72. A box of moonlight.

"Eros, darling, what are you doing here?" Mary entered the office. The curtains were closed, making the room as dark as a cave. She had to walk with extra caution, avoiding trashed furniture and empty whiskey bottles.

"She wasn't there," a weak, tearful voice spat back. Mary froze in place, trying her best to find the large male somewhere in the room. Eros was not one to be lost in the crowd, yet he managed to hide away from eyes here- under everyone's nose.

"I don't understand. What do you mean she wasn't there? Just drop this and tell me it's a joke, tell me that you're celebrating not drowning the pain of your soul here," Mary fought back her tears, biting her lip to avoid muffled cries escaping her. For a while, the room fell completely silent, only heartbeats and disordered breathing could be heard. Mary's mind rushed, millions of dreadful thoughts attacking her at once. Eve could be anywhere, and someone could have gotten a hold of her and be torturing the weak human as they stand there.

"But what if she really left... You know," Mary's wolf winced from the back of her mind, hiding her tail between her legs. The idea itself sent Mary into overdrive, she shook in anger, unable to understand where the anger actually came from. Was she angry at her wolf for assuming such a thing? Was she mad at herself for being so careless and not considering the idea? Or was she mad at Eve for disappearing like that, possibly to do the worst thing anyone could think of?

"Stop, don't you ever assume such things again! She didn't leave to kill the baby if there is one. We know Eve; she isn't like that, she would never!" Mary spat back at her wolf in disbelief, lacing her words. The worst feeling was that Mary didn't know what the doubt was for. For her or her wolf's words?

"No use in thinking about it, Mary. We don't need a reason, she's gone, and that's enough. She is, I mean- she was my soul. My heart is still beating, so she's not dead. I'll just hope that it will stay that way for a while," Eros growled from the corner of the room.

"How dare you!" Mary threw her arms up in frustration, her face flushed in anger.

"How dare I, huh? It's funny how I dared to be the best mate I could be, and yet she still chose to leave. It was a stupid mistake to go after her, we never fully mated- that was a huge red flag which I chose to ignore. I should never have done what I did. As soon as I saw her in that alley, I had to keep away from her," Eros sounded distant, emotionless. The hurt in his voice faded, making him sound like he had lost the last of the humanity in him.

"I can't believe you. When a person truly loves someone, especially their mate- they will stop at nothing. They do anything to stay around their loved ones, ANYTHING for fuck’s sake, Eros!" Her voice wasn't made to throw around rude remarks- Mary sounded like an angry toddler. Eros chuckled, standing up and leant against the wall to keep his balance.

"The fuck are you laughing at? You could have gotten a whole town drunk with the amount of whiskey here. You stupid, stupid man!"

"There was a saying my grandmother used pretty often, especially when she was talking about love. Would you like to hear it, Mary?" A hint of mischief in his voice made Mary take a step back- just in case.

"Sure," she gulped loudly.

"When you truly love someone, you let them go. If they come back..." Eros bit his lip, letting out a deep, painful sigh.

"The person has always been the one, am I correct?" Mary finished what Eros was about to say. He nods his head despite being in the dark. Mary might or might not see him, but it didn't matter to Eros. He felt too sober to deal with anything, way too sober to keep this conversation going.

"And if they don't..."

"They were never yours," Mary whispered sadly.

"That's where you're wrong. If they don't come back- you hunt them down and kill them," Eros laughed coldly, amused by how cruel he could be. The man couldn't take even a couple of hours away from his mate- she knew that. Despite all her knowledge, she still left- not a single fiber of her body filled with regret or remorse. And he was here- locked in the office, acting like an alcoholic- attempting to get wasted alone.

"Eros, don't be like that. I'm sure that Eve had a reason to leave- a real reason. She would never hurt you intentionally, that woman loves you more than anything!" Mary kept fighting him. Sooner or later, he would understand, right? She would press him more, try to reason his thoughts, and Eros might drop the attitude.

"Mary, you're so foolish. At your age." He didn't intend to offend Mary, but Eros did want to point out how naive she was being.

"This is nothing but a nightmare!" Mary hissed. The woman was a lot of things, one of them was stubborn. Despite the slight fear, she stood her ground, head held high.

"Well, welcome to my nightmare then, hope you enjoy the show." Eros appeared in front of her, startling the older woman. He wasn't wearing his mask anymore. The only time when he wasn't hiding, was when Eve was around him. Mary thought his behaviour was rather odd.

"You need your mate, Eros" she looked away, hiding the hurt in her eyes.

"No, not anymore. I gave this mate’s bullshit a chance and look at me now- a fucking drunkie hiding away from everyone's eyes. Since I met Eve, my life turned upside down- waves and storms of shit came over me because I was mated to a human. I knew how much I was risking when I first caught her scent. I knew how whipped I would be after the first time I got to touch her skin. Whatever she did, no matter how she tried to fight me, I kept going for her, I kept fighting. I gave her my soul, my heart, and my life. I was indeed hers while she decided to play her sick games.”

“Do you really think that Eve loved me? Do you? News flash- she didn't. Don't believe that I wasn't trying to be careful. Eve might have wrapped me around her finger, but I did keep watching her. She didn't want me, yet she fell in love with the same man she kept refusing as soon as she discovered that the bastard could be a fucking King. She was not here for love or me- she was here for power and greed. Just like any other human. Eve has no idea how the mate bond affects wolves. Just like any other human. She left me as soon as she could. The only human left in my life is my grandmother, and Mary, she is here because she raised me. A human grandmother has been more of a mother to me than my own mother. Please, tell me more about how Eve loves me, how she needs me, and how there is a reason for her disappearance."

"She was holding you above the water. Don't you understand? She was a lot better than any other bitch in this pack. Sure, go around and find yourself a new bitch, why not? As soon as you do that, I'm gone. I don't care. Balthazar can stay for all I care, but I will never give up on Eve. I will never give up on our lawful Queen. Sooner or later, I will find that girl; I will find out why she left and what happened here. Whenever that day comes- don't try to get her. Find yourself a bitch and give up on your true mate." Her words were not a warning, they were threats, coming from a powerful woman. King or not, Mary will stand in front of Eve in a heartbeat. She will become a shield for the human girl.

"No thanks, my loneliness will be the only bitch to hold me," Eros reached for another bottle of whiskey, popping it open and gulping it down with ease. Mary noticed that he was reaching a light intoxication state, but she didn’t think to stop him. Her thoughts were occupied with planning; how she would find Eve. She had to find the man who was mentioned earlier. Finding a rogue is hard enough. Finding one who's hiding the Queen might be an impossible mission. Mary's eyes followed Eros. He strode to the leather chair and sat down lazily, reaching a hand into a pocket of his jacket. Eros grabbed onto a small, black box and placed it in front of him, staring at the box as if it had all answers.

"What's that?" Mary raised an eyebrow, trying to figure out what his answer would be before Eros opened his mouth.

"It was a gift I got for Eve. I have no idea what I should do with it now- quite a useless thing if you ask me. We went out once, like on a real date- during the day. I still remember how shocked people looked, how they kept staring at us. She held my hand and calmed me down. Eve enjoyed the carnival and games. I must admit, that was one of the best days of my life, if not the best of them all. The smile on her lips, it was one of a kind- true happiness. We went by this antique shop, and this little thing caught her eye. Because of this damned box I thought that she was special, I really did. When she averted her gaze, I asked her if she would like it, and instead of begging me to buy it, Eve told me that the thing might be expensive and she would rather not spend my hard-earned money," Eros chuckled, grabbing the box and twisting it in between his fingers.

"Any other woman, seeing this, would go crazy with need to own a shitty little jewel as such. But not Eve, definitely not her. I'm guilty as charged because I couldn't forget the sparks dancing in her eyes when she saw this. I wanted to give her this on our anniversary. Now, I don't know what to do. This box will remind me of her; I don't need distractions or memories. All I need is time off from everything, so please take it. Do whatever you please, as long as it's not around me." Eros tossed the box to Mary, and she caught it with ease.

"What is it?" she asked, afraid of breaking his privacy by taking a peek inside the box.

"A box of moonlight."