Chapter 18
Merrick's POV
My Lycan just sat at the door, howling to be in. He wanted his mates, wanted to comfort them. I could feel both of their pain, Ella's because I had left and Phillips's because of fear of rejection. So badly I wanted to march into the room and comfort them but I couldn't see past my own intrusive thoughts. I struggled with myself for hours until finally, the sun came up and I shifted back into human form. At some point, I had fallen asleep and I woke to one of the maids covering me with a thin sheet. The sun had not crept over the westside wall yet so for a brief moment I could see all of the garden dimly lit by light and take in all of his beauty. I think back at what the goddess had said about how Alliyah had done this for me, she had given me a second chance at love. And here I was fucking it up because I didn't like the way it made me feel. Standing up a wrap sheet around me and walk over to Alliyah's grave. Bending down, I removed the old flowers that had been placed by Ella and swept away the dust that had collected on the plaque above.
"Thank you for loving me, my dear, truly I never expected to ever feel the same about anyone as I did you. I wish I was able to understand these feelings and not be so afraid of them. The goddess says you gave them to me so I wouldn't be alone, but I'm terrified at what my aunt and uncle will think." I whisper at her grave. She always told me to live freely and to give whatever I had maybe it was time to live by those words. I brushed myself off and head into the Manor to find Phillip and Ella.
When I reach the house, I noticed Miriam in the kitchen grabbing food, "is that for the Duchess and Phillip?" I ask. She nods her head and I can see she is still scared from last night, "I'm sorry about last night Miriam, I had a lot going on. Where are Ella and Phillip? I will bring this to them." I tell her I grabbed the plates from her hand. She looks at me skeptically before telling me that they are in Ella's room. "Your grace, if you need anything, I am always here to help." she smiles before running off to do something else. Take a deep breath, Miriam had known me since I was a pup and could tell something was off, but I had the heart to tell her. I wasn't sure how I would ever tell anybody not only did I have two mates but one was a man.
Walking up the stairs to this room I tried to calm my nerves without taking a drink, I knew that it would do me no good to be drunk in this situation and I need to think clearly. When I reach the door, I exhaled knowing that one way or another I will have to face this and either deal with it or walk away. I knocked on the door and to my surprise, Ella opened it. She was equally surprised to see me carrying five plates of food and a smile on my face. "I figured you both must be hungry and we should really talk about the situation." I give her the best smile I can muster and she opened the door inviting me inside. Phillip immediately sets up out of bed his eyes wide and a smile even wider "Merrick, I'm so glad you came back Ella and I were so worried about you!" He stands out of the bed and rushes to my side taking the plates from my hand and setting them on the table that had been brought in. After the food is on the table for a moment, we all stand in silence staring at each other, none of us sure what to do next.
It was awkward for a few minutes until I felt Ella's hand wrap around my waist and the warmth of her touch made me relax. I see her other hand slip around Phillips's waist and pull him in closer. I feel my nerves tingle the closer he gets to us. Soon it feels more like a huddle than a hug and Phillips's arm rests around my shoulders as he pulls me in same as Ella. Suddenly it feels like there are sparks of electricity shooting throughout our bodies, from my arm through Ella and finally into Phillip. The electricity gave me a strange arousal and made my lycan stand attention. Together they created a warm glow that surrounded me and enveloped me in love. I'm not sure I ever felt anything so wonderful and in the back of my mind, I could hear my father's voice, which disgusted me. My hand dropped from Ella's waist as I moved back and take a seat at the table trying my best to put some distance in between the three of us. I enjoyed the feeling of their comfort, I wasn't sure I was ready to feel this much.
"First, I'd like to apologize for my actions. This isn't something I have ever dealt with or even heard of so my mind didn't know where to start. The goddess appeared to me last night and she told me the truth, Phillip was right." I speak. I could see Phillip smile as he reached across the table grabbing my hand that rested there. I did my best not to flinch at his touch, I had known him my whole life and loved him as my friend, I didn't understand why it was so difficult to love him as more. He gave me a half-smile before placing his hand back in his lap. "Secondly, the goddess told me that the war to come would end our race if we didn't work together. I know that we are fated mates, please just give me some time to accept this relationship." I say looking into their eyes but looking back at me I find both my mates understanding eyes and beautiful smiles welcoming me. Indeed, they were both lovely, and now both mine.
After enjoying our meal, we began to discuss the meeting with the king, "We need to think of a plan and we need to make sure that we bring Dr. Reed with us. We saw what happened to Phillip and can bear witness to what's going on in Rhodes." Ella suggests. "I am not sure that the King would appreciate the Doctor bringing in a witch though" Phillip argues. "We have the death pill and the doctor with us and I know how to talk to the King. My uncle isn't stupid, he knows I would never ask for a meeting unless I was 100% something was going on. The thing I'm really worried about is Luca, how are we going to prove it was him?"
"I mean he sent us the bottle, but we have no proof past that and ultimately, it's my word against his", I state. I may be his nephew but I had my share of failures in the king's eyes. I didn't protect my mate and I wasn't the sort of Duke he really wanted. The king was much like my father, the serious type. Kill first ask questions if anyone was left, but that is how he survived. I knew that this meeting would not go in my favor if I didn't have any stronger evidence. "Phillip, didn't you say that you had been looking into the Greek Isles for the black market? Where were you getting your information?" I asked. "There was this informant I had in the capital who fed me information with every shipment and the people who delivered. But I haven't heard from him in many months and I think he may have been caught."
"Down in the cellar, I have all my information and my computer I used for surveillance, if you follow me, I can show you what I have," he said. Standing up from the table we make our way to the cellar. Phillip was still a little weak so he moved slowly. Ella would occasionally offer her hand and support while going up and down steps. I couldn't help but stare, it made me almost jealous at how easy it was for them to show affection. Even if it was just a simple touch or a look that ended with a smile, I longed for the ability time to give that to both of them. At the last steps before entering the cellar I push open the door and offer my hand to Ella and then to Phillip. With each brush over their hand, I felt my heart flutter each warmer than the next.
After entering the room and inspecting the walls I am shocked at how much information Philip had gathered over the years. Meeting times, pictures, and details of each shipment that had arrived in the capital. even a folder on Luca though mostly it was pictures and information about his family. Philip sat down at the computer desk pulled his chair up and entered his password. The screen popped up with surveillance tape off the docks. After searching through folders after folder Phillip finally found what he was looking for and within a couple of clicks, we saw it too. It was Luca and Theodore Bravos, the former butcher of the silver Spears. He had retired after the king slaughtered his family and pack, but it was well known he was still a loyal supporter. This was exactly the evidence we needed.