Arresting Ben
Lilith’s POV
My sight was blurry at first, but then it gradually became clear.
I roamed my hands around the hard surface I rested on, expecting to be on my bed. My eyes shut open, with every trace of sleep vanishing from them as I realized where I was.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.
What happened in the early hours of the morning came back to my memory. It had all seemed like a dream which I didn’t want to believe, but looking towards the bed, I saw Ronan and I realized it had all really happened.
I raised my head up from Adams’ chest and looked into his eyes. They were crimson red as if it was the origin of blood in his body.
They were shining dimly, like a bright moon covered with dark clouds. A gasp escaped my lips, and he looked at me.
“Good morning my love.
“Adams… you didn’t sleep all night, did you?”
He turned his face away and continued to stare at Ronan on the bed. “Who would watch over him when I sleep? I’m sure he is in this position because he was trying to protect me. Why should I not sacrifice some hours of sleep for him?”
“But…”
“But what, Lilith? Someone tried to kill you at first, remember? You survived. I was sleeping in my room last night when that man came in. I can still see his eyes through his mask, how much hatred he had in there. I remember the tip of the knife as it faced me. If I had not dodged it in time, my brains would have been on my bed, and you would probably be mourning my death.
“The goddess forbids it Adams, don’t say that.”
He stopped talking and stared into space for a while. Water dropped from his eyes, but he cleaned it quickly so that I wouldn’t see his tears. He stood up and walked towards the bed, staring at Ronan’s unconscious body.
“I don’t care much about my life, Lilith, but I do not joke about the lives of others that matter to me. I will get revenge. I will hunt every one of them involved in this, whether they are related to me by blood or not. I will skin them alive and roast their flesh on an open fire before their eyes. I will collect their blood in jugs and force them to drink it while they feast on their own flesh. They would beg for mercy and I wouldn’t listen. They would wish to die, but I would lock death far away from them, I would make them miserable.”
His eyes began to glister, a blend of orange and amber lights. Dark fur began to come out of his skin and his claws elongated. His bones had begun to creak and twist and turn as he grew larger.
I was surprised by this transformation because it was during the daytime and the sun was high in the sky. He was no Lycan, so how come he could transform?
His aura dominated the whole room. It was so much, it made me uncomfortable. “Adams, snap out of it, please,” I tried to beg, but he didn’t listen. His wolf was almost out, and he had become an entirely different being.
“Stop this at once! Do you want to kill Ronan?” A voice rang in.
At the mention of Ronan’s name, he snapped out of the beast mode. He gained control of himself.
I looked towards the pack doctor who had come in with his tool box in his hand. He was followed by an assistant who carried an even larger box, standing beside him.
“I don’t know how it was possible for you to do what you just did, but I need you to leave the room now, my king. I fear you may have tampered with the medication with that dangerous aura you emitted just now. You should also get some rest. I’m here now.”
Adams stood still like he didn’t hear what the doctor had said. His expression remained indifferent, and his face was as hard as a rock.
“My king, I …”
“I am not leaving this place.”
“But…”
“It’s either you do your job while I’m here or get replaced this instant.” He shut the doctor a hard glare which must have sent shivers down his spine from the shocking look on his face.
The doctor looked from me to him and I got the message. I walked to where Adams stood, held his hands, and whispered some words into his ears. “Let us leave the doctor to do his job Adams, he knows best what he is doing.”
“If you want to leave, leave. I will stay here while he does his job. At this stage, I can’t trust anyone, not even myself. Ronan needs me…”
“But your pack needs you too. I know this is hard for you to bear, but it has happened and there is little we can do about it. Let the doctor do his thing while you do yours. Ronan is not going anywhere.”
By now, the doctor had begun to remove the bandage he wrapped around the wound. His assistant brought out four pans and put them on the four stands of the bed.
The doctor brought out some dried plants and put them in the pans before lighting them on fire. The plants burned for a while before going off, replaced by thin lines of smoke.
“What is this for?” Adams asked the doctor, his nose twisted in disgust.
“This is an ancient medicine used in cases like this. It can only be obtained at strategic places in the highest mountains at the outskirts of the border. Finding it had not been easy, but I was able to get it for a price. As the smoke goes into the body, it heals the wounds from within and keeps the body alive.”
Adams nodded his head in acknowledgment of what the doctor had said. “You will be paid for every service rendered, and I am sorry for the way I spoke earlier. I shouldn’t have.”
The doctor bowed slightly and continued his job as we made to leave the room.
A knock on the door made us stop. “Who is there?” Adams asked.
“We are the guards you sent in search of your brother and the culprit who tried to kill you, my king.”
Adams opened the door to find three men dressed in golden uniforms. “Well…” He began. “What do you have for me?”
“We still haven’t found them sir. We, alongside every other guard in this mansion, have searched every room in the mansion, combed through every field and checked every house in the pack. Yet, no sign of them.”
“Keep on searching then.”
Hardly had he spoken and finished, did a figure stroll in, without a care in the world. His hands were in his pockets and his head was raised up high.
“I heard you got attacked little brother, and your beta is in a worse shape than you are. Too bad I missed the show.”
I looked up at the same time as Adams and my eyes widened in surprise at who I saw.
“You!” I heard Adams growl, charging at him at a very dangerous speed. He held him by the neck, but Ben remained indifferent, and didn’t react. Rather, his hands remained in his pockets.
“You will pay for your crimes, I will make sure of it. Arrest him!” Adams ordered, throwing him against a nearby wall.