Chapter 25: I LONGED FOR A MATE

Ellen Evans

I ran around my room, gathering my belongings quickly.

Zedd had called me earlier.

"Ellen, leave Clux," he had told me. "They are after you,"

I hurried out of the room after taking my traveling pack with me.

"How do we get east?" Kayla said to me in my head. "Did you take the map?"

"Oh shit!" I cursed. I remembered then that I had left it lying on the bed. I had not put it in the bag because I needed it.

I raced back to my room and quickly retrieved the map from the bed.

I ran down the stairs to the first floor. It was not as busy as the night before.

I went to the counter to hand over the key and my meal pass.

The serving girl who had served me yesterday met me on my way out of the reception.

"Miss," she greeted me with a really bright and contagious smile for i smiled back at her, at ease, forgetting that I had my problems for a moment. "Good morning to you. How was your night at Jade Palace?" She inquired.

"Good morning," I replied her. "My night was splendid. I enjoyed every bit of my stay here."

"Are you leaving?" She asked me. I nodded at her.

"I look forward to coming back and enjoying another stay some other time." She pouted in sadness.

"Will you not stay for breakfast, at least?" She asked me. I sighed. I did not want to, but I had to disappoint her.

"I am sorry that I can not. I am in a hurry to get somewhere," I informed her. She nodded in understanding.

"I hope to see you again," she told me with a parting smile. I nodded.

"Thank you." I turned to leave, but turned back to her and asked. "What is your name?" She smiled at me and spoke.

"I am called Taina." Her name was beautiful.

"You have a beautiful name," i informed her. She blushed.

"Many people tell me that but they never sound as sincere as you do now, telling me the same thing."

"I am Ellen," I told her. "Goodbye." I waved at her. She waved back and I left the reception.

I stopped just outside the place to stare at the sign post:

The Jade Palace Tavern.

I knew that I had lied to Taina. l was no free woman. I was a wanted criminal, an imperial traitor. I could never come back lest I be discovered and my life would end.

I felt a bit sorry for lying to Taina.

I asked a few questions and headed for the water port just as Zedd had instructed me to do.

"Wear a cap over your head woman," Kayla said to me. I listened to her, wrapping the hood of my hoodie over my hair that I had put in a ponytail.

My phone vibrated.

I checked the device. I had received a notification. I opened the phone with my fingerprint.

It was a message.

It was from Zedd.

Zedd: Where are you now?

Ellen: I have left the Jade Palace Tavern. I am headed for the seaport.

Zedd: The scouts are outside the tavern. Make sure you leave quickly. Get on a boat no matter what.

Ellen: Okay. I will Zedd.

Zedd: Take good care of yourself. And be careful. The world outside is a dangerous one. Be vigilant.

Ellen: I will. I love you.

I waited for a moment but no return reply came. He must have kept his phone or he could not reply.

I set the phone in my pocket and boarded a taxi to the seaport.

We soon arrived the place.

The sea port was filled with people and also goods being offloaded from the sea vessels. I made my way round all of that and found the place where people could board a ship.

I went to the counter and found out their destinations.

Then I looked them up on the map that Zedd had given to me.

A place called the Hyran Pack was the best place for me to go to. It was the easier route for me to continue to the east.

I bought a ticket for my boat ride and waited till the boat came.

Everyone boarded the boat and the driver started the engine. We were moving to Hyran pack in no time.

I looked around me, studying.

The boat took up to fifteen passengers on board. There was about seven men with two children. The rest of the persons on the boat were women.

I was sitting beside a woman with grass green hair and emerald eyes. She was pretty.

"Your hair is beautiful," I said to her with an appreciative gaze and a warm smile. She smiled right back at me.

"Thank you."

"You are more pretty than my hair I assure you," she told me.

I blushed at her words. "Thank you. I am Ellen. And you?"

"I am Lydia," she said to me. "My wolf says to tell you Hi. She is called Kate."

"That is nice," I purred. "Hi Kate. My wolf is named Kayla."

"I love her name," she squealed in a low voice and I laughed.

"She seems like fun,"Kayla said to me. I agreed with the wolf.

"Where are you going?" I asked her, inquisitive as always.

"I am going to the Hyran pack. I am going to reunite with my brother. It has been so long since I have been away from home."

She had this dreamy look on her eyes that gave off the fact that she missed home.

I was glad that she could return home.

I on the other hand could never return home.

I did not have a home no longer.I was homeless.

No one who knew my origin would like to take me in.

It hurt but it was for the best, abandoning my home, abandoning everything at the price of a new life.

"I have a brother too. We just parted for a good cause. But he makes sure I am alright and I know he cares for me."

She smiled at me to know that we each had a brother.

She was friendly. I did not regret starting a conversation with her.

"Brothers are sweet. Do you not agree with me Ellen?" Lydia said.

"Of course they are. I am happy to have a brother. You shall meet yours soon. How long have you been parted?" She thought for a while before she replied me.

"Six years. I have been away for so long. I wanted to go to school. I miss my brother."

Had she or had she not gone to school?

I did not want to ask because I felt it could hurt her, the memories if bad could bring her pain.

So I relented.

"I am sure that your brother misses you as much as you miss him."

"I hope so." She said to me. I smiled at her and we bother stared at the distance over the expanse of the water.

She longed for home.

I longed for a mate.