(Author’s POV)
Approximately one hour before the incident that took place inside Myra’s room.
Alaric was settled in his penthouse suite, working on some pending office related tasks, which he had his secretary, Amanda, attend to. He wanted a distraction from last night’s thoughts, which had clearly haunted him all day long. And only through working could he escape from the delirious thoughts he had been having about Myra.
After seeing off Brave and Elio at the airport, Alaric came straight back to the hotel and locked himself in his room, cutting himself off from everything. He had been sitting in a single position for the past six hours and reviewing document after document. The guy didn’t even take a minute’s breather, not even for dinner or for a sip of water. He was all working, working and working.
In between, Dion even mind linked him, saying he would be going out to experience ’Esteria’s nightlife’, and asked him whether Alaric would like to join as well, but he declined Dion straightaway.
His wolf has also been urging, pestering, and almost begging him throughout the day to go out. But he very well knew why Alex was so adamant about his going out. That foolish wolf of his wanted to see Myra, even if it was from faraway. He wanted to get a glimpse of her. So, he had been making every excuse in the book to try and convince Alaric.
But Alaric .... he was not giving in to any kind of temptation, and shoved everything away. He blocked Alex and other sources as well and dived into his work mode, like a true workaholic.
After checking the last set of PDF files and making necessary corrections in them, he sent them back to Amanda with instructions, "Go for an on-site inspection first thing, tomorrow morning, and send me all the updates on the matter." Amanda replied to him in the affirmative in a matter of seconds. That poor woman~ .... she had been dragged to work overtime because of his obsession.
Getting her answer, Alaric finally released a long and tired sigh as he rested his head on the chair’s headrest and closed his eyes. He massaged his glabella repeatedly, murmuring, "Finally done with the issue." He then checked his wristwatch, and another sigh came out of his mouth as he uttered, "Rave and Eli must have landed by now."
Opening his eyes, he glanced outside the floor to ceiling window and saw that, unlike the day, dark clouds had started amassing in the sky. He then muttered under his breath, "I should mind link Brave."
He unblocked the channel and mind linked his twin at once, ’Rave, did you and Eli land safely?’
’We did land, but not in Kimberg,’ came the reply from Brave’s side. He then continued, "There was a slight turbulence caused due to bad weather conditions. So, the plane had to make an emergency landing. Right now, we are inside a hotel in Qubalia, waiting for the weather to clear up.’ He explained.
’Ohh~ .... okay. Keep me updated when you take off,’ Alaric said absentmindedly.
’I will, but Al~ .... you alright? You sound a little down. Your mind link was blocked as well, earlier,’ Brave inquired when he sensed something off.
’Ahhh~ ... nothing. I was~ ... I was working and just about to retire for the day,’ he rubbed his temples and answered.
’Uhh~ Al~ .... I am getting a call from Nora,’ Brave interrupted him when he saw his phone’s display.
’Alright, go ahead.’ After saying this, the mind link between them disconnected. Alaric uncrossed his legs, got up from the couch and walked towards the window. He gazed outside the building and towards the busy road. Although for an ordinary human being, it would be almost impossible to clearly see what was happening out there. But with his heightened senses and werewolf genes, everything was visible to him, without any difficulty. He could see the street vendors selling some sort of ornaments. He could see couples, hand in hand, enjoying their dates.
Then he noticed a couple arguing with each other on the sidewalk. Although he couldn’t hear their conversation, the girl was poking his finger at the boy’s chest. From the looks of it, she seemed to be in utter distress and was weeping. It almost seemed like they were on the verge of breaking up. Alaric clicked his tongue and was about to take his eyes, but the next second, something unexpected happened. The girl, without any warning, pulled the guy by his tie towards her and kissed him.
Not just her boyfriend, but Alaric was taken by surprise as well. The couple was locked in a passionate kiss, as he gawked at them unconsciously.
The sudden shift brought him back to the memories he had been trying to escape. The moment he had shared with Myra.
The contradictory behaviour she had showcased last night. One minute, she was bashing and blaming him, and another, she kissed him to silence him. Actually, it was more of a peck than a kiss. Nevertheless, he was reminded of Myra again. He gulped down hard. His Adam’s apple wobbled shakily.
Alex, seeing the opening, muttered inside his head, ’Al~ ... don’t you want to see your mate?’
When he reached her place, he glanced at his room’s window, which was shut and thought, ’What the absolute fuck am I even doing here?’ He was reluctant to go inside. But Alex, who was thrilled, interrupted his thoughts, "Al, what are we waiting for? Let’s go.’
With conflicting feelings churning inside him, Alaric climbed effortlessly. He stood outside the window in a narrow space and looked inside. From that angle, he couldn’t see Myra’s face, which made Alex restless, ’Al, we should go inside.’
’Shut up, Alex. One more word and I will turn back,’ Alaric reprimanded.
Alex pursed, keeping his mouth shut. Then, with extreme caution, he opened the window and entered the room silently. His steps were slow and careful as he walked towards Myra’s bed.
Myra was in a deep sleep, in her own world. Seeing the serene look on her face made Alaric’s heart race. The sound of her even breathing gave him a tranquil feeling of his own. As if the time had stopped.
As he was gazing at her, out of the blue, Myra started murmuring something in her sleep. Alaric became alert and sprinted toward the window. He was about to get out, but before that, he heard Myra’s distress filled, uneven voice, "Don’~t ... don’t come clo~ser.’ He halted his steps at once and turned around to find that she was still sleeping, but her calm face was not replaced by a tormented expression.
She kept on rambling, her voice shaky. Alaric’s eyes instantly turned darker as Alex tried to take over him. But Alaric somehow managed to hold him, ’ALEX, relax.’
But with every word Myra uttered, Alex was losing control. He didn’t hear Alaric at all.
Alaric’s breathing turned laboured as it was getting hard for him to push Alex inside. Sweat beads formed on his forehead as well as his back. But Myra’s wretched voice broke every sanity of him, "I will really~ ..... jum~p and di~e.’
To Be Continued . . . . . . . .

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