Chapter 50

Celia

The mansion is a lot different from when I originally left it. Well, the layout is the exact same, but the wallpaper is different. The furniture has drastically changed in every room and resembles that of a Lycan mansion or home rather than a Werewolf’s home, especially one for the Alpha King.

I had thought that Soren liked the old ways of decorating his home. He always preferred darker colors and real wood compared to metal and plastic covered with light fabrics and materials. It is why I was sure to have everything be decorated the way he wanted and felt most comfortable in.

I drag my fingertips along the walls, slowly walking down the hallway. The wood does not creak beneath my feet, my socks slipping against the refined wood every so often.

His main office remains on the first floor with the window overlooking the mansion’s grand backyard. Green grass stretches for what seems like forever on his estate, a beautiful place to relax have some time to myself.

There are some new servants as well, but many of the people I used to know and interact with whenever I have visited in the past have gone. According to one of the cooks, Bianca went on a rampage and fired anyone she didn’t like or get along with.

I cannot say that I am surprised by this face, though. Bianca has always been one of the most demanding people I have ever met in my life. If something was not up to her standards, the she made it everyone’s problem instead of fixing it on her own. I suppose that is a reflection of how she was raised in the Lycan pack.

Just by looking at the new furniture and decorations, the abstract paintings on the walls, and the way she has rearranged the rooms, I can tell that Bianca was planning to overthrow Soren as the Alpha King. It is as clear as day and I am so happy to see that Soren has taken it upon himself to distance himself as much as he can from the vile woman who tried to kill me.

With her gone, we can all breathe easy again, even if that breath of fresh air lasts for just a minute amidst the chaos she has ignited between the Werewolf and Lycan packs.

I sigh and exit the small office, dipping back out and into the hallway. My feet carry me down the hall, turning around whenever I reach a dead end. I find myself on the second floor now, poking my head into the rooms.

These ones have been stripped of all Lycan identity. Most of the spaces have been emptied, just the bare wood and maybe a rug remaining on the inside. The walls have been returned to its old state, the deep red wallpaper a familiar sight for my very sore eyes. I inch inside the room and look around, taking in the small space.

Soren and I spent a lot of time together inside this room. It used to be a small parlor, a place for him and his close friends to relax away from the life of Werewolf royalty.

A couch used to sit in the middle of the room, right in front of the fireplace that he always lit with the box of matches that sat on the wooden coffee table. We sat beneath a blanket together as his hands caressed my legs.

It was a moment of domesticity between us, something so rare and special. It was one of the nights that Soren was exhausted from his role as Alpha King. I massaged his head, untangling all of the knots from his hair as he vented about his day.

He was different that night. He was open and vulnerable with me, allowing himself to relax under my touch. Soren relaxed into my hands and placed his trust in me, it was something that I did not betray unlike his actions towards me these past couple of months.

That night, Soren asked me to promise him that I will always be on his side, that I will never stray far from him and remain loyal, that I won’t backstab him. I promised that.

My heart aches. I stand where the couch used to be, staring at the fireplace that sits inside the wall. A frown spreads across my face.

I tear my gaze away from the fireplace, tears stinging my eyes. A sigh falls from my mouth and I turn towards the door, the sudden urge to go out and find Soren overtaking my body.

I cross the halls and pass his servants, offering a small smile towards them as I try to locate Soren. He is nowhere to be found, tucked away someplace that I haven’t been to since arriving at his mansion.

Soren has a safe place outside of the mansion in the large land of his backyard. A small shed — well, shed is making it seem more humble than it actually is — where he can escape from his life inside the mansion, getting away from the servants and the constant bowing that he has grown to detest.

The small house has two rooms, a kitchen, and a living room where he can relax. There is small outdoor area with chairs and a table in case he ever has dinner there or decides to work outside.

I approach the house, sneaking around the side when I hear voices from inside. His office, which is on the first floor, is just around the back. I sneak underneath the windows, trying my best to not be seen, and sit underneath his office window.

With one peek over the edge, I see Soren with his Beta in a serious conversation, their brows furrowed and knitted together.

“The Duke has informed us of some Lycan family’s uncooperative spirits,” the Beta speaks, “he is concerned that they may outweigh the other families who wish to help.”

“We can spare a few soldiers to help look for her in Lycan territory to aid the families who wish to help,” Soren nods his head and turns towards the window.

I drop below the horizon line, making myself disappear while being able to listen in on their conversation as best as I can.

“Are there any leads on Bianca’s location?” Soren asks.

“No. She has managed to slip through our fingers. We can assume that she is back with the Lycans,” his Beta responds in a defeated tone.

My body goes cold. With Bianca escaped from the Werewolf jail and is out on the run, she is sure to be seen as a role model to the rogue Lycans who wish to have me dead. People will be sure to help Bianca, a known Lycan noblewoman, instead of me, the missing princess that they have never met or seen before in their life.

The thought of Bianca taking out her bitter revenge on me is terrifying. I know that she will stop at nothing until she makes for sure that she got what she wanted. Bianca is determined.

Bianca has most likely exposed my identity to the Lycan packs so they know who I am and what I look like. There will be more eyes on me now that the possibility of them knowing who I am has entered the equation.

What will happen to me, though? Will the Lycans stand by my side or will I be forced to remain under Soren’s eye and protection?