Chapter 12

DAY 1
VALERIA’S POINT OF VIEW
Being a marked she-wolf had always been my dream until I got to know who my soul mate really was. That dream suddenly turned into a nightmare. I didn’t get the goddess at all. Why punish thousands because of one she-wolf? I mean, she could torture the soul of that female who disobeyed her and stop hating us for no reason.
“What are you thinking about?” Azura asked, bringing out a sheet of paper from her bag. Doris had given it to her before we left. She said to bring it out when we were lost.
“Why the goddess hates the people she created.” I answered, feeling myself become distant.
“She doesn’t hate werewolves, I assure you. Fitia is just upset.”
“So upset that she wants to wipe us out of existence. Makes little sense to me.” I stopped walking and looked up at the dark sky in frustration. “Is she really a loving goddess? Because if she was, she wouldn’t want to punish us for something we didn’t do.”
Azura immediately hushed me. “Don’t speak ill of the goddess, Valeria. Do you want to be stricken with madness?”
“I agree with her.”
My eyes narrowed as I peered at the figure in front of me through the darkness. She had blonde hair was clad in a black attire. I couldn’t make out the color of her eyes, but I could bet they were black. Sniffing the air quietly, I realized she wasn’t a werewolf. This woman was a griffin—a werewolf’s greatest enemy.
“Get out of my path, thief.” I growled at her, hoping my aura would frighten her, but she remained calm. Weird.
“I don’t take orders from you, princess.” She responded with a smile as she stole my form. “I wouldn’t growl at me if I were you.” She growled back.
Most times, I felt as if the goddess favored Griffins more than us werewolves. I mean, how could a person steal someone else’s form and their abilities? I just wished they could do the same to gods, but unfortunately, Fitia didn’t allow that.
“Return to your original self this instant.” I ordered, taking slow steps towards her. “Do not make me say it twice.”
“Make me.” She challenged. The creepy thing was that it felt as if I was looking into a mirror. It made chills run down my spine.
Fighting the urge to shift, I only extended my claws. I wasn’t here to fight; I was here to kill.
“Killing me will only add to your troubles, princess.” She changed back to the blonde I first saw. “I can help you.”
I scoffed at her offer. “Why would I trust a griffin? That’s like kissing a snake.”
“I know my people don’t really appear friendly, but I’m different. I mean it.”
“Different my ass.” Azura crossed her arms over her chest, glaring daggers at the lady.
She sounded sincere, but I would not fall for her tricks just like that. Father had warned me about griffins and for the first time, I was going to listen to him. They were dangerous creatures and I wouldn’t care if they were wiped out of existence.
“Why should I trust you?”
“Because your people will die even before the god of destruction attacks.”
That was enough for me to lunge myself at her and wrap my hands around her throat. The reaction she showed wasn’t one I was expecting. She just smiled at me.
“You wouldn’t believe me, I know.” She forced my hands off her and stumbled backwards, her hands shooting up to her neck. “My father is hell bent on having your head on display and he won’t stop until you’re dead.”
“Who is your father?” Azura questioned.
“Vladimir.” She responded, her tone dropping a little. She didn’t sound like his biggest fan. I couldn’t blame her.
Vladimir was the king of griffins and although he was a loving king to his people, the outside world didn’t like him because he killed other supernaturals without thinking twice. I hated him.
“The king has only one daughter, and she’s not a blonde. Take your authentic form now.” I said, feeling myself losing the little trust that was forming.
She let out a defeated sigh and closed her eyes. When she opened them, her eyes were green and her hair as dark as the night. She had tanned skin and looked like those models I used to see in magazines. She was beautiful.
“Name.” I demanded, slightly narrowing my eyes at her so she would tell the truth.
“Hannah. No need to tell me yours. I know who you are.”
I nodded before jerking my thumb in Azura’s direction. “This is my friend, Azura.”
Azura waved, pushing herself off the tree she had been leaning on. “Nice to meet you.” She had a strained smile on her face. Hannah raised a brow at her and Azura shrugged. “That’s a lie. There’s nothing nice about meeting a griffin. Your kind are bad news, sorry not sorry.”
Hannah nodded in understanding. “We brought that upon ourselves.” She looked around the dark forest. “I can sense you do not exactly know where you are, so why not come with me? I found a cave earlier.”
“We’re good.” Azura rushed out. She looked at me and then drew in a breath to calm herself. “We are good.” She said, much slower than the first time.
Hannah crossed her arms over her chest and looked down at the ground. “I don’t bite.”
“But you kill.” I said, sounding a lot meaner than intended. “I’m not sorry for saying what I said.”
“I wasn’t expecting you to be.” She looked over her shoulder before meeting my gaze again. “So, you coming or not?”
“We’ll come with you.” I answered, completely ignoring Azura’s glare. “But, if you try anything funny, I’ll see to it you don’t see the next sunrise.”
Hannah smirked. “I wouldn’t have it any other way. A good challenge from time to time is what I live for.”
“If you leave out your tricks, we might get along just fine.”
“I’ll try.”
<<<>>>
Just like Hannah had said, there was indeed a cave. At least she didn’t lie about it. It wasn’t huge, but we could fit into it well. I hadn’t picked up any scents or heard anything, so she was definitely the only one around here.
“This is not a classy castle, but it’ll do.” She brought out a flashlight from her backpack and turned it on. “Come right in.”
“Ladies first.” Azura nervously laughed as she stepped backwards.
I turned to look at her. “You’re a lady, stupid.” I grabbed her by her wrist and pulled her towards the entrance of the cave. “We’re in this shit together.”
“I hate this place, but there’s nothing I can do.” Hannah spoke up, looking in my direction. “A runaway princess can’t be picky.”
I removed my bag and dropped it on the ground before sitting on a rock. My butt would hurt eventually.
“So, why did you leave home?” Azura questioned, narrowing her eyes at Hannah. It was obvious she didn’t really like Hannah, but she had information I wanted. On one hand, I had a crazy god, and now on the other, there were griffins. I just hoped vampires wouldn’t turn on us and give me a reason to worry.
“I didn’t want to watch my father go crazy over my mother’s death.” She held her head in her hands. “Apparently, your father had shot my mom on his first hunt when Alphas were requested to train before coming into power. He said your father did it on purpose, but I know King Lucas wouldn’t just shoot at her.”
It made me happy that she trusted my father. Although it’s possible that father had shot at her mother on purpose, but two questions kept pushing themselves to the forefront of my mind.
“What was your mother doing at the training ground for Alphas?”
Hannah shrugged, looking up at me. “I wish I knew, but I don’t. Father doesn’t know either. All he believes is that King Lucas shot at her on purpose. He feels killing you will help him get rid of whatever pain he is feeling.”
“And my father… Why are you so sure he didn’t shoot at her on purpose?”
She held my gaze, not even blinking for a moment. “I just know it.” When she eventually looked away, she said, “Your father was a kind-hearted man who didn’t believe in attacking us Griffins even when all my father wanted was bloodshed. Your father was different.”
The way she spoke about my father made me feel proud as his daughter. It made me want to live like he did, except I didn’t know how long I would breathe. I had absolutely no idea when the grim reaper would come knocking at my door.
“It pains me to say this, but I have to. If I don’t tell you the truth, Valeria, you may see me as your enemy when you find out.” She swallowed, “On the night your father died, my father was there.”
Doris’ words immediately began replaying in my head. She had said there was more to his death, even Aphrodite. She said something was blocking her from seeing everything. Could it be Vladimir?
“Vladimir killed my father, didn’t he?” I swallowed the lump in my throat. Azura placed a hand on my shoulder, letting me know she was there for me. “He killed my father, didn’t he?!” I yelled, abruptly standing up. “Answer me!”
My body shook with anger, pain, and sadness. I thought Mavros killed my father, but I was wrong. An outsider had taken the form of my mate, got into my home and killed my father. Who did I wrong to be treated in such a way?
“Yes, I’m sorry.” She also got up, but unlike before, she didn’t meet my eyes. “I tried talking him out of it, I really did. My father is a stubborn man, he didn’t listen to me.” She took a few steps towards me, “After I heard King Lucas was dead, I left home in anger. I’m truly sorry.”
“Why didn’t you fucking tell me? You should have warned me beforehand if you really wanted to see my father live!” I screamed at her, trying to keep my wolf at bay. The anger I had felt when Olethros marked me differed from what I was feeling now. I was furious.
“You would have killed me, Valeria.” She responded, her voice becoming louder. “If I had come to you, you wouldn’t have listened to me. I thought about coming to you, but knowing I would end up dead, I decided against it. A griffin isn’t allowed amongst werewolves, and you fucking know it!”
“You should have at least tried, Hannah.” A rogue tear rolled down my cheek, and I furiously wiped it away.
“I’m sorry I didn’t try.”
Sorry fixes nothing.