Chapter 187: A Wet Kiss (1)
When Kestrel stumbled upon Ren, he was hiding in a tiny, cluttered cabin. Despite being surrounded by mess, he looked somewhat okay, not as worn out as she had pictured. He was slouched in a gloomy corner, his hair wet and dripping, and his entire body covered in a strange chemical liquid.
Kestrel identified the liquid — it was a mimicry substance.
The first time she met Ren in the Polluted Zone, he had used a little of this mimicry substance, tracing a circle on the ground near her with his finger. This circle blocked all the human smells coming from her, making sure the mutants walking around outside couldn’t find her.
Now, either afraid of being found by another sharp-smelling alphas or trying to cover a strong odor, Ren had soaked himself thoroughly with the precious substance.
As Kestrel walked in, she noticed him nibbling on a piece of his clothing, while also injecting a beta pheromone into his belly. Around him lay a few discarded, needle-free injectors.
Using too much beta pheromone could be dangerous. It was, after all, a man-made drug, unlike the natural kind. Using it too much could really hurt an alpha, both in body and mind.
Kestrel quickly grabbed Ren’s hand, putting an end to his harmful, panicked actions. She noted that his skin was really hot, worryingly so, but he seemed to be thinking clearly. In the dim light, his eyes had a slight shine, reminding her of a black stone being washed in clear lake water. Deep within his dark eyes, there was a fiery anger, hinting at some terrible thing happening.
"Kestrel," he managed to say her name, his voice sounding scratchy, like he was really thirsty.
With shaking hands, too weak to hold the injector, Ren gave it to Kestrel.
After a brief pause, he tried to speak in a calm manner, "Kestrel, help... please, help me."
They were in the Tower, a holy and beautiful haven, home to a large group of betas, including Kestrel. But here was Ren, sitting in a moist and dark space, frantically giving himself shot after shot of a synthetic beta pheromone, which could be bad if used too much.
The room was cramped and messy with a faint light. In one corner, Ren managed to keep a straight face, even after soaking himself with the smell-hiding mimicry substance.
For a short while, Kestrel couldn’t grasp what was wrong with him, until she got closer to Ren and caught a delicate, barely noticeable smell. Maybe it wasn’t exactly a smell, but more of a secret message that only betas and alphas could understand.
It was a complex sensation, bringing back memories to Kestrel of a specific time of year, kind of like the sweet smell you’d find in a fruitful orchard when it’s time to pick the fruits.
One fall, before they had a gardener, she and Locky wandered into the backyard of the house. There, they found a small forest of fruit trees. The branches were heavy with ripe fruits, practically begging someone to pick them.
Kestrel picked a soft, ripe plums with her light hands. As she bit into it gently, sweet juice filled her mouth, spreading a fragrant sweetness that felt almost intoxicating.
Suddenly, in the dim light, Ren’s presence seemed to blend with those autumn memories — the small forest, the ripe fruits, a tranquil world with no one around, and that inviting sweetness.
At that point, Kestrel realized what was going on with Ren. It was a deep connection that only happened between very close mates.
Just a short time ago, Brandon had been forced into this same condition by the Queen at the palace high in the tower, and now Ren was going through the exact same experience.
Frantically, Ren was trying to fight an uncontrollable change within him by injecting more and more beta pheromone. If Kestrel hadn’t shown up, he might have lost his life to an overdose of the substance.
What scared her even more was the thought of him being discovered like this, because he would be taken straight to the grand hall at the tower’s summit.
Before Kestrel could even think, her tendrils reacted. Sensing the fragrance that Ren was giving off, they created a strong barrier around them, sprawling in every direction.
With Kestrel at the center, the tendrils expanded, weaving together to enclose them in a small, secure space. They protected the increasingly vulnerable Ren, blocking any curious looks or psychic power directed at this corner.
Despite the Queen’s chilling looks passing over them repeatedly, her psychic scans found nothing of interest in this cramped, chaotic spot — just a quiet area with no signs of psychic activity, unworthy of a second look.
"It’s okay, stop using so much of this stuff," Kestrel nervously told Ren. "I’m here, I’ll keep you safe, they won’t find you."
She wasn’t sure why she was feeling so jittery. She was convinced she could shield Ren from the queen’s discovery.
But she couldn’t shake thoughts of Brandon— Brandon, who was also a composed, strong-willed alpha. But when he succumbed to the heat cycle, all his rationality and grace were drowned by raw, wild instincts, and that too, publicly.
To a person who valued their dignity so highly, this was the cruelest kind of embarrassment.
"Ren..." Kestrel glanced at the alpha who was now huddled in a corner, his body curled up tight, at a loss for words. A tide of anger rose in her, swelling fiercely in her chest.
Once, she really hated the Tower, couldn’t stand the unfair rules of the Empire, and thought the queen - who seemed nice but was actually strange - was her enemy. But those feelings stayed hidden deep inside her, calm and settled, helping her to carefully move forward, one step at a time in her mission to find out the truth. Even when she was in a mind game with the queen, she managed to stay cool and focused.
Right now, a wave of anger that felt like hot lava suddenly burst out from deep within her, exploding wildly. For the first time ever, she knew what it felt like to be really, really angry.
"Why does she get to treat my alpha like that, making him suffer so badly and hurt so much?"
"No one realizes how truly kind and lovely he is. He’s like a huge, precious stone, as pure as the deep sea hidden beneath a snowy mountain. He has the most beautiful garden and secret palace; no matter how tough things get, he stays strong, his spirit never broken, always holding his head high, both tough and gentle."
