514: THE NIGHT FOR THEM (2)

THE NIGHT FOR THEM (2)

"You left me because I slept with another woman…" Will said in a whisper, his face showed the horror he felt. His eyes dilated in fear and the sight of him squeezed Hanna's heart. 

"Oh, Will…" Hanna wanted to blurt out that she knew what happened to him and that was not his fault, but she was afraid, he would go spiral even more, since he guarded his secret so tight and didn't let anyone to know about it, not only the gamma, which she considered the two of them were so close. "You will never do that…"

Will grabbed both of her hands and squeezed them tightly. "What if?"

"Will…" You didn't sleep with another woman, you were being assaulted and that was not your fault. That was what Hanna wanted to say, she couldn't comprehend how Will saw the event in that light. "Maybe… maybe you didn't sleep with the other woman… maybe she forced herself on you…"

Hanna said that very carefully, her heart beat so loud against her chest, which made it so hurt, especially when she saw the horror in his eyes condensed even more. Hanna squeezed his hands, in her desperate attempt to get him back to her, before he fell even more into his dark thought. 

"You will never do that to me, Will. You are not a person like that. That woman must have forced herself on you."

Will pulled his hands from her grip and Hanna felt this pang in her heart. She felt they didn't make any progress. 

"I am a free man. I am not a slave. No one should have been able to force themselves on me."

And there, Hanna got the answer she wanted. That was how Will idealized a free person, once they could get away from the slavery and as a man, unless they were slave, who must follow their master's order, there was no way a woman would be able to force themselves on him. 

He was a warrior after all. He could fight any woman. 

"Will…" Hanna tried to wreck her brain to think the solution about how to salvage the situation because she could see how Will tried to withdraw from her even more. "If that happened and you didn't mean it in that way… we can work things out. As long as you promise not to hide anything from me."

"Really?" Will stared at Hanna for so long. 

"Yes." Hanna immediately nodded. "I want you to trust me and be comfortable enough to be honest with me if something like that happened."

There was silence fell into the room, the night was so dark, as if you couldn't see the light from the window nearby, but the room was no different, though the luminous pearls hang at the corner. 

"I am hungry," Will said in small voice and Hanna breathed in relief, as she smiled gently at him. 

It would be a long way for both of them, but Hanna promised to herself that she would be in every step of it. 

"Sure, let's eat. You have slept for hours. I miss you."

============================= 

"Where are we going?" Iris asked, she looked around, as they entered the Goffa mountain again, but from different route. 

"You have been there before, we only take a longer route."

The mountain was exceptionally quiet and she was worried, there would be a monster came out of nowhere. But, instead of going deeper into the mountain, they actually circled the foot of it. 

"The pack tomb?" Iris asked. She had been there before and indeed that place was located on the foot of the mountain and it seemed, the location was free from monsters, since the tomb had been there for years and there had never been a single monster attack. 

"Yes." Cane caressed her head. 

"That's the place you want to show me?" Iris thought, he would take her to somewhere she had never been before, though she was not going to complain if he wanted to see his family. 

Cane smiled he kissed her head. "I am going to visit the tomb for a while, but that's not the place that I want to show you."

"Oh, okay." Now, Iris started to wonder where Cane would take her. He was being secretive again, which was not good for her curiosity. "No one guard this place?"

Iris remembered there was this young warrior, who guarded this place when they were here, 

"I dismissed them. They are more needed in the pack."

After the attack and rebuilding the pack, they needed all the people that they could find to help with it, more so, Lou had been working on his magical device, which included the area of the tomb, though this part had never been visited by the monsters. 

This tomb was the same like when the first time they had been here, almost a year ago, she felt like time flew so fast and how different things were right now. 

"But, we don't bring anything…" Iris said when they walked down the stairs that led them into the altar of Cane's family. "I remember the young warrior handed us pouches with silver coin inside."2

Meanwhile, Cane lit up all the torches all the way down, so it was pretty bright inside. 

Cane didn't mean to come to visit the tomb tonight, thus he didn't come prepared, but the sight of Lou, simply irritated him, he didn't think twice and only had an intention to get out of the dining room with his mate. 

Therefore, why not sped up his plan. After all, he would take Iris to this trip at some point before they left the Howling Wolf pack to visit Silver River pack and Diandem pack. 

"It's okay." Cane didn't really believe with that kind of ritual, he only followed because of the tradition. No matter how many coins that he offered, there was no guarantee it would help them in the afterlife. What kind of place the afterlife was, no one could answer that for sure. 

They finally arrived at the tombs of Cane's parent, where their names engraved on their respective stone. Josh Desgar Nortern and Crystal Nortern.

This underground room was so quiet and serenity befell on them, as Iris slowed down her steps and stood behind Cane, as he paid his respect toward his parent. 

Iris didn't say anything and stood there for long, as Cane stared at his father's grave and started to speak in a very low voice, as if he talked to himself instead. If Iris still was not able to hear, she wouldn't have the chance to know what he was saying at this moment, even so Iris was still having a hard time to hear the whole sentence, since Cane talked almost like a whisper. 

"… You are so wrong about Kellan, father. He did not deserve the throne." Cane paused and took a step closer. "You used to tell me to stay away from the power struggle in the palace, that's why you make mother stepped down from her title as the princess, but I will take the throne, because that's the only way for our people to be able to live free of threat. That's the only way how my mate and I will be able to survive."

Cane wouldn't let anything happen to Iris like what happened to Leane. He would be doomed, if he failed his mate for the second time. It was unacceptable. 

Maybe Koda would survive and manage to claim the throne, or maybe the royal family won the war, but whoever sat there, they would see Cane as a threat once the situation was calm enough and the next king saw the power he held. His bloodline would always be a problem and Koda, just like alpha Dristan, only tied with him because of the benefit they shared together. 

"You may not be proud of the path that I chose and my way to survive, but it's proven your soft and rightful way was not working in this chaotic world and I will not walk down that path, father. I hope you understand."

There was more silence after that and Cane stood there for so long before he moved to his mother's tomb and talk a few things before he moved toward Leane's tomb. There were another three small stones there. 

This time, Cane took Iris hand to stand beside him, as if he was introducing Iris for the first time, but he said nothing. His eyes dimmed, as he raised Iris's hand and kissed the back of her hand, before he took her out of there. 

He had finished his pray for Leane and no one would know what he said to his late mate, except for himself. 

Iris looked over her shoulder at the tomb. 'I will keep my promise.'

This time, Cane really took her to the place that he wanted her to see… his mood became a little bit lighter and he kissed her forehead. 

"Thank you," he said softly, though she was not sure what he thanked her for. 

================================= 

Lou took Nala to his bedroom, since the woman was so eager to prove her 'anything' to him, but he raised his brows when he saw a deep cut on top of her left breast when Nala undressed herself. 

The look on the merchant's eyes made her self- conscious, as she tried to cover the scar with her hair. 

"Th- the scar will heal. It only takes a little bit longer…" Nala stuttered. 

"Well… that's a turn off."

pqdm.com