GREETINGS FROM W

One

“Dear Skylar,

It has been a long time, but I have always felt like you were with me. You have always been an inspiration to me, and I admired your strength and ambition. I have never met someone as passionate and creative as you.

I still remember the first time you started writing a book. You were unsure and had no idea how to start. But you never stopped. That was when you discovered yourself and knew what you wanted to do for the rest of your life. 

Now, every time I enter a library, I think about you first. And I am sure that one day your works will be displayed on the libraries shelves. 

I never forgot the days when you would talk to me every day about the book on the royalties who sacrificed everything to save their friend from the curse of their enemy. I hope you finished that story by now. 

Skylar, I wanted to thank you for being a good friend to me and opening up to me. The main character of your book, the queen, is you. You are that brave and strong queen, who would always stay by the side of her loved ones and achieve her dreams. Do not forget that.

Greetings from W.”

My tears had reached my lips by the time I finished reading Wolfe's letter.

It was real.

He left us goodbye letters, all of us. I didn't know how I should feel at that moment. I was sad and angry at the same time. His departure had shattered my heart, and his silence infuriated me. I wish he could have reached out to us, shared his deepest concerns with us. We would have listened to him, and maybe even helped him solve his problems.

How could he leave just like that? How could he leave the six of us alone?

I put the letter back in the envelope and wiped my tears with my fingers before I turned around and saw a teary-eyed Shadow next to me. His hands were trembling, and his eyes couldn't move away from the words written in black ink. 

I gulped and took a deep breath as I approached him and patted his back gently. Shadow clenched his fist until he shrank the paper.

“How selfish of him,” he muttered as he looked away to hide his tears. 

Shadow, just like me, was one who preferred to keep his emotions for himself. He didn't like to cry in front of people, even less in front of me. But today wasn't one to keep it all in our chest. He just lost a brother, and I lost my confidant. 

I looked at Kaela and Jay, who stayed silent after reading their letters. I couldn't ask them what he wrote to them as I feared to brush an open wound. Wolfe knew things about us that no one else knew. I hid many thoughts and secrets from Kaela, or Shadow, but never from Wolfe. That's why I decided not to add fuel to the fire. 

My eyes landed on Rex, who gave me a sad smile. 

“Did he write you a letter too?” I asked. 

Rex nodded, “His words always succeeded to reach my heart in the most intense ways.” he sighed, “I guess that's why he was one of the best songwriters.”

I looked away, sighing. 

Many people came to visit his grave, and they left expensive bouquets and a few notes. A girl group I've only watched on the internet approached and all of them were crying. I heard that he worked with them before and their album was a success, which doesn't surprise me. I was pretty sure that he made them all fall in love with his charming smile as he does to everyone. 

“But he wrote something strange at the end,” Rex added, interrupting my thoughts. 

I looked back at him and raised an eyebrow. 

Rex played nervously with his hands and pressed his lips, “He asked me to send you to Luke.” 

“Luke?” my heart dropped when I heard his name.

Just like Wolfe, Luke was one of the most humble people I've met. We got to know him when they became friends and started talking about creating their label.

Wolfe always spoke well of him, and he was right. 

Once, he drove very early in the morning after he got a text from Wolfe, asking him to go after Aleyn who spent the entire night at a nightclub. He waited for him outside until he left with another guy who didn't look trustworthy. He forced a kiss on Aleyn and started touching him without his consent. Luke got out of his car and ran to him and punched his face. 

“How can we reach him?” I asked quietly. “When he's in there...”

It had been six months since I heard the news about Luke getting arrested after a girl pressed charges for s****l assault which is hard to believe as much as Wolfe's death. 

“You can pay him a visit,” Rex said with a smile, “He's at Ignis Prison.”

I nodded, “Why do you think he wants us to speak to him? To deliver the news?”

“I hardly believe so,” Rex said, “News fly fast even in prison.”

I sighed and looked at Shadow who seemed calmer now. I gave him a sad smile, and he opened his arms for me. I didn't hesitate to hug him and rest my head on his muscled torso. 

Familiar faces appeared, I recognized the famous boy group called Sixth Sense. Wolfe worked with them for years, and that was when he became famous. They greeted Wolfe with a simple handshake or a nod.

I felt the vibrations of his voice through his chest, and it was strangely soothing. He didn't let go of me despite the number of people who talked to him. 

“Mr Wright,”

I turned my head when I heard Wolfe's old boss’ name. He approached, wearing a designer suit, and his hair pulled back.

In his fifties, Kye Wright was an owner of a big name and place in the entertainment industry. He started his company in his twenties and created his first boy group called Dispatch. 

Glass Entertainment was now the first company in the country and one of the top five in the world. And Kye was the main reason for Wolfe and Luke's successful career. They worked as producers in his company for a few years before they left to open Gems Entertainment. 

“I am sorry for your loss,” his voice was deep and his aura so intimidating. “Wolfe was a unique man.”

“He was, indeed,” Shadow spoke quietly. “Thank you for helping him achieve his dream.” 

Kye just nodded and called for his assistant to give him the bouquet. He knelt and put the lilies on the marble grave. The sleeve of his black blazer got pulled up, and I could take a glimpse of the tattoo on his wrist— an hourglass.

Kye stood up, and Shadow carefully let go of me to shake his hands. The grey-haired man looked at me, and even though they were only seconds, an icy air crossed my body and not only because of his clear blue eyes or his piercing stare. 

My eyes watched him as he walked, followed by two men, his assistant and his bodyguard, I guessed. His steps were slow and elegant, and he lifted his head high as he was a self-conscious man. 

“Skylar,” Kaela's sweet voice interrupted, “Aleyn's a mess,” she whispered. I followed her gaze until I spotted Aleyn crouched under a tree, sobbing like a child. 

I caressed Shadow's back gently and told him I was coming back. Kaela held my hand, and we both walked toward our friend.

She and I were the only ones who knew about his secret. He never dared to tell the boys that he was in love with Wolfe.

His whole world turned around him. He loved to breathe the same air as him and admired him— he worshipped him.

Wolfe was the reason why he chose the right path after his parents chased him from home. But now Wolfe was gone.

What was going to happen to Aleyn?