Episode 18.

Casino Club.

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Athena and Max arrived at the bustling casino club. As they entered, the noise of the crowd enveloped them.

They exchanged a brief glance before delving deeper into the club, scanning the surroundings for any clues.

"Max, this is insane...! I mean, really!" Athena complained, but Max paid no attention, forging ahead through the crowd.

"Since you insist, perhaps it's best if we split up," Athena suggested, but Max interjected, turning to face her.

"No, you must stay by my side for now! We will stick together until we finish searching this place," Max insisted, gripping her arm and whispering to her. Athena pulled her hand away, meeting his gaze with anger.

Max paused briefly, then resumed his search until he reached the table where Athena and Elena had their last drinks.

Athena noticed Elena's hair tie left on the table. She knew Max must not see it, as that would start the trail. While Max was preoccupied scanning the crowd, Athena subtly picked up the hair tie and concealed it in her hand.

Max glanced at her, then back at the crowd, his expression momentarily tense. He relaxed, turning his attention back to her.

The intense gaze between them lingered as Max began to approach Athena, who was quietly observing him.

He moved closer, gazing at her for a moment before reaching for her right hand, which she had kept behind her back, and pulled it forward, only to find it empty.

"What does this mean? It's clear you suspect that I know what happened to Elena?!" Athena exclaimed.

"I'm only hearing this from you now. If you truly know nothing about her, there's no need to worry. Let's focus on finding her instead of just watching me," Max retorted before turning to resume his search.

After a few moments, they exited the Casino Club, having searched every corner without any sign of Elena.

"I told you we were wasting our time here. Elena wouldn't be in a place like this; she might be hiding at someone's house," Athena started saying before Max cut in.

"No, I don't think our time here was a waste," Max said as he crouched down, noticing something on the ground and picking it up carefully.

"What's that?" Athena inquired, to which Max smiled and replied, "You should see for yourself."

"Let me take a look," Athena responded, concealing her surprise as she realized a grave error she had made. She quickly composed her features, pretending to be happy when she was not.

She was so shocked and wondered how Elena's ring was able to fell off from her hand and she weren't able to notice and now she have left a trail.

Upon noticing the ring, Athena swallowed nervously and gestured with her hands open. "I'm confused, what's this for?" she inquired.

"What does it look like? Can't you see it's Elena's?" Max responded, causing Athena to shake her head with a slightly dissatisfied smile.

"Come on, how can you be sure that ring belongs to Elena? You can't be certain," Athena questioned, studying Max closely as he shook his head.

"Of course I'm sure. I picked out this engagement ring for Dean when we were shopping for the mating night celebration," Max replied, leaving Athena momentarily speechless as she took a deep breath and glanced at the ground.

"Are you alright?" Max inquired, to which she forced a smile and nodded.

"I'm fine, just concerned about Elena. Where could she have gone? It seems she deliberately discarded this ring herself," Athena remarked, to which Max agreed.

"You're right. Now we have a lead, we know where the issue began. I'll inform the Alpha immediately," Max declared as they were intensely gazing at each other.

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Next Morning.

Elena lay in a luxurious room, sleeping peacefully like a baby. As she began to stir, her eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the soft surroundings. A figure stood by the door, barely visible in the dim light, which turned out to be Alpha Mula.

Rubbing her eyes, Elena focused and realized where she was. "Where am I?" she asked softly, a tinge of fear in her voice.

"In my home," replied Alpha Mula gently, moving closer.

Confusion clouded Elena's expression. "What...? Why am I here?" she questioned, her voice betraying her anxiety as she sat up abruptly, inching away from Mula.

Despite her reaction, Mula sat beside her, meeting her gaze. "Shouldn't you be glad to be back home?" he inquired, to which Elena shook her head.

"This is not my home, who are you, and what do you want from me?" Elena asked, edging away with a fearful look, causing Mula to sigh and take a deep breath.

"Stop trying so hard to pretend that you don't know that I'm your rightful mate. I know what I want, and I brought you here. I had betrayed the trust of my old friend to bring you here" He said.

"I risked everything because I'm certain you are not comfortable living with Dean. You must have been living in fear with him," Mula said, and Elena waved her head slowly.

"No, you've got it wrong. That was before. Not anymore. When I was in fear, I was hoping you would rescue me, but you didn't. Now, I fear it's too late because you have to take me back there. You didn't come for me when I needed you the most," Elena responded firmly.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't forgive myself after that day. I have to find a way to bring you to me, at last," Mula said, shrugging his shoulders, while Elena gazed steadily at him, her thoughts racing.

"So, you mean Athena has been working with you? The last thing I remember, I was at the club with her, then... she..." Elena tried to recall what happened with Athena, but Mula cut in.

"She poisoned your drink. Yes, she did. The poison wasn't meant to kill you; it was meant to keep you asleep for some time," Mula replied, and Elena swallowed nervously.

"Well, thanks, but I have to go back now. You have to take me back. I don't want to stay here. You can't protect me!" Elena exclaimed as she swiftly jumped down from the bed, heading towards the door, but Mula caught her by the hands.

"And Dean will?" Mula asked, and Elena nodded.

"Yes, he has shown me that several times. He came to rescue me from the fire," Elena replied, her voice resolute.

"No! he only bought you with money. He wanted to enslave you!" Mula exclaimed.

"But he didn't. He showed me kindness instead, giving me more reasons to love him. He didn't abandon me when I needed him the most. He made me understand that I don't need to be afraid of him. I already know parts of him, and I can't ignore that to start fresh with someone I barely know, someone who abandoned me," Elena said, tears streaming down her face.

"Enough! He is not who he seems to be! He was deceiving you. I was his friend, and he has harmed many others. Once he gets you pregnant, he won't let you have the baby. He will sacrifice you during childbirth. I risked everything to bring you here because I can't watch him harm my mate," Mula exclaimed, leaving Elena speechless.

The words suddenly hit Elena, having heard stories about Dean before and now hearing them from Mula made her realize the gravity of the situation.

"I'm sorry I didn't come to rescue you earlier. You're safe with me now. Dean will keep looking for you, not out of love but to use you. I will protect you from any harm," Mula assured her, embracing her tightly.

However, Elena faced another challenge. How would she tell Mula that she was already pregnant with Dean's baby? The daunting task lay ahead.