"I don't care if you are rogues," Sebastian added slowly, his eyes the color of a swirling storm. "You're staying in my territory and it means you will be following my rules."
"A—Alpha Sebastian…" Javier slipped himself between Sebastian and his mate, hiding Arlene's trembling figure from sight with his own head lowered in a form of submission. "She has offended you with her careless words. She just wants to be useful around here. Please… have mercy. If it happens again, I will answer you with my own life."
"Jav—!" Arlene gripped his arms tightly but Javier was unmoved, jaws set in determination.
Sebastian narrowed his eyes, swept his gaze around one more time for good measure before stepping back with a hum. In an instant, the raging beast that casted darkness over his face vanished and the placid, calm Sebastian returned. "I apologize if I am stepping over the line."
"No… no, don't." Javier chuckled wryly. "It's our fault. You have shown your stance very clearly since the first time we arrived here."
Sebby, his Alpha tugged on his attention, I don't know if I'm wrong but… it seems like Her Excellency was here.
Sebastian froze. What… do you mean that Her Excellency was here?! He snapped his head toward the direction of the door to find no one. But Sebastian had been with his wolf for more than a decade, he knew how sharp and cautious it was. He suddenly felt sick, unable to respond even when Keith was asking him a question — no, he didn't even hear what his Beta was saying.
Shalei had been looking forward to meeting the rest of the members in this 'pack' but then… what had she heard when she was standing there silently?
"Hey—Hey! Sebby, where are you going?!"
Sebastian's feet moved even before he realized it. He dashed to the living room to find no one's presence. There was no way he would have missed it if Shalei had gone through the front door. Hence, Sebastian pivoted on his heels and climbed up the stairs three steps at a time to the upper floor. He arrived in front of Shalei's room in record time to find the door wide open. She wasn't here. Just in case, he also checked his own room and didn't find her either.
Where had she gone?!
Panic climbed its way inside Sebastian's chest and it was like he was transported back to yesterday's event. Just one second Shalei was still standing a few distance away from him and when he looked away for a split second, she disappeared. He couldn't sense her heartbeat, nor could he smell her or detect her presence.
She vanished into thin air just like that. It was like the Earth had opened up to swallow her whole.
His Alpha prancing around in obvious agitation was adding on to the pressure building on the base of Sebastian's skull. No… Sebastian gritted his teeth. He couldn't lose anybody again. He couldn't.
Pupils dilating and fists clenched tight, Sebastian forced his feet to move. He practically turned the mansion upside down; barging through every door and checking every nook and corner. Not here. Not here. Not here either. He almost lost his mind, even Keith was asking worriedly into their mind link which he blocked because he couldn't afford to get distracted.
He stopped on the first floor hallway, his breaths uneven.
"Sebby!" Keith approached him warily, clearly sensing that something was wrong from his expression. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"
Her Excellency disappeared, was what he wanted to say. She had heard their conversation, heard them talking about killing her. He wanted to rage. His wolf was howling, mad for revenge. His whole body was trembling from the sheer willpower he used to restrain the Alpha within. He tried to take a deep breath, shaking off the haze of panic so his mind could think clearly. Shalei wasn't inside the house so… had she gone out? She didn't go through the front door—
The back door!
Once again, Sebastian ditched Keith behind as he rushed toward the back door, his heart thumping with the same intensity as his rapid footsteps. This close, he began to pick up Shalei's unique scent. Thin, airy but sweet nonetheless. It was like spring breeze amidst the sweltering weather, a trickle of water to his parched throat. Sebastian chased after it like a dying man desperate to grasp onto the last thing that could bring him salvation.
And there she was… a small figure half hidden behind the thick, towering trees.
Humid air rushed to his lungs, shaking him down to the fingertips and finally… he could breathe again.
"Your Excellency?" He called out tentatively.
Shalei was leaning against the tree — head tilted up toward the sky with lips mumbling something incoherent. She didn't look surprised by Sebastian's arrival. Slowly, she turned to him and… put on a smile as always, eyes curving gently. "Sebastian? What are you doing here?"
Sebastian. Not Seth. His heart abruptly sank to the pit of his stomach. Since the first time they met, Shalei had always taken the pleasure in calling him the nickname 'Seth'. He didn't have any problems with it, of course. He had accepted it with gratification — afterall it was a nickname bestowed by the Moon Goddess herself. However, never once… never once had he heard her call him 'Sebastian'.
It felt wrong somehow.
His Alpha was right. Her Excellency had indeed been there, listening to those rogues' nonsense. He would make them suffer, he thought darkly. "Your Excellency, they were—"
"Can we not talk about this right now?" Her smile faltered and oh, she looked so scared, so tiny and fragile. Even though the vulnerability had only flashed through her eyes for a split second before she hastily covered it up, it was already enough to tell everything. Something heavy was lodged on Sebastian's throat and his heart was sinking, sinking and sinking…
"No." He forced his throat to work. Her Excellency had to know… she had to know that she would be safe here, that Sebastian would fight tooth and nail to prevent any harm from coming her way. "Your Excellency, I—"
"Is it true?" Shalei asked quietly. Her expression had closed off, rendering Sebastian unable to read what was in her mind. "What they have said back there?"
"It's…" Sebastian bit on the tip of his tongue. He couldn't — for God's sake, he couldn't bring himself to lie. Not to her. Especially not her. She deserved to know the truth, even though Sebastian had been wondering why she seemed to be absolutely clueless. Was this another test for them? "It's true but—"
Shalei cut off his words with a laugh. Blank, mirthless, hollow.
"It's okay," she said, so quiet that Sebastian almost missed it if not for his sharp hearing. "I should have known…"
No. Nothing was okay. Frustration started to get to Sebastian's head. "Your Excellency—" He dropped down to one knee, head bowing low in submission. His Alpha was laying flat with its snout pressed to the ground, whimpering pitifully. "I have offended you greatly. Feel free to give me your punishment but please… can you hear me out first?"