Chapter 134

134 Chapter One Hundred Thirty Four

Jackson was happy to see that these two had been getting along, well from his point of view. The girls had been talking to each other with no problem and he saw no problem in letting them fight. Maybe Katie could learn a thing or two from the strongest warrior her age. It was only natural that the wolves would fight once in a while anyway... As he began his count, he noticed the bright gleam in the royal’s eyes and her awkward silence.

Katie didn’t take her eyes off her target and watched her every move. Her body was still, tense at only the right spots that he hadn’t noticed at first. He had felt this before, during their hunts. This was the state a predator assumed right before they lunged at their prey and made their presence known with full assurance of their attack.

It was only in rare incidents when prey survived such an attack. However, he noticed this all too late. His hand was already down upon his third count and the match was initiated. Crysta leapt for her target, determination in her eyes... This was the last slow action... If he hadn’t been a Beta alpha, he would have missed most of what happened next.

A massive black wolf sprung onto the scene and nipped Crysta’s shirt at the back, yanking her out of the designated fighting area, right before a blur past the spot she was just standing in. The loud boom of a collision came from the other side of the clearing. The wolves took some time to realise what had just happened.

Jackson looked back to where the princess had been only a moment ago and saw a blank space... The wolf that had pulled Crysta out of the way shifted back into Cole Lycaon and his attention was on something else. Everyone looked from the Royal to the origin of the booming sound... A tree began to fall behind the girl who walked back with a murderous glare on her face.

“Katie,” Cole called out to her, rushing forward so that he was right in front of her. The girl stopped walking to look at him.

“When...” she asked him.

Cole remained quiet for a bit, trying to come up with the right words, “Two years ago...”

“Did you have to act like you didn’t remember her? Why defend her if you had no idea who she was?” Katie asked him, her voice going up. Her eyes shone an intimidating bright blue that didn’t faze the royal one bit but brought chills down the beta alpha’s spine.

.....

“I didn’t remember her. I wouldn’t lie to you. It was only yesterday that...”

“I don’t want to hear the details. Just fix it... All of it. When I return, I don’t want that scamp hanging around you... Is that clear?” she yelled at him.

The royal nodded before the girl vanished right before him, rushing into the woods at a speed that was obviously impossible for werewolves. The only wolf that ran close to that speed was Lina Sirius and she was considered an anomaly, ‘What’s with the females of the Sirius family?’ the Beta alpha wondered.

Cole brushed a hand through his hair in frustration. “Okay everyone, back to your pairs. I’m evaluating the next ones and making sure you give me all your effort. After today, you will all know where you lie and you will all have to work much harder to impress me the next time we do this. Do not make me repeat myself...”

The next matter at hand was the petrified girl who’d kept her eyes on the fallen tree the whole time the two royals were talking. Crysta was shaken with shivers all over, along with anyone else who didn’t fear things they didn’t understand. The king had told Jackson the story, but he hadn’t believed it, well, personally.

It just seemed impossible for a werewolf to be granted Prometheus gifts. Cole walked up to Crysta and squatted down next to her, “What is she?” The girl asked him.

“She’s both a hunter and a werewolf. She had asked that I keep it a secret for the meantime while everyone got used to her. I guess that ship sunk now that you got her wolf to go feral,” Cole replied.

“How is anyone supposed to suspect that kind of thing? There has never been a monster of that kind. You were the only weird werewolf I knew of until now,” she voiced her fears.

“When I told you that she was my mate, you should have guessed that she wasn’t an ordinary werewolf either. Stay away from me until you’ve made amends with her. I don’t want to watch her lose control again. Just a week ago, she was incapable of such a thing,” the man cursed as he walked away from her.

Jackson, who had been listening to the conversation, approached Crysta and took a seat before her. The girl allowed herself to fall onto her back, her eyes glazed as she stared at nothing in particular. Her mind wouldn’t stop replaying the terrifying events that had just happened to her. Katie’s body had grazed her as she sped past and the girl had gotten a good measure of the attack she’d gladly leapt into. The tree that fell only moments later just gave perspective...

“She almost killed you, you know,” Jackson pointed out the obvious.

“I know that... more than anyone,” the girl replied, fear still coursing through her. Up until this point, she’d remained undefeated for a year. A few males claimed their victories after sweating in a duel against her, but the females knew who was on top, including Lina who lacked any upper body strength. Her speed made up for it in more ways than she could count, however, and that seemed enough for the Royal.

“What would have happened, I wonder. After your death by the hand of a feral Royal,” Jackson mentioned.

Cole, who had kept a listening ear nearly slapped himself for staying behind while Katie ran out. The wolf shifted and was out of the clearing before his friends could ask what he was thinking. After noticing the direction he ran in, they understood his intentions... The only question was if he could catch up to Katie. They’d all failed during the attack a week ago in Brigadia...

“Alpha Jackson...” Crysta called to the man.

“What is it, Crysta?”

“Can you tell me her story? How did she survive, if that’s even her at all?” the girl asked. Perhaps she’d been thinking of herself alone. Letting go was not going to be an easy thing, but... it was better than bringing death upon herself. Katie was unbelievably strong and part of the reason for her question was to learn how the girl had amassed that kind of power by the age of eighteen.

“Well, I only know a part of it, but I can tell you that it was not an easy one. She thought she was human for a big portion of her life and during that time, she was taught to fight,” the man summarised.

“That story if very vague, Alpha Jackson,” Crysta exclaimed, “Don’t you know the rules of gossip? You never summarise a story. You must give details.”

Jackson chuckled, glad to see a part of the girl he’d known back. The fear was still evident in her voice, “I have more people to evaluate. Maybe another time. I just hope you know your place in all this now.”

“Yeah,” Crysta sighed, letting go was not going to be easy, “I do...” but her hands were tied. ‘And I called her unworthy of Cole only to watch her down a tree that could have been me. I wonder how she got crippled when she was that much of a badass. I can’t even tell if she’s stronger than Cole.’ Taking another look at the fallen tree, ‘I don’t think Cole can do that though. Damn it, Jackson, you’ve left me with more questions than answers...’ the girl cursed as more questions swarmed her mind...

...................

Cole ran through the forest, following the scent of his mate. It was the one thing his wolf could never lose track of. The wolf was that confident of that. He could tell that she was confused along with a lot of other things, ‘Where are you, Katie? Please hang in there...’

Cole had taken long to piece it together and he was mad at himself for not realising it while it happened before him. Katie had almost killed someone for a petty reason such as jealousy... It wasn’t like her, but she’d done it and that was bound to crush anyone’s spirit. Cole pushed his legs to run faster as he followed her scent. After running for a while, he noticed a log that he’d passed the third time... Backtracking, he began to recognise where he was...

‘What in the world?’ it was only then that he realised her scent had been scattered. Was it some kind of cloaking ability? He was at a loss for words, but he couldn’t find her. Panic was about to set in when he noticed a sound that had been there for a while... The sound of water rushing... ‘The river...’

The black wolf ran to the river and found that the scent was mild there and stretched all over... ‘Her scent was scattered by the water... Could she have crossed it or did she take a swim?’ The wolf walked along the river bank until he noticed a body lying on the other side of the river lying unconscious. He recognised the clothing instantly and dove into the river, fighting the current until he was on the other side.

“Katie, Katie... are you okay?” Cole called out to the girl, having shifted the moment he was out of the water. He put his ear to her nose, listening for her breath... His heart sunk in fear... she was barely breathing...