The coffee had been effective in keeping the three of them awake. Dr. Silver just came out from Edrei's room when the three of them arrived. "How is he?" Alpha Amber asked once she saw the doctor.
"He is doing fine in fact he can leave the clinic this afternoon," the doctor answered.
"Thank you. We will be going in then to talk with him for a while." Amber stood up followed by the elder and the beta.
"Take your time Alpha," Dr. Silver gestured to the door then the three of them disappeared inside.
Edrei had been waiting for them since the Alpha told him that they will be coming to ask him some questions. He agreed because he wanted to help in anyway, he can to find out who was behind the sudden attack and how they were able to enter Ceurian without being detected.
"Greetings Alpha," he inclined his head towards the people who came, "Beta Zael and Elder Leonides."
"We are glad that you are doing well." The Elder was the first one to speak. He had taken a seat on one of the single couches inside the room while Zael chose to lean on the wall near the door. Amber took a chair and placed it beside the warrior's bed.
"Let's get straight to the point," the Alpha nodded for him to start narrating what had happened yesterday.
Edrei did not hold back and told them what led to that confrontation. He tried his best not missing any parts that may of help to them. After recounting the events, Amber and the elder asked some questions which he answered diligently.
After staying for a while, they bid the man goodbye then went to the pup's house. They were received well and offered snacks on the family's living room.
"Say hello to the Alpha," the mother urged her son to greet the Alpha who came to personally asked their child.
Lulu, the pup shyly nodded towards their guests then buried his head on his mother's arms once again. "I'm sorry, he's a bit shy and due to what happened yesterday he had been stuck on me." The mother gave them an embarrassed smile while gently patting the child's back.
"That's fine." Alpha Amber was looking at them with tender gaze. She then focused on the child, "Lulu, I quite like your name," she softly spoke to the child who was still hiding. The room was filled with silence and they could see the pup nodding his head. "I heard a lot of stories from the other pups and my mate, Xander, had mentioned you whenever he speaks about all the pups he was playing with."
At the mention of Xander, the pup's head rose up as he looked at the woman. "Is brother Xander okay?" he asked in concern. "I-I saw him yesterday with all that blood, is he okay now Alpha?"
Amber smiled, "Yes, he is. You don't have to worry. I'm sure that he will come visit you once he gets well."
The pup gave her a nod, this time he did not hid in his mother's arms. "Lulu, can I ask you some questions?" she then asked after seeing that the pup was not shying away from them. Lulu gave her a nod once again. "What happened yesterday? Why did you suddenly disappear?"
Lulu shook his head, "I don't know. I was playing by the river when I saw a beautiful lady. She said that she will take me to a place full of flowers and rabbits. I told her that I need to tell the aunts first so that my friends can come with me too but she said that if I don't go with her, they will be gone."
"Then you went with her?" she continued.
Lulu nodded, "We walked away from the others then…then…" he looked a little lost after those words, it was clear that after he was taken by the 'woman' he did not remember what had happened next. He then got out of it when both he and Xander fell into the water.
They did not press the child any longer and left. Now that they had asked all the necessary question, it's time to consolidate it and look for clues that may help them. "Is Zayier already at the pack house?" she asked on their way.
"Yes, he is already at your office." Exactly after they left Lulu's house, Zael already contacted Zayier.
Once inside the office none of them spoke. All of their faces were serious. Amber stared at the faces of the people who were with her in the room. "Let's start. What did you find Zayier?"
"We found traces of 'darkness' in the place of the incident." It was the only report he would make in that meeting because it was the most relevant information they found.
There was not much reaction from the others who were listening, it was like they were already expecting this information.
"As expected, those creatures have a hand in this." Elder Leonides was the one who reacted first. "I had already suspected them when I heard the pup's story. 'Darkness' are proficient in bewitching people and they are known for it. It seems that it has something to do with the rogues."
Amber closed her eyes after hearing the elder. She also suspected that 'darkness' had something to do with it and now it was confirmed. "Did this attack have something to do with my mate?" she asked in that silent room.
"We are not sure of that yet," the elder did not want to alarm the Alpha but the possibility of her conjecture was high.
"If not, then what were their goal for this attack?" the annoyance in her voice could not be hidden. Her mate nearly died because of them, so she could not chase away the feeling that the target was her mate.
"I know that you are worried but without further evidence we cannot prove that he was the target," Leonides insisted. He then looked at the Alpha with all seriousness.
Amber gritted her teeth, "Alright, I won't bring it up. Aside from that tell me if you have any other guesses on the reason for the rogue attack."
It took them a few minutes before Zael decided to speak up, "They might be aiming at us like what had happened to the Yulian pack."
"That's another possibility, we can add that to the things that we need to investigate." Amber nodded and gestured for him to write it down together with her first guess. After that the other two had also said two other reason that may have incited the attack.
After that, Zayier left to relay the Alpha's command. Now that they have a direction in their investigation it would be easier to look for any information. The most effective way was to do it in groups.
Zael returned to his office to message the other Alpha's about what they discovered and also to remind them to get ready. Amber and the Elder went to see Xander who was already awake once they entered the room.
"How was the child?" he asked the moment he saw the two of them coming in.
"He is doing fine. Thank you for protecting him." It was the elder who answered. He was silently observing the man while talking with him.
Xander let out a sigh of relief after hearing that. "That's good. I'm glad that he is fine."
"Yes, and we are also relieved that you are okay," Elder Leonides smiled. He walked to the side of the bed and opened his palm towards him. Without hesitation, he placed his hands in them and felt the elder pressing at his wrist gently. "Your pulse has also stabilized so that's a good sign. You have to rest your body for now, too much injuries are not beneficial to your body." He also advised once he saw the scar on his shoulder which was caused by the rogue's bite.
Xander nodded then his gaze fell on Amber who remained silent until now. She had been looking at him with deep eyes. "Is there a problem?"
"You asked me for a favor the yesterday," she started and Xander's heart started to pound. "You can go back to your family for now since I and the others will be a bit busy the next days. If I have time, I can go visit you instead and take that chance to meet your family too."
Xander should be happy but he was not. Instead, a frown appeared on his face. "What's the matter? Why so suddenly?" he could not help but ask. He just brought up the topic yesterday and she was still unwilling, but how come she had changed her mind.
"Well, I just realized that I have been holding back. Actually, I have already thought about this ever since the conference. I was a bit reluctant but now I'm willing to let you go for now. Though it doesn't mean that I'm giving up on you, this will only be temporary." It was the truth but the fact that he was attacked by rogues could not be removed from her mind. It was better for him to go home while they deal with those beasts, he will be safer in human society than with them.
"Is this because of what happened yesterday?" he was now looking at her with stubborn eyes and clenched jaws. Yes, he wanted to return but there was this feeling that was making him uncomfortable because of the sudden decision. He was not happy of what was happening.
He was perceptive and since it was already like that, she would not hide it, "Yes. I don't want what happened yesterday to be repeated. Now that rogues were able to enter our territory without us being notified, it is safer for you to remain in the human side of this world. No werewolf nor rogue would dare to commit an attack in that side."
Xander did not like her commanding tone but he steeled his heart. "Alright then, if that's what you want." She was right, there was nothing he could do even if he insisted on not leaving. He had already accepted the fact that he was weak against those creatures but he was still frustrated that he could not help them and that he might become a weakness to them. "I understand."