The Dark Side Of Fate by Karima Sa'ad Usman

Chapter 240 -78 Ladies Night

~Amelia~

Tamia had the idea of having a party to lift the gloom. As much as we did not want to address the matter, it was hanging above us. There was a cult after all our lives, and we did not know how to deal with them. We needed a miracle, but it was okay to unwind and relax while we waited for the Miracle.

Susan told us about Alice and what happened in Brent, and I was furious. Tamia had a similar story about a woman called Lilly. The name seemed to trigger many memories for the three women. It made me wonder why Linda would name her daughter Lilly; until Linda told me it was her mother's name, I dropped the matter.

I believed I might have had someone like that too; if Leo wasn't closed off completely, Leah would have been a treacherous problem for me too, but I guess he had learned his lesson from Amanda and closed off completely.

I hoped Devin caught the Alice bitch and made her sing.

We needed to know what was going on. We only had Andrew's angle, and I did not trust him completely.

I know my brothers trust him, but I don't.

I planned to have a private discussion with Clay to discuss Andrew extensively.

Nicole was the life of the party, and Claudia was yet to get along with everyone but seemed to be trying.

Something I noticed about the women was that they just expect the newcomer to fit in, so if the newcomer is waiting for an invite, she will wait forever.

Seeing how Claudia was quiet, holding her martini, I decided to take a stroll through the corridor with her. Maybe get her talking and discover why she decided to go out with Vino.

Call me nosey, but I believed there was more to it.

I know Leo has issues with the guy because of Amanda, but I did not care about things that did not concern me.

I knew talking to her would make her loosen up because no one seemed to be making any effort.

"Do you mind joining me in the kitchen?" I asked Claudia, and she looked at me and smiled.

"Yes, Luna," she said, and I laughed.

"Amelia would do just fine," I said, and she smiled.

Linda frowned a bit and then figured out what I was up to.

She smiled and nodded.

I guess she figured Claudia needed to loosen up too. They all did. They just did not know how to make it happen.

"You seem the shy type," I said while we walked, and she shook her head.

"I just do not want to offend anyone. All of them are above my station, Amelia. I can't. I am even surprised that you will speak to me. I did not want to come, but Vino insisted I get to know his family." She said, and I laughed.

"Vino is a Volkov, Claudia, and former head of council; no one here is above anyone. Those women don't care about titles and social relevance. We are friends and family. You should make some effort

to get to know your future in-laws since you and Vino are going steady." I said, and she giggled. I saw her blush a bit, and I felt it was a bit too soon.

"How did you two become an item? It wasn't long since you met?" I asked. I knew I was nosey, but I was curious.

"We are fated," she blurted, and I gasped.

"He returned to the hospital and tried to reject me, thinking I was a married woman, but when I told him I was a widow, it changed everything. I would lie to you if I told you I am not afraid of opening my heart again and losing someone I love, but I hope it will be different with Vino," she said, sighed and stopped walking.

"We accepted each other, and it would have been great if I did not learn of a family arm that is out to wipe them out," She said and broke down.

"I can't go through loss twice, Amelia," she said, and I had a very cynical response in my head that I held back. NôvelDrama.Org holds this content.

I wanted to tell her to take comfort in knowing that they were likely to get killed together if it happened, but I did not say it. That would be cold and insensitive, so I rubbed her back gently.

"We are going to make sure you get your happily ever after," I said, and she frowned at me.

"You aren't good at making people feel better, are you?" she said, and I shook my head, and we both started laughing.

I had always known I sucked in that department, something Leah found out the hard way, but I try. I try to come through for people I care about. It is just that I have been through so much shit that I stopped feeling and fearing the worst a long time ago. Leo is good for me. He makes me feel.

Claudia told me a lot about her life and what she hoped to do. She also liked children a lot, and luckily for her, Vino has three adorable daughters; I know she would love them.

We didn't get to the kitchen. We returned to join the women. By then, the music was on, and Susan and Nicole were dancing. Katya was very tipsy. I could tell from the way she was laughing.

I went to sit, and this time, Claudia sat beside me.

Some omegas brought us spring rolls. They kept that thing coming, and I hoped this batch had some chicken and cheese in it because I wanted meat.

I reached for the roll when Tamia stood up to call our attention.

I could see the bulb turn on in her eyes, and I knew she had a bright idea; I just hoped the idea would still be bright in the morning when we were sober.

I told the Omega to drop the tray and leave. She did so immediately.

"Ekhem," Tamia cleared her throat, and we were attentive.

"I think it is highly disrespectful that our men are not including us in their discussions," She said, and she just spoke the words out because we all felt that way. Leo included me until they arrived.

"I think it is disrespectful that we do not get to make decisions and plan with them. I think it is arrogant of them," she said, and we all agreed.

"And honestly, I am bored. We came here to have fun and solve a mystery, which we must do. If not, we would have come with our children, but we didn't. Every second away from our babies has to count, so at least when we go home, we have a good reason for staying away," she said, and Avery agreed.

"Honestly, I was hoping someone would speak up. Because I am always complaining of boredom," Linda said, and Tamia and Avery laughed. I guess that statement took them down memory lane.

"Amelia, tell us what you know because I know Leo would never keep you in the dark knowing you are part of it," Tamia said, and I smiled and leaned forward.

I told them everything Andrew told us, What happened, all that has been going on, and they were shocked.

"Sylvester told me some of it but not the juicy party," Tamia complained, and Avery laughed.

"I am hearing everything for the first time; I just know that some silver immune weirdos are out to get us, and that is because of the attack in the north," She said, and we laughed.

"Theo told me some of it too, but not as detailed as what you just told me, Amelia, and honestly, I am mad", Linda said, and Katya laughed.

"I was told we were coming here for a holiday," she said, and we laughed because she was clueless.

"Vino opened up to me about it, but I guess he did not have the same information you had. The irony was he told me this when we got to the east right before we had dinner," Claudia said, and I realised Vino must have waited so she would not say no. Tricky and smart.

We noticed that Nicole said nothing, and I looked at her. Her cheeks were red. I did not know if it were alcohol or embarrassment.

"Well?" Linda asked her.

"David told me everything," she said, but we all knew that already.

"He told our children too," She added, and Tamia exclaimed.

"Why would he do that?" she asked and then quickly stopped Nicole from answering because we all figured out why and did not want Claudia to know.

He told them so their children would know what happened if their parents did not survive it. It was his way of passing on knowledge.

"So, what do you think about your relatives, Amelia? Because if we look at this, your brothers should be the ones who are angered, but they aren't, so what is the deal with Erik and Yuri," Tamia said, and I shook my head.

"I strongly suspect that Yuri is the biggest issue, and it will be a mistake for Sylvester to divide the kingdom with him," I said, and they were attentive.

"I will tell you all what I told Leo. Use Yuri's men to take Erik down and then take Yuri down. We only want Stepanov's name to be restored in history and the Volkovs to right their wrongs. Alexei said it was a lordship they fought for, so they are willing to settle for lordship, but they are not going after the kingship," I said, and Tamia sighed.

"That is a very sensible thing your brother said, and to think we thought They were the enemies", She added.

"Yes, I trust them, but I don't trust my cousin, Andrew. I just think it is weird he would want us to team up with someone that is killing innocent people to achieve his goals," I said. Avery nodded, she was the only one not drinking, and it was because she was pregnant.

"But you need to understand that Yuri is the lesser of the evils to Andrew. Erick wants to wipe us out and have you mated to his son. Yuri just wants to divide the kingdom," Avery said, and Tamia shook her head.

"I understand what Amelia is saying, Ave. Erik's goals aren't clear to us except for what we have heard from Andrew, but Yuri's goals are clear. More so, Erik did not wipe out an entire settlement and take innocent lives for his cause. Who is to say he will be content with just half? Anyone that would do that would want the whole kingdom with time, and it will be a given when that time comes." She said, seeing it from my angle.

"I thought as much, too," Linda said.

"I think we should investigate Erik and find out his true purpose, the truth is we have to team up with one of them to get the other, but we need to know the safer option. We should try and see how we can get to Erik. Leo's folks, if they show up, might help us with that bit. Unless we know what we are dealing with, we won't be safe," Linda said, and I knew we were already a team.

"So are we combining efforts with the men or working separately?" Claudia asked, and Tamia laughed.

"We have to combine efforts. We have to be on the same page. We will fail if we try to solve this apart," She said, and I was glad we had the discussion. I knew tomorrow would be great.