail. Inside the lobby it was quiet but busy. Officers and secretaries were walking around quickly and with purpose. I followed Azzo up to the registration desk and waited for him to get us in to see Lio.

My heart was beating so fast. I was anxious, so much so that I’d started to sweat. I knew he was here. Where else could he be if the others said his scent stopped here? If he wasn’t here, where could they take him to? There were lots of possibilities flying through my mind, but I was hoping he’d be unharmed most of all. I saw Officer Rollards coming down the hall to my left. He had a big grin on his face, the kind of grin people gave you when they were enjoying something a little too much. I instantly started frowning when he walked up to me. His hands were in his pockets and he stood up as straight as possible so that he could tower over me, but I stood there looking up at him as if he were my height.

“Miss Ilithyia, exactly the person I needed to see. I was on my way over to your house, so thank you for saving me a trip.”

He was so smug that it disgusted me.

“You’re not welcome.” I said with as much attitude as I could.

He laughed then but he stopped and looked past me to Azzo, and then back to me.

“You’re smarter than I took you for. Why exactly are you here, young lady?” He asked. Was he serious?

“I’m not playing this game with you. You know what I’m doing here.”

My answer seemed to set him back from his original tactics because he raised his eyebrow at me and his eyes beamed with curiosity.

“Actually I was hoping you would tell me because I know it has nothing to do with the events of last night. Does it?”

He was probing me and being extremely condescending but I wasn’t giving in. Before I could snap at him Azzo placed a hand on my shoulder and stepped next to me.

“This conversation ends here, my client didn’t come here to be interrogated.” Azzo said firmly.

Officer Rollards kept his cool, continuing to grin.

“So, you’re representing her too?” He asked.

“Yes, that’s right.” Azzo replied in the same neutral, unwavering tone.

“You’ve got your work cut out for you…” Officer Rollards said before walking off past us then outside.

“You shouldn’t have spoken to him.”

Azzo said, looking at me with disapproving eyes.

“I’ll keep my mouth shut next time. So is he here? Can we see him?”

Azzo looked at me for a moment before he answered me.

“We can go see him, he is here. Although I can’t say I’m too thrilled about his treatment up to this point.” He said in a low voice to me.

“His treatment? What have they been doing to him!?”

My voice rose two octaves and trembled as I asked, even though I was trying my best to be calm.

“The sheriff himself came to the desk and told me and I quote, ‘It’s safe to see him now that we’ve gotten things under control. We’ve immobilized him.’ I don’t know what to expect Astraia, so just try to remain calm when we see him, no matter what condition we find him in. A speeding pulse or frantic heartbeat wouldn’t be good for him, can you understand why?” He asked. I nodded, looking away from him.

I understood perfectly why. If I went in there before him all upset his animal instincts would come out and he just might destroy the jail trying to get to me. Depending on Lio’s condition, being calm was out of the question.

Sheriff Glenndale came from the office area behind the desk and walked up to us. Sheriff Glendale was about my father’s age, maybe a little older. He had permanent bags under his hazel eyes, with wrinkles at the corners of his mouth and deep crows’ feet. His hair was fully blown white, the end point your hair comes to when you’ve reached senior status. He was also my complexion which made the white hair on his head stand out more.

Surprisingly he hadn’t acquired the trophy ‘beer belly’ that most men have before they even reach their elderly prime.

“Alright, let’s get this over with now…” He said leading the way to the cells.

As we followed the sheriff I couldn’t help but worry about Iericho too. If he’s not here, did the police gun him down? I shook my head trying to get rid of such thoughts. I knew Ba’al and the others would be mad at me for going behind their backs like this, but I wasn’t going to sit on my hands and pretend like everything was fine. Someone I loved, someone I was going to marry was locked up for who knows how long. I was willing to do whatever I could for Lio, whatever that meant.

The sheriff led us down the man hall to an automatic door that only opened with card access. Sheriff Glenndale opened the door with his key card and we all went in. A long hall of cells were to either side of us and ahead of us was another automatic door. Through the glass of the door, I could see an elevator; which I assumed took you up to the other cells located on higher floors. Next to this door was a flight of stairs leading down.

“This way please.” The sheriff said going downstairs.

I looked at Azzo, reluctant to follow but he motioned me forward. Downstairs in the basement of the jail, the cells had the same automatic sliding doors like the ones upstairs. Unlike the upper level, four police officers were on guard; complete with tranquilizer guns as well as stun guns.

Sheriff Glenndale had his officers pat us down before he took us to Lio’s cell. We couldn’t see inside, there wasn’t a small glass window on it like the others upstairs. I noticed none of the other cell doors around here had them either. Azzo and I stood to the side while the sheriff tapped his access card on the security pad beside the door.

The door started to slowly slide open and I felt my anxiety rearing its ugly head again. I started to take slow, deep breaths to calm myself. Azzo took notice and watched me.

“Are you going to be able to handle this?” Azzo asked.

“Yes, I’ll be fine.” I said.

“I’ll be right out here, knock if you need anything.” The sheriff said to us.

Azzo nodded before he went inside of the cell, I went in after him.

The cell was spacious enough, but Lio was chained to the walls by his wrists and neck. It looked like a reinforced steel collar attached to a steel chain. The cuffs on his wrists had similar adjustments. Lio was looking up at me with low, tired eyes. The door shut behind us with an eerie thud. I could see that they were keeping him drugged up and so did Azzo. He was pissed. Azzo tossed his briefcase onto the thin mattress beside me. He sat down on the small metal bench adjacent to the one Lio was sitting on. My hand went up to my chest as if that would keep my emotions in check.

“Lio…”

All I could say was his name as I walked up to him. I put my hands up on his face and he blinked very slowly. A lazy smile came upon his full lips and I kissed them.

“What have they been doing to you?” I asked him, still fighting the urge not to cry.