Chapter 21

“First thing's first, how are you feeling?” Sebastian begins the moment I enter his office.

To be honest, I was beginning to wonder if the man ever relaxes. For the close to three weeks I have lived with him, I have never seen him relaxing, or just chilling in the living room, game room, or even the theater room.

He is always cooped up in his office, and if he's not there, he is out or running in the forest. It is even rare for him to join us during dinner. I wonder if he even sleeps. I guess he doesn't, and his workers are used to this; otherwise, they would have started wondering why the hell he was sleeping with his Luna.

“I'm okay; the wound is still a bit sore, but that's it.”

It was hours after he had forced me to shift. The moment we got inside, I rushed to put on clothes before the kids could see me. After that, I got busy preparing dinner and getting Jax and Krystal to bathe and finally into bed.

I take a seat and focus on him, slumping against the chair, feeling drained and exhausted. All I wanted was to get it over with and go to sleep.

"What did you want to talk about?” I ask, staring at him.

His face gives away nothing and I wonder how it is he can hide his emotions so well. I've known him for a few months and the only expression I have been able to read from him is mainly anger. Other times he is just expressionless. You'll never see worry, happiness, or even frustration from him. “The men that kidnapped you. Did they tell you something useful?”

I sigh and he leans forward, ready to hear what I was about to say. The last thing I wanted was to rehash what happened, but I had no choice. If we were going to get to the bottom of this, then I had to tell him what I knew.

“They only said that somebody approached them with an offer to get revenge on me. They were supposed to kill me,” I reply.

His eyes narrow into slits. “Revenge? Did you know them?”

“Not really. I fired them on my first day back to work for harassing me. They didn't know I was part-owner of Ruby's, but still, that didn’t give them the right to manhandle me,” I huff in annoyance, still thinking of that day.

Thinking about what they did still pisses me off. And then to have them kidnap me just because I put them in their place makes me even more livid. They were the type of people who would never admit that they were wrong or take responsibility for their own stupid actions. They had no right to treat any woman like that. It was just despicable.

“They told me that someone who shared the same hatred for me approached them with the deal to kill me, and they accepted since it would be a win-win situation. They would get their revenge and whoever the person is would have me dead.”

“They didn't tell you who the person was?”

“Nope,” I reply, trying to push away the memory of that night.

I still can’t believe that they could be that cruel, especially to a woman. I grimace when I think of the pain as they punched me over and over again. Then to have them sink a knife into my shoulder. I rub my hand, glad to note that it was fully healed. Yes, we are wolves and we heal quickly when we are hurt, but it still hurts like a bitch, though.

“Tell me, Red, who hates you so much that they would want you dead?” he questions. “Someone who has already tried killing you thrice.”

I don't answer at first, just stare at him. His eyes are inquisitive, like he was trying to read me, trying to find the answers that are buried deep—answers that I didn't have. His brain was working; I can see it in his eyes, trying to piece in the information.

“I honestly don't know. The only one I can think of is Miranda, and she’s still in the council dungeons, so that's a moot point.”

His look changes and his eyebrows furrow. I immediately knew that I wouldn't like what he was about to tell me.

“The council elders released her. Given she is pregnant, they couldn't keep her in the cells, but she's being monitored. The elders set a spy on her so she doesn't know that they're tracking her every move. After she gives birth, she'll be tried and sentenced,” he says through ground teeth.

I know why he’s not happy at the prospect of Miranda being free, not after what the bitch did to him. I also get why the elders did that. For werewolves, our most prized possessions are our pups. They mean a lot to the society and are protected at all costs.

A dungeon isn't a place for a pregnant woman, even if the particular woman we are talking about is a cold-hearted serpent. The child in her womb is innocent. He or she didn’t choose to have a despicable mother like Miranda.

“I get why you are angry, but understand the council. The bloody woman is pregnant and like it or not, that child is Jax’s half-sibling,” I breathe.

For a moment, he looks dumbfounded, like he has just been struck by lightning. He is like that for a second before he shakes his head, as if he was trying to shake out the cobwebs.

“Fuck! I didn't think about it along those lines,” he spoke shakily, grabbing his hair.

It seemed the little bit of information had shaken him. By the way he was reacting, he had not thought about the baby being Jax's sibling.

"I think we should try to find the father of her baby, because let's be honest, that woman isn't fit to raise a child,” I add.

He runs his hand through his hair but doesn’t say anything. I guess the truth of the matter was still unsettled in his mind. His eyes were a bit glossed over, so I guess he was talking to his wolf. I haven't yet met Fang. If what I hear is true, then he is a fucking beast.

“Is that all? I would really like to go to bed. I might head out to the office tomorrow.”

I still hadn't come up with our show-stopping design and it was grating on my nerves. I like being months ahead of schedule, but this time I was really behind.

“No... about your ex-mate,” he says in disgust, completely pushing the issue of Miranda's baby to the back of his mind. “Why was he at your office the day you were attacked?”

I take a breath before telling him everything that happened that day. How arrogant was Darren to think that I would take him back? The only reason he even came to me is because Miranda played him. I am sure if that hadn't happened, he would have stayed with her, completely ignoring the pain he caused me.

“Bastard,” Sebastian clipped, his hands fisted on the desk.

I really should come up with a nickname for him. Sebastian was a beautiful name, but it was long and it was a mouthful; we needed something short.

“By the way, how did you find out I was missing?” I inquire, remembering that I had planned to ask him.

I thought that it was Claire who had told him I was missing, but when I talked to her on the phone earlier, she told me that she had not even realized I was missing—that Sebastian had called her, worried. To say I was puzzled would be an understatement.

“That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about,” he begins. “Krystal dreamt of your attack while at school. She is the one that led us to discovering that you were missing.”

I stare at him, my mouth opening and closing, unable to form any coherent word. Of all things, that is not the answer I expected.

“That's impossible. How?" I keep shifting on my seat, unable to find a comfortable position. “It doesn't make sense. Why would she dream of my attack?”

If he was telling the truth, then Krystal saw my attack a few hours before it happened, meaning she had a premonition. That is impossible, though; she's still a kid. There has to be another explanation. I stand up and start pacing the room, finding it hard to stay still. I kept fumbling with my hands, something I do when I am really nervous.

"Someone must have told her. Maybe the kidnappers. They told me that Krystal is beautiful and they would go after her next after they were done with me. They had to have seen her to know she’s beautiful; maybe they talked to her.”

I was rambling in my panic. I mean, Goddess, they didn’t make sense even to my own ears.

“No one told her anything, Red. I talked to her teacher and she told me Krystal woke up from her nap crying and screaming that she needed to save you. That a bad man took you and you were in danger,” he says softly.

I shake my head, refusing to believe what he was telling me. She is just a child, so why the hell would the Moon Goddess show her such a terrible scene?

"Why?" I ask, tears filling my eyes.

I don't even know what answers I was seeking, but I needed them. I needed to know why she dreamt of my attack. Why was it revealed to her, and why her out of everyone?

“I truly believe that Krystal is the next Oracle,” he replies calmly.

His words shatter me. I collapse in a heap on the ground because I know that the burden an Oracle carries isn't easy, and even though the Moon Goddess has chosen her, this isn't the path I want for my daughter.