Chapter 4

Trying to avoid eye contact, I walked over to the table and carefully placed the bottle on it, taking the empty one.

My heart was pounding like crazy. I knew the other two men were the same ones from downstairs and that I had been called here for a reason other than alcohol. I got up to leave the room as quickly as possible, but I couldn't.

"Wait" I heard a low voice with a clear command.

My body froze motionless. It was an order from a true leader and I was afraid to disobey him not knowing what would happen. So I stood in silence with fear in my eyes, focused on the ground.

"And?" I heard the same voice, not knowing who he was addressing.

"Can you smell something?" He added after a while. I flinched at the question.

He knows. Stellar confirmed my worst fear.

"No" They replied simultaneously. The boss smiled dangerously. 

"I want to know how... without my knowledge... a wolf without a pack, works for me so well hidden" He said very slowly and emphatically.

The shocked men looked at me in surprise. Instead, I looked at the man who saw the truth so easily.

Maybe I'll run away. I suggested to Stellar. 

"You can try, but I promise you that it will end badly for you" The man replied threateningly, magically reading my thoughts.

I didn't want any more trouble. I looked down at the ground, showing that I wasn't going to try anything. Both men walked up to me and looked at me curiously.

"Why can't we sense her wolf?" Barret asked.

"Her wolf can hide well" Replied the boss, curious about the whole situation. "Show them" He ordered and my eyes immediately turned gold.

The men looked with surprise at their boss, who narrowed his eyes menacingly.

"Interesting" He murmured. "Where are you from?" He asked.

"I have lived in this city since birth with my aunt" I answered quietly, looking at the ground.

"She's a wolf too?"

"NO. She is a normal person. She doesn't know I'm a wolf"

"Parents?"

 "They left me with my aunt when I was a baby. They never was seen again" 

"Check her out" He said to Idris.

"Can I go now?" I wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible and never come back.

 "NO. We don't know anything about you. How do I know you're not up to something? My people didn't even know you were one of us" He cut me short.

This pissed me off a bit.

"I've been working here for two years. I have never stolen anything in my life or hurt anyone. I try to stay away from other wolves. I didn't even know my boss was a wolf. How could I possibly plot anything?" I said clearly, looking into his eyes.

The man stood up and approached me slowly. He looked down at me and I fought with all my might not to break eye contact.

"Do you know that by doing this you are undermining my authority and challenging me to a duel?" He asked as his eyes turned black. Terrified, I quickly looked down.

"Sorry. I didn't know" I said quietly.

"I noticed" He laughed menacingly. "If it was any other wolf, he would have already lost his head" 

A shiver ran through my body. I wanted to get out of here. Nobody knows how much I regretted coming to work at that moment. I should had go home like Stan said.

He grabbed my chin and turned my head to the right. He came dangerously close to my neck and inhaled through his nose.

"You're lying, little one. I feel other wolves on you"

And then it hit me. After all, I just fought with feral wolves. Not wanting to hide anything from him, I immediately started talking. 

"Stan and I went for a run in the woods today, an hour away. Stan is a wolf like me and he taught me how to fight from an early age. We met seven feral wolves while running today. They wanted to kill us so..." I stopped, afraid to continue.

"The two of you killed seven feral wolves?" He asked in surprise, nodding to Barret.

"Write his address here. We need to confirm this" Said the man, handing me his phone. When I entered his details, Barret left the room and the boss grabbed my hand and led me to the couch.

"Sit down" He pointed to the seat next to him, pouring himself a glass of the newly brought whiskey. 

"Until we confirm everything, you will stay with us" He announced and my heart dropped to the bottom of my stomach. 

Oh, great. I thought as I sat down at the end of the sofa.

I leaned my head against the back of the couch and closed my eyes. It was almost the end of my shift and I was really tired after today. So much happened today. All this stress and fatigue took over after a while and I "brazenly" fell asleep.

Hearing my even, calm breathing, the man looked towards me. Seeing me sleeping, he raised one eyebrow, pointing at me and looking at Idris.

He shrugged, not knowing what to say to that. The boss sighed heavily, took off his jacket and covered the sleeping Nova. 

"If she had something on her conscience, she probably wouldn't fall asleep" Idris said quietly.

"Mmmm" The man hummed, taking another sip of alcohol. 

"We also need to confirm the situation in the forest. Take the other wolf and check their testimony" He ordered.

 "Yes, Alfa" The man nodded and left the room.

Aziel, what do you think? Ethan asked his wolf, looking at the sleeping girl.

She has a strong wolf. Growled Aziel. I'd like to talk to her. He added.

Maybe another time. I suspect she would faint at the sight of you.

Aziel growled in displeasure and said nothing more. In the morning, Ethan's phone started ringing. Not wanting to wake the girl, he went to another room.

"Speak" He ordered.

"We confirmed their testimony. Everything is correct. The bodies of wolves in the forest also confirmed their story. The man is a former warrior from a nearby pack. Their Alpha confirmed that the man left on his own and moved in with the humans with his consent. The warrior also confirmed the girl's story. None of them knows what pack her parents were from or who they were" Said Idris.

"Come back. We will arrange the rest after your return" He finished the conversation. Returning to his room, he stopped in front of the door and smiled dangerously.

"The audacity..." He said to himself as he entered the empty room.

His jacket was placed on the back of the sofa and on it was a small piece of paper with a note. "Sorry, I'd be late for class. I study at a nearby university, I finish classes at 2 p.m. If you need me, this is my phone number."

Ethan put the note in his pants pocket and left the room. 

She's brave. He heard from Aziel. The man just smiled as he left the building. 

I didn't know how much trouble this would get me into, but after waking up, seeing no one, I quickly wrote a short note and quietly slipped out of the club.

I ran home as fast as I could. Luckily, my aunt was gone. I took a quick shower, ate breakfast and, with great reluctance, went to my morning classes.

Sleepless and half-conscious, I tried to listen to the lectures, which turned out to be very difficult.

Against all odds, I met Vallentina and her entourage in the corridor. Honestly, I don't even know what she was saying to me because I turned off my thinking. Seeing that her offensive taunts did not bother me at all, she left indignantly with her group.

The remaining two lectures were a real pain. The eyes closed inexorably.

As I was leaving the last lecture, I felt my phone vibrate.

Yeah... that's not good. Maybe let's not read this message. Yes. First I'll get some sleep and then I'll deal with my problems.

I nodded to myself as I headed to the exit. However, my plans were ruined when I saw who was waiting for me at the gate. I took out my phone and read the message from an unknown number: "I'm waiting outside the gate."

I looked at Idris again and turned on my heel to avoid them. Unfortunately, after turning around, standing in front of me was none other than Barret.

I sighed heavily and turned towards Idris. Seeing us together, he raised one eyebrow and Barret just shrugged. We approached one of the black SUVs and I was put in the backseat. The two men sat down in front and, without saying a word, set off on their way.

I no longer had the strength to fight fatigue. Even if they took me to beheading, I didn't care. I needed sleep. If it was to be my last, so be it.

I lay down comfortably and fell asleep within seconds, leaving the shocked men to their own devices.

A dozen or so minutes later, they parked in an underground parking lot in one of the city's hotels. They looked once again at the back seat where the girl was sleeping. 

"Now what?" One asked the other. They both sighed heavily. 

"Okay, I'll ask" Idris finally said. Alpha, we're here.

What are you waiting for? Come in.

But... the girl fell asleep.

Silence. They looked at each other, thinking this wouldn't end well. A moment later, Ethan approached them in the parking lot. He opened the back door and looked at the sleeping Nova.

Audacity hmm? He heard from his wolf.

He reached in and pulled the girl out, taking her into his arms. Nova rolled over a little, resting her head against his broad chest.

His pleasant scent of forest and pine cones allowed her to fall into a deeper sleep, calming even Stellar.

He looked at the girl and his eyes softened a little. He carried her to his hotel room and laid her on the bed. Going to the other room, he had his usual menacing face.