Chapter 8: Chiara

"You left too early last night."

Adrian's voice was measured, and his face looked calm and composed. I tried to get a read of him as we continued eating in the dining room, a spread of breakfast and pastries separating us. Despite my efforts, I couldn't determine whether he was simply curious or hiding his anger.

After seeing the Rogue... or Lance, I returned to my room last night. I couldn't bear to stay in the same space with Adrian, and my brief talk with Lance left me unbalanced. I hoped Adrian would be calm enough when morning came, and we could return to our previous routine.

Routine meant predictable actions. Routine meant I could plan ahead.

But this, Adrian Galway, hiding his emotions? It meant bad things.

I swallowed another bite of food before answering him. "I needed something from my room, and I figured you wouldn't want to be disturbed in your sleep. So, I decided to stay back."

Adrian hummed while meticulously slicing a slab of bacon. I watched his deft fingers move, imagined pale skin underneath the knife, and red blood blooming from the cut. Whose blood was it going to be?

"Next time, I don't want you leaving my side until I say so. Hm?" Adrian said.

I dragged my gaze away from his food and nodded. "Understood."

The Pack Alpha stood up, and I followed suit. My breakfast was barely touched, but I paid it no mind. I followed Adrian and his entourage towards the mansion's front door. A sleek black car was already waiting outside.

Adrian brushed an imaginary lint from his tailored suit while he continued towards the vehicle. I stood at the door, back straight and gaze lowered, waiting for his orders.

"I'll be gone for a business trip in Corvus City. I won't be back until midnight or until tomorrow morning, depending on things," Adrian said.

His butler opened the car door, but before he climbed inside, Adrian called my name. "Chiara?"

I pinched the skin between my thumb and forefinger to stop the tremor in my hands. "Yes, Alpha?"

"Who do you belong to?"

"You, Alpha."

"Hm," he grunted and finally went inside the car. "Remember that. This will be the Rogue's first day as your official bodyguard."

Adrian didn't need to say the threat out loud. It was clear enough what he wanted. As I watched his car drive away, my mind and heart warred with each other. One was vying for survival. The other was driven by desperation. I took a deep breath and went in search of Lance.

***

It turned out Lance wasn't too hard to find. Samantha said that he had seen him with Connor walking around the mansion. It seemed they were heading towards the garden. Panic briefly seized me when I realized Lance could expose our meeting to Connor, and Connor could divulge it to Adrian afterward. Despite Connor's standing in the pack, he was still the Pack Alpha's cousin. He was loyal.

Urged by my worries, I swiftly dismissed my handmaiden and headed straight to the gardens.

The early morning sun felt pleasant against my clammy skin. I gripped the sleeves of my dress and crossed the gazebo facing the garden. When I reached the open space before the hedge maze, shouts and a bloody scene greeted me.

Standing on one side was Connor, his face looking pale as he continuously bit his nails, a nervous habit he had yet to lose. On the other side was a group of shifters loudly cheering. The recipient of their cheers was a duo of men fighting in the center. It was the shifter in patrol last night against none other than Lance himself.

I cautiously walked towards Connor, keeping a careful distance from the fighters. The patrol shifter had powerful punches, but he had none of Lance's agility. Despite his strength, he couldn't land a solid strike on Lance. The Rogue just danced through the fight, easily dodging the patrol shifter, wearing him down, and then delivering his own blows.

I stood beside Connor and nudged him on the side. "What's happening?"

"My public execution," Connor replied, voice warbled by his constant nail-biting. "Adrian is going to kill me when he finds out."

"He won't," I said, surveying the shifters present. No one influential was around. If this fight reached Adrian, everyone here would be equally punished. One thing I learned from living in the Galway Pack was that there were no tattle-tellers among sailors in the same boat.

I caught Lance's gaze, the brief eye contact distracting him. His step faltered, which provided an opening for his enemy. The patrol shifter took the opportunity and punched Lance on his jaw. It sent the Rogue stumbling towards Connor and me.

We both yelped and tried to move out of the way, although Lance did catch himself before he crashed into us.

Winking, he smeared the blood from his split lip and smiled at me. "Fancy meeting you here, Madam. How's your night? Slept well?"

For some reason, I couldn't move my gaze away from his dripping blood. I felt my wolf moving inside me for the second time in forever.

"I thought you said you're going to protect me," I suddenly blurted out, my eyes darting from Lance to his injury, to the patrol shifter on the other side, then back to him. I had no idea why those words stuck in me or why I was bothered in the first place.

Lance followed my gaze and sighed. "Yeah. I did promise that." He raised his index finger as he shuffled back towards his enemy again. "Give me one minute. Sorry. I'll make this quick, and then we can go back to me being your dutiful bodyguard."

Something shifted in Lance's fighting style. It didn't even take him one minute. In hindsight, he probably didn't even need one. When the patrol shifter charged at him again, Lance ducked to the side and delivered three successive jabs to his foe's abdomen, ribs, and face. The final punch was strong enough to knock his opponent out cold.

Everyone went silent, and then, like an avalanche, the rest of the shifters roared in rage.

"He cheated!"

"We want a rematch!"

"FUCK, LET'S JUST GANG UP ON HIM!"

Lance clicked his tongue and squared up his shoulders. He looked back at me and then moved until his body shielded mine. Connor grabbed my hand and tried to pull me away from the brewing riot.

"We need to call the guards," Connor said.

I stubbornly remained in place, preventing Connor from moving away. "Those shifters are supposed to be the guards."

"Well. Well. Then we'll call the OTHER guards," Connor exclaimed.

I watched Lance as he faced the rest of them. He didn't even look afraid. His eyes were determined, and it seemed he wasn't planning to back down.

Growling, I grabbed my arm from Connor's grip and marched towards the Rogue.

"Chiara, wait!"

Connor's voice was drowned out by the shouts from the shifters. That's okay. If the sound of my name didn't work, I was sure seeing my face would.

Lance whipped his head back, and his eyes widened when he saw me walking towards him. Like Connor, he tried to drag me behind him, but I dodged his hand and walked past him.

Then I stood before my bodyguard, arms folded, chin raised, and eyes locked on the rioting shifters.