54 This Rage
Everard finally got the time to crash on his bed after sitting through the ritual for the whole night and half a day.
He was surprised that he was able to stay sane during that tiresome ceremony. And he was glad that he didn’t go mad and start beating everyone up after going through so many things in the past four days.
If he had acted that way, he would have been in great trouble since the alphas of all the packs were present in the ceremony. He would have all eyes on him for the foreseeable future. It was the last thing he wanted, to be under constant supervision.
“Ah! Bed!” he mumbled to himself as his sore body felt the softness of the mattress.
He closed his eyes to finally get some sleep.
But only if it was that easy!
Though his body was telling him to fall asleep for two days straight, he couldn’t push away what he had learned from his father.
‘King Desmond sent his daughter as a tribute bride to a Vampire! Could he make any dumber decision as a King and as a father?’
He covered his eyes with his palm and sighed in frustration.
.....
‘But I can’t pin all the blame on Anna’s father. How would he know that creatures like vampires exist when the ones who know have made a pact of secrecy with those monsters?’
From his father, he came to know that the werewolves had made a pact with the vampires a few centuries ago.
He was told that in the past, the vampires and werewolves would constantly hunt each other down. It went on for years and years. During those years, both vampires and werewolves had to face a huge loss on their sides.
Both were on the verge of extinction.
Vampires didn’t breed that easily. Werewolves could give birth more frequently. However, protecting and raising the newborns was an impossible task when the vampires didn’t even spare the cubs.
While they were busy massacring each other, another weaker species called humans had spread all over the world like pests. Though they weren’t anything special like werewolves and vampires, humans had the power of numbers.
And some of the humans who knew about the supernatural predators even began to gang up and hunt them down.
So to protect themselves from those pests, the werewolves and the vampires teamed up and massacred those human hunters.
After that, the alphas and the vampire royals made a pact to never interfere in one another’s lives and territory. And they also agreed to keep each other’s secrets.
King Alfred had warned Everard not to disclose any of the secrets to anyone, especially to his human friend from Orsenia. He had warned Everard that by doing so, he would put himself and his friend in danger.
‘But I have to rescue Anna from that monster’s den. Leaving her with a vampire is like leaving a cat with a mouse. He will play with her until he gets bored, and in the end, he will devour her.’
His eyes looked bloodshot because of his rage as well as the lack of sleep.
He wanted to run to Sorvando this instant and bring Anastasia along with him.
However, his body didn’t have a drop of energy.
And to add to that, he was now a werewolf. His alpha – his father – wouldn’t allow him to meddle in the vampire’s business.
Even if he was to sneak away from his castle, he wouldn’t be able to scale those sky-high walls when he wasn’t in his werewolf form. And if he tried to enter the territory of Sorvando through the main gate, he was well aware that he wouldn’t be allowed in since he now had a clear werewolf scent following him.
He was lucky the other night that he wasn’t caught by any of the vampires.
Everard didn’t know whether it was his luck or whether the vampires had forgotten the werewolves’ scent, but his father had emphasized enough that he was lucky to have returned alive after entering the vampire’s territory.
“Argh! What should I do?” Everard slammed his fists on the bed.
He had never felt this helpless in his life ever before.
His head was filled with countless questions. ‘How do I sneak inside those damned walls? Do I have to wait for another full moon to do so? What if that bloody vampire kills Anna by then?’
Everard grabbed a pillow and buried his face in it. And he let out a muffled scream of frustration, “Aahhhhhhh!”
He threw that pillow on the wall. It burst, and the feathers flew all over the chamber.
And he screamed at the top of his lungs again, “Arghhhhhhhhhhh! What the hell am I supposed to do?”
He covered his eyes with his forearm and tried to figure out a plan.
However, he was so exhausted that he finally fell into a deep slumber.
—
“No...”
Several frown lines appeared on Everard’s forehead while he was still deep in his sleep.
“Anna... don’t!”
He was tossing and turning on his bed. It seemed as if he was having a nightmare.
“He’s a vampire! He’s going to be the death of you!”
He mumbled as a single drop of tear rolled down his temple.
“No!”
Everard suddenly sprung up on his bed. He was drenched in sweat. His breathing had gotten heavier. And he looked confused and disoriented.
He looked around his chamber to see that the feathers had been cleaned. He glanced at the lamp table beside his bed to find a basket of fresh Golden Noble apples.
The green apple was Everard’s favorite fruit. Normally, he wouldn’t be able to resist munching them, but he didn’t even want to touch them at the moment.
He looked out of his open window to see that it was still daytime. But he was sure that it wasn’t the same day that he fell asleep in.
‘How long was I out for?’ he thought to himself as he got out of the bed and walked out of his bedchamber.
“Your Highness,” one of the maids bowed to the Crown Prince.
“How long did I sleep for?” he asked while stretching his arms.
“You slept for three days, Your Highness,” she politely answered.
“I slept for three whole days?” Everard raised his brows in surprise and almost snapped at the maid, “Then why the hell did nobody wake me up? I had things to take care of!”
That maid gripped the sides of her gown and bowed. “Apologies, Your Highness. But His Majesty forbade us from waking you up.”
Everard gritted his teeth and ruffled his black hair in frustration. “Argh! That old man!”
The maid waited for the Crown Prince to calm down. And then she asked in a low voice, “Shall I prepare some food for you, Your Highness? Or would you like to take a bath first?”
“Do I look like I want to eat or take a bath?” Everard suddenly growled at his maid and startled her to her core.
Everard felt sorry for that maid after seeing her trembling hands. She wasn’t even looking at him out of fear.
‘Ugh! What the hell is wrong with me? Why would I shout at her when she did nothing wrong.’ Everard took a few deep breaths in to calm himself down.
“Prepare the food,” he replied in a little calmer voice although he wasn’t in the mood to do anything.
The maid bowed and moved her feet really fast so that she could escape from there faster.
Before that maid left, Everard asked her, “And do you know where Jerome is?”
That maid flinched a little and stopped. And she replied as calmly as she could, “Lord Jerome is in the training field, Your Highness. Do you have some message for him?”
“Yes. Send him to my study,” Everard ordered.
He suddenly remembered that he had thrashed his study after returning from Sorvando. So he asked, “By the way, is it fixed yet?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Good. You may leave.”
That maid sprinted outside the moment she got the permission.
Everard frowned at his own behavior. He loathed himself for scaring that innocent maid.
‘This rage... is what I hate the most about the werewolves! I’ve always despised my father for being overly aggressive. But now... look at me!’
He couldn’t help but notice that he was becoming the very thing he hated the most.
Everard took a moment to calm himself down and headed to his study.
He wanted to send a letter to his friend to ask her about her situation. At the moment, that was the only solution he came up with to get in touch with Anastasia.
‘I will think of a way to rescue her after I gather more information.’
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