Ember's POV
I knew my stalker would follow me wherever, so I had to lose him. I ran. I ran for hours until I felt confident that he couldn't find me. Even after a lengthy run, I was still not halfway home. In this universe, territories are partitioned peacefully. The gap between race territories is enormous. I know this journey home would take me a week because I have to traverse through the vampire's territory. Fortunately, we werewolves are extremely powerful and can complete such a trek without incident. I stopped at some random inn on the road to spend the night because I can't sleep in the woods.
The inn's door rang a bell as I pushed it open. Everyone's gaze was drawn to me, and the room fell silent. I approached the front desk to seek a room. As I strolled across the dining room, the eyes on me tracked my motions as if I were an exotic creature. I disregarded the strange circumstance and eventually stood at the desk.
"Please, can I get a single room?" I enquired politely, attempting to appear innocuous.
On the front desk sat a middle-aged man with wide doe eyes and a crooked smile on his lips.
"That would be ten gold coins." He stated: "I was taken aback not by the number of coins."
I was surprised not by the volume of coins, but by the type of money he accepted.
"You don't accept paper money, or maybe you can accept a transfer?" I asked cautiously.
"Girl, do not raise trouble here; if you cannot afford a place, leave. You're generating a commotion just by being here," he remarked harshly.
"I am not causing any trouble; I was just surprised that you asked me for gold coins," I answered, attempting to comprehend the situation.
"If you don't have gold coins, go sleep in the woods and don't cause me trouble; I am just a small business owner."
Why the hell is he acting like this? They will lose clients if their services are this bad. I took a deep, relaxing breath.
"…"
"Here's twenty gold coins; get a room, a nice hot bath, and dinner."
Someone cut short my intended speech. I looked at the person. He is the epitome of an Alpha man, just as his deep voice suggests. He exudes a tremendous atmosphere simply by his appearance. He has electrifying, piercing grey eyes and brown hair slicked perfectly back, revealing a gorgeous forehead and sharp jawline.
"You can say thank you when you're done staring," he added, arching his perfectly straight brows.
"Thank you," I spluttered, mortified that I was caught staring.
"Don't mention, you don't look like a local; where are you from?" He asked.
"You don't have to tell me," he said hurriedly, noting my enquiring eyes.
"Not really; I am just passing through," I said warily.
"To the vampires land?" He asked.
I was taken aback by his bluntness and looked around to make sure no one was listening in. He observed my motions and burst out laughing, as if I had done something hilarious.
"You're definitely not a local," he added, still giggling.
"Why did you say so?" I am completely bewildered at this point.
"Locals already know that this is the meeting place for different races, and judging by your reaction towards my question, you don't know this."
I was astounded by this because how could everything alter so dramatically after three years? I took a deep breath again. 'I'm taking more breath than usual today,' I thought as I exhaled.
"Yeah, I'm passing through to the vampire land," I responded, still wary of this individual.
"Your room is ready," the middle-aged man announced.
The man grinned as he saw my bewildered expression and wondered when he'd tell me my room number and give me the keys.
"Follow that young man by the stairs; he will take you to your room," he said, pointing to the plainly clothed man near the stairs.
"How can I repay you for the gold coins?" I turned to ask after taking a few steps towards the stairs.
"Your name would be nice," he remarked, smiling.
"Aurora, my name is Aurora," I said, smiling slightly.
"Aurora… If it doesn't appeal to you, I'll call you Emerald. "That suits you better," he replied, walking away.
I was left stunned as I saw him withdraw back. He was joking, correct?
I was finally able to relax in my room after a refreshing bath and a delicious dinner. I lay on my bed, reflecting on how my life had changed so dramatically just a few years earlier.
…
Their eyes had always been venomous towards me, and it tore at my heart since I still didn't understand what I had done to deserve this. I recently graduated from high school and was overjoyed, despite the fact that others did not share my enthusiasm. So what if I still haven't found my mate? So what if I'm the only person in my graduating class who is single? So what if my younger siblings have already mated happily? So what if I can't shift into a wolf like the others?
I was not like the other wolves in our pack. Despite coming from a long line of powerful wolves, I was insignificant in comparison to them. I couldn't even transform into a Wolf, like everyone did when they were twelve. I had lovely flowing silver hair that reached all the way to my lower back, but I had to dye it brown since it stood out like a sore thumb. I didn't mind not having any pals because I like being alone with nature.
"Ember, my beautiful daughter," my father's soothing voice lulled me to sleep.
"Dad, do I really have a mate out there?" I asked quietly.
Tonight was one of those times when I desired a mate's tenderness.
"As long as the moon exists, every wolf has a mate. "Yours will come to you eventually," he murmured, softly smiling at me. His eyes revealed nothing but genuine love.
"I hope mine comes sooner," I said to myself, but my father overheard it. He grinned and softly touched my hair. I was alone in my room, thinking about how unlucky I was, when I felt a shift in my consciousness. What was going on? I couldn't get my brain around this strange feeling.
My head hurts, "urgh." I cried gently while tossing and turning on the bed, cradling my head. My stifled moans became loud sobbing as I felt myself drift in and out of consciousness. My vision was clouded, but I could make out my father's form as he called my name with haste.
"Ahhhh!" I yelled as loudly as I could despite the pain before passing out.
My brain felt thick and foggy, but I knew I wasn't conscious. How do I know that? My eyes were greeted with brilliant brightness before adjusting and realized that I am now in an unending white emptiness.
"Where in the universe am I?"
"Don't tell me I am dead!"
"But I didn't get to know who my mate was."
"This is still good; they all wished I was dead anyway."
"Is this where I start my journey to my next life?"
"I want to be born a human."
"Maybe a fairy?"
I kept mumbling as I walked into the void. I'm not sure how long I've been walking, but I feel like I've been going in circles all along. I continued walking because what else could I do? I kept walking and walking and walking until I couldn't take another step from tiredness. I felt a force stealing my life source the longer I stayed, but I couldn't pinpoint its position
Xavier's POV
It's been three days and we can't find any Ember Woods trails. This is remarkable because, with the evolution of technology today, you can find anyone as long as they are alive. Did she travel to the centre of the Earth or something? Where does she hide? She knows how to play hide and seek extremely well.
"Sir, your grandfather is on the queue," my assistant explained.
A scowl formed on my lips because I knew why he was calling. Doesn't he have any other grandchildren to pester? I picked up the phone.
"Brat! "How long would you have let the phone ring before picking up?" His outraged words echoed through my ears.
"I answered the call, didn't I?" I enquired, bored.
"Why haven't you visited Stephanie?"
"I did"
"That was a few weeks ago when she was in the hospital!"
"I don't have that kind of free time."
"Create time…"
"Between running a multibillion-dollar company and being your son, I don't think I have any spare time." I interrupted. I didn't hear from him for a time.
"Are we done?" I enquired because this is taking longer than anticipated.
"How about calling her? It will take significantly less time than seeing her." He compromised, which raised suspicions. My grandfather is a firm decision-maker who refuses to compromise. He does things his way.
"What's your actual purpose?" I asked.
"You, brat! Why are you questioning my intentions?" He blew up
"You never compromise," I remarked bluntly.
"There's always a first time for everything," he claimed.
"So this is your first time? You are already 84 years old, and this is your first time compromising? Wow, why would I ever doubt your intentions?" I said it with a harsh sarcastic tone.
"You make it sound as if I am manipulating you."
"Are you?"
"Tell me! I don't know."
"Fine, I will visit her." I exhaled.
"Really?!" His voice rose.
"Don't make me change my mind." I stated I was bored.
"Good brat, you surely know how to make your grandfather happy." I can see his smile in my heart.
"Urgh… !" I exhaled.
"Goodbye gramps"
"How many…" Beep!
I'm not ready to listen to his ranting. I have a lot of stuff to accomplish today, and now I have to go see that woman... Can my day get any worse?
"Sir, you have dinner with CGlobal today." My helper obviously does not know how to read the room. I gave a frown.