The Tribrid War

Chapter 6

Ravenna's eyes filled with disbelief and wonder as she entered the ballroom. The wood floor had been waxed and cleaned to the point you could see your reflection. The white tulle that flowed across the ceiling had been accented with blue lights and lined with matching white balloons filled with blue glitter. There was a table with different cheeses, fruit, vegetables, and rolled meats. The hors d'oeuvres were in the corner next to a massive champagne fountain. Next to the fountain was a table with a large white cake. The cake was accented with blue flowers and sat ten tiers high. It was distributed by two castle butlers who proudly handed out slices with a smile. Everyone in attendance was dressed to the nines in suits and gowns. Once the Royal family was announced, they took their seats at the head of the room.

"Smell anything yet?" Ravenna asked her sister, even though she pretty much knew the answer.

"Nope, you?"

"Nope, but we figured that in advance, so no need to let it ruin our evening," Ravenna answered as she smiled knowingly at her sister.

Serena nodded in agreement, but her disappointment showed. Ravenna knew Serena had always wanted to find her mate, but luck had not been on her side. Serena and Ravenna are in their early twenties and still need to find mates. Serena sighed and scanned the room; she noticed a man walking up to them. He approached, bowed out of courtesy, and stood in front of Serena as he stretched out his arm.

"May I have this dance?" Ethan, the son of Alpha Conner, asked her.

Serena smiled sweetly and held his hand as he whisked her to the dance floor. Ravenna then took the opportunity to hit up the champagne fountain and walk around to look for an exit she could use to sneak out undetected to get to her match at the Midnight Rose later that evening. She had already packed her bag and hidden her clothes on her motorcycle to save time. As she walked around the ballroom, she sipped on her champagne and looked at the people in attendance; Ravenna continued to people-watch until she eventually noticed Patrick. He sat at a table in the corner with a sad expression; he was downing glasses of champagne one right after another, and the sadness in his eyes couldn't be missed. He adjusted uncomfortably in his chair, so she decided to approach him as a friend. Once she finally reached his table, she pulled a chair and sat next to him.

"Trust me; I'm bored out of my skull too." She said to him as she glanced around the room. "How are you holding up?"

Patrick had been withdrawn since the Vampire incident and his twin's loss. Patrick and Kevin were so close; she knew he needed his space. Ravenna had given him the space he needed and allowed him time to work through his grief. Kevin's loss was devastating, he was their Third Musketeer, and his death hurt them both immensely, Patrick even more so, since he was family.

"This sucks," Patrick replied. The anger was evident in his voice as he looked at her. "That Leech killed my brother; we watched him do it; we watched him casually strut away as if nothing happened. Instead of taking the time to figure out who killed Kevin, we are here more worried about having a stupid party showing off your brother's mate with no attempt to find him." Patrick rolled his eyes and quickly drank another glass of champagne as he nodded toward a waiter to bring him more.

Ravenna rolled her eyes and looked around the ballroom at the crowd. "You are so overly dramatic. Are you sure you aren't an Alpha? I get that you want revenge, but not every Vampire killed him. This one could be a Rogue; he could be working alone; we have no clue of the circumstances here. What would jumping to conclusions accomplish?"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. It seems like we are sweeping Kevin's death under the rug, and that's just an excuse that everyone will use until we forget about it altogether. In all actuality, you aren't the most neutral opinion in this scenario, considering you've been sneaking around seeing that Vampire Prince. Ignoring this issue could be your way of keeping your relationship secret longer."

Ravenna gasped in shock, narrowed her eyes, and turned to look at him." How do you know about that?"

"I'm your bodyguard. I know everything you do! I know about him and your secret fighting personality at the Midnight Arena RAVEN!" Patrick rolled his eyes, downed another drink, and stared daggers at her.

"Who else knows?"

"Only me, I have not told your father, but I will if it gets us justice for Kevin. So, stop spewing your s**t about investigations and innocence to me and tell someone who cares!"

Ravenna stood up and quickly walked out of the ballroom. She made it outside and out of sight before the tears fell. Patrick and Kevin have been her best friends since they were little; they had been inseparable. Kevin's death had devastated her, and the fact Patrick accused her of covering it up crushed her even more. She took a deep breath, wiped her eyes, and looked at her watch.

Time to go, thank Goddess.

She quickly removed her shoes, hid them in a nearby bush, jogged to her bike, and started it up. As she revved her engine louder, she could still hear Patrick as he called her name. She knew it was not a good time to attempt to deal with him; she was very hurt by what he had said. So she ignored his calls, raised the kickstand, and headed for Alaria and the Midnight Rose.

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Serena finished her Waltz with Ethan, bowed out of courtesy, and left the dance floor. As she walked around the ballroom, she decided to look for Ravenna. Serena grabbed a glass of champagne from a wandering waiter and sipped her drink. She scanned the room, seeing no sign of Ravenna; however, she did see a noticeably upset Patrick sitting alone, stabbing at a piece of cake.

"I'm sure the cake didn't mean whatever it said. Can you please stop torturing it now?"

He gave her a slight smirk and looked back down at the cake.

"Are you ok?"

Patrick took a deep breath and threw down the fork in disgust; he then looked at her with worry. "No. I said some mean things to Ravenna, and she left. I'm guessing she's going to cool off. But I was such an asshole with what I said."

"What exactly did you say?" Serena asked as she pulled up a chair, sat next to him, and placed her hand on his shoulder.

He cleared his throat and looked away. "It doesn't matter, it's done, and she's upset and gone."

Although he didn't like lying to Serena, he had promised not to give away Ravenna's secret. "I'll ask your dad to reassign me tomorrow since she probably won't speak to me again."

"Let's go for a walk;" she stood, grabbed his hand, and helped him to his feet. Once they got outside and walked through the gardens away from the guests, she stopped, took a deep breath, and looked at him. "Look, Ravenna is stubborn and emotional; she will react first, then think about it. You and Kevin have been her best friends for so long; I doubt she would let one conversation end it all. But, eventually, she will do the right thing. Give her time before you do anything rash. She's probably beating up some poor soul at the Rose to clear her head."

Patrick's eyes widened in surprise, "You know about that?"

"I do, but no one else does, so let's keep it under wraps, shall we?" She raised her eyebrow and put her finger over her mouth, looking at him intently.

He nodded at her and gave her a charming smile.

"Shall we go back?" She asked as she held her arm out towards him.

He entwined his arm through hers, and they walked back to the castle in silence. Suddenly, they heard the screams of those in attendance at the ball and began to run in that direction. Serena was yanked backward as Patrick stopped, still gripping her arm. Once she regained her footing, Serena looked at him and followed his line of sight to the head of one of their border guards lying on the ground.