The Lost Queen

Chapter 6. Shadows of the past

Ace

It was Friday already and I still didn’t have answers. What I managed to find out was the stupid symbol on the note and it was a Celtic one for Triskelion. The symbol’s meaning didn’t give any clue without Zaven’s memories about his assault. I didn’t know what they wanted from me and my family. How did they even know what happened three years ago? Unless they were the ones who attacked because we couldn’t catch murderers. It looked like they didn’t exist at all and that everyone in the pack went mad. It was something surreal and reminded of a horror movie way too much.

I heard knocking on my office door and told them to come in. It was already evening, and I was swamped in a packhouse business. The last few days were rough. I was distracted and couldn’t sleep properly. Words which were inside the note echoed in my mind and I thought about the threat over and over again. I couldn’t just dismiss it, not after Zaven was attacked in the middle of the day.

“Hello Alpha.” I looked up after hearing a husky but slightly amusing voice.

“Zaven.” I stood up and went around the table. My beta was limping, but his face already healed, and he had a clean white t-shirt and some kind of sweatpants. I observed how his shoulders flinched when he stood on his injured leg. “You need to sit down. What are you doing here anyway?”

“Man, I needed to get out from Josephine’s strangling love.” He chuckled while settling down on the couch. “She didn’t even give me my phone.” I tried so hard not to laugh but his pout was ridiculous. After seeing him that way and not in a bed almost immediately made me feel at ease and I returned to my seat.

“Do you want to tell me what happened?” Zaven ran his fingers through his hair and uncomfortably looked around. My eyebrows shot up, but I waited till the end. I needed to hear his story, but I didn’t want to rush things, he was still in a recovery.

“After you went to Ms. Peterson, I left to get coffee across the street. Everything was the same as usually. I didn’t notice anything, nor did Cam.” He sighed staring at the wall in front of him. “I don’t remember anything particular from that moment. I woke up in some warehouse maybe. Someone tied me to the chair and ropes were soaked in wolfsbane. It burned as hell.” Zaven rubbed his wrists, and I could still spot burn marks. “A lot of time passed while I tried to free myself or link with someone from the pack, but it felt like I couldn’t do anything. I wasn’t sure if I could talk at that time. Then, after eternity passed, I heard some f*****g high heels on a concrete floor. This b***h was looking at me with a f*****g psychopath smile. I wanted to break her legs immediately but the worst part was that she started talking something about pure heritage and about our parents' deaths like it was a conversation about weather.”

“How did she look?” I felt like I was in a camp listening to a horror story. It was a strange feeling and Nor was pacing inside my head like a madman.

“I don’t know dude. Blonde, maybe green or grey eyes. I’m not sure, but even with high heels she was short. That was odd. But other than that, she looked like a doll with her plastered smile.”

“When did you get the note?”

“After she was satisfied with her work, this b***h simply put it in my pocket and told me to bring it to you. She was extremely happy when my body was a mush, and I couldn’t even hold my head up. I didn’t see anyone else, but I’m sure she wasn’t alone because with heels she was wearing, she wouldn’t be able to drag me into the warehouse by herself.”

I watched with how much hatred Zaven said every word and felt horrible that I didn’t act straight away when he wasn’t answering my calls. I took out the note from the drawer and stood up to give it to Zaven. He needed to read the threat and tell me what his thoughts about it were.

“What the hell, Ace?”

“I wanted to ask the same thing.” I ran my fingers through my dark hair. “Why wait for three years and kidnap you while they could get me instead? Why all this charade and theatricals?”

“Maybe there is something more than just wanting you dead?” Zaven tried to stand up, but he winced, and I grabbed him by the arm. “I’m fine.”

“You don’t look fine. Do I need to link with Josephine?”

“Don’t you dare.” He growled and I couldn’t stop myself from snorting. I left him standing alone and put the note inside the drawer.

“We need to increase patrol. If they are coming after our pack, we need to be careful. Put some warriors inside the school and talk with your uncle about it.”

“Sure. After, this damn leg will heal. Why is it taking so long?” Zaven grumbled the last sentence to himself and turned to leave. “Don’t sit here until midnight. Tonight, the pack is organizing a bonfire with some food and drinks.”

“I will try to find time.” I nodded once again, looking at the papers in front of me. After hearing how softly Zaven closed the doors, I tried to find strength to get back to work. I needed to concentrate but my mind was spinning about a lot of things. Why everything started now? After my parents died, I was a mess. They could just come and take away my life without any problems, but they waited till I stood up on my feet only to put me down on my knees again.

I will need to talk with Zaven’s uncle about our pack records. Maybe they will help to find some clue about mysterious things that’s happened before and are happening now. I still could remember a vivid blood bath in the fresh winter snow. It almost looked like someone spilled red paint all over the packhouse’s yard. That week was snowing so hard, roads were impassable, and school was cancelled, so a lot of younger pups were playing in the snow, making snowmen, and just enjoying their free days. I had just finished school and trained with my father to take over the pack as the next alpha, because Kade was still too young and too foolish. That night, my parents went to bed early. I remember my mom feeling ill and everything seemed normal until I woke up in father’s office after hearing loud screams. I shot up from the chair still feeling sleepy, but Nor was growling in my head like a siren and I went to check what was happening. There was so much blood on the walls and floors. Red shoe prints were all over the carpets and I could smell pungent iron scent. It was a scene from a horror movie and when I reached the top floor where my parents were living, I was petrified from what I saw.

They laid in the bed with their throats slit open. White bed sheets were soaked in a fresh blood, and I tried blinking several times, hoping those visions were only my imagination. But the scene in front of my eyes didn’t change and in the last moment I caught Kade from seeing deceased bodies of our parents.

That night, Zaven’s parents and a few other elder people were killed as well. Snow wasn’t funny anymore and red marks were there until everything melted down. I didn’t know who did this and never found out until now. It had to be the same people if they mentioned it to Zaven they should be the ones who hurt my family and I need to be ready to get my vengeance.

Finally, I finished my work and stood up from the chair. Looked through the window into the night sky and saw a huge bonfire. There were some people around it, and I felt the need to bond with everyone. In the last few months, I didn’t have enough time to socialize with my pack, but now it was a perfect opportunity to spend some time with my family.

When I left my office on the third floor, I went upstairs to change my clothes and heard a strange rustling near Kade’s bedroom. Intrigued, I turned in the opposite direction, then where my room was, and found my brother in the arms of a delicate blonde.

“Hello lovebirds.” I watched as they both flinched and disentangled themselves from one another. Josephine turned first and her cheeks were flushed. She fixed her blouse and lowered her head. I wanted to laugh but everything was funnier when I didn’t.

“Ace are you going to the bonfire?” Kade finally managed to ask.

“Oh yes. I came to change. I wasn’t sure my suit was appropriate for that kind of event.” I smiled cheekily and turned around. “Don’t forget to change your t-shirt, Kade. There is a lipstick stain on the collar.” I heard a gasp from Josephine and smiled more widely.

I went into my suite and took my jacket off. I still feel chills whenever I think that a few years back it was my parents’ room. Everything changed after the incident, but sometimes I still felt like I was an imposter and shouldn’t be here. For example, my bed sheets were always black because I couldn’t stop thinking about blood on the white ones and even the walls were dark grey so it wouldn’t show many crimson stains even if they were there. I didn’t like light colours anymore and everything around was in a black and grey.

After I find my mate, I hope she won’t be bothered about my colourless lifestyle. She will need to understand my urge to stick with dark colours, she will have to understand…