5: This Isn't me Asking, This is me Demanding.

As I followed Maude Caulkin, I admired her. I had never met Maude in person before, but she was more comely than any camera could ever give her credit for. She was tall at 5'8, with a hourglass figure, and shapely long legs. Her lengthy blonde hair was golden and the sun seemed to bounce off its sheen. My own hair on the other hand, though also blonde, was like a bundle of dry burnt weed.

"You are probably surprised to see us in Freur's private residence."

"Us?" I blustered before I could stop myself. What in the Sanctuary's name did she mean by 'us'? There was more of her kind here??? Maude was not offended.

"I and my family," she tolerantly explained. "I'm sure you know we were invited to stay for the mating ceremony tonight."

"Oh." I was getting dumber. There really was that factor which I had not bothered to consider and if I had, I would have thought twice as much as Ara did about showing up at Freur's gate.

"Freur wouldn't just let us stay at a hotel. We would soon be part of his family after all, and he, part of ours." Her voice was sweet and buttery. We reached a smaller black gate. Maude made as if to open it before she paused, and turned to me. "So, you think Freur is your mate?"

I opened my mouth but no sound came out. Was this a trick question? She had found out that fast about my mission at the gate. That was why she had expected me to show up through the mausoleum when I did.

"You don't have to feel bad. Audeline, none of this is your fault. You are just doing what you think is right. All matches are made by the moon goddess and we've always had reason to believe that Freur had been free zoned. Can you really blame us? Surely, you know how old he is." Maude was calm and reassuring. She was handling this complication called 'me' pretty well. She finally pushed the gate open. "Come on, we'll talk more inside."

"Inside?"

"My family is dying to meet you. Now, come on. Don't be scared. We don't bite." She giggled for extra measure. Having no other choice, I followed her. No tourist ever actually entered the guest quarters of the mansion but that was where Maude let me into. The grounds were swarming with both male and female servants. Maude explained to me that most of them were members of her pack whom she had brought along to serve her and her family.

The air smelled tremendously pleasant. A blend of spices, perfumes, food, and happy chatter carried with the breeze. Maude had sure made the place feel like home. The servants eagerly greeted her too, as if she was their friend and not their employer and daughter of their alpha.

I finally began to ease up. With how happy the atmosphere was, it stood to reason that Maude had to be a really sweet and less complicated she wolf.

"Audeline's here!" Maude announced as she led me into a large beautiful dining area. She took my hands in hers, her gaze reassuring. She led me closer to the table where a middle aged woman and a young boy who looked not a day older than thirteen sat. "So guys, this is Audeline Palmer, the Beta's other daughter who we've heard so much about, and who wants to meet my fiance. Audeline, this is my mother Riza and that's my brother Tristan. My father had to stay behind— alpha duties." She laughed. I did not find what she said funny but I laughed too, albeit nervously.

"She just called Freur her fiance," Ara pointed out with a wail, "They aren't even engaged yet!" Oh boy! I could feel Ara's agitation in my mind. "You shouldn't trust her. You shouldn't trust any of them."

"Come sit beside me dear," Riza beckoned. Her demeanour was matronly, even more welcoming than Maude's. Tristan, on the other hand, had the uncanny 'eye misalignment' gene, which caused it to seem like he was looking over my head when in truth, his gaze was boring right through me. I did not keep his attention for very long. His expression was cold and unenlightening as he refocused on his gaming tablet. Teenage boys, eh? Looking and smelling the way I did, I wasn't exactly a ten in Tristan's books so why would he care who I was?

I soon found myself trapped between Maude and her mother. Maude asked me what I wanted to drink and rang the servants to bring forth snacks.

"So, how did you meet Freur and find out he was your mate?" Maude went straight for the kill.

"Uh…," I trailed off.

Riza grabbed my hands and patted them. "Don't be frightened now. None of this is your fault. When it comes to mating, everything falls down to the moon goddess. You shouldn't feel guilty if at all Freur is really your mate. Eat some cakes if that will make you feel better."

I accepted an iced cupcake from Riza and bit into it. The sheer sweetness of it softened me. I began to narrate my encounter with Freur, after rhetorically asking myself what the worst was that could happen. Riza and Maude were attentive listeners, and as my story progressed, so did their facial expressions — nods, eyebrow raises, mouth openings, eyes widenings. I left no detail to chance. It felt oddly comforting and immensely relieving, telling absolutely everything to someone who could and was willing to listen. Unlike my father and Fluorescent. Or even Tristan, who was so engrossed in his tablet game. When I finally concluded my tale, the duo was silent, and giving me matching looks of sympathy.

"I am sorry." Maude shook her head. "All of these must be terribly overwhelming for you. So what do you want to drink? Soda, coffee, wine?"

"Give the poor girl some tea Maude. It'll do much good for her nerves," Riza suggested. Maude poured me a teacupful from a kettle and handed the cup to me. I thanked her and sniffed the tea. I did not know what it was, but it reeked severely of chamomile. I wasn't a fan of chamomile — another habitual factor that distinguished me from Flourescent. I preferred wine. I would have chosen wine had Riza not butted in desiring to play 'mother'.

"Drink," Maude urged me with a bright stiff smile.

"Of course, um… I'm just going to wait for it to cool down a bit."

"Okay." Her smile was beginning to creep the crap out of me.

"There's something I want to get right; correct me if I'm wrong," said Riza. "You said you were in the woods. Isn't the woods sealed off in preparation for the mating ceremony which happens only once every three years, on the night of the blue moon?"

I nodded.

"Wasn't that reckless of you?" Riza pressed. "You blatantly disobeyed a Sanctuary rule— your pack's rule, not even mine. Do you seriously think Ferdinand's influence will save you?"

"No, I mean… yes. Something like that, given the rare circumstances. I just think this is something he deserves to know." I braced myself. These serpents in the skin of beautiful women. Had they done everything to gain my trust only to put me down? I really should have seen this tactic coming. Maude and Riza may actually be nice people, but their elaborately drafted future was being threatened by me and my fortuitous knowledge of Freur being my mate.

"Besides, you don't look a day over sixteen," Maude proclaimed. "Do you know how old Ferdinand is?"

I bristled. "I know how old he is. Aren't we straying a little off topic here? This isn't about me. This is about Freur knowing, and I think this deserves further investigation considering this has never happened before," I preached.

"You will call him Alpha Freur like the rest of your subordinates," Maude hissed, slamming a hand on the table. There was a hint of anger in her tone.

"You know what? This was a bad idea." I rose up. "It's Freur I was supposed to meet. I had absolutely no idea that you guys were going to be here. So much for softening me up with cakes only to berate me at the end."

Maude stood up too, a look of protest in her fair eyes. "Are you still trying to find Freur?"

"Do you want to tell me where he is?" I retorted. "That's what I thought!" I exclaimed when she gave no answer.

"Wait, you haven't yet drunk your tea."

"I don't like chamomile," I confessed.

Maude tilted her head in a gesture of inquiry. "Allergy?"

"No," I smiled tightly, "just something about its overrated popularity."

"Do not make this any more difficult than it should be and just drink the tea," Maude drawled amidst rolling her eyes with exasperation.

"You know, I'm getting a bit suspicious about this ask."

What happened next was all very sudden. I did not know what hit me when I was flying off my feet, and right back into my seat. Riza held me down, now standing as well. Maude had a firm grim on my shoulder and with her free hand, she lifted the teacup. Riza tilted my chin, forcing my mouth open.

"This isn't me asking," said Maude menacingly, "this is me demanding."

My struggle was weak, as Maude forced the still scalding contents of the teacup down my throat.