Chapter 81
[ 1,080 words ]
Arabella Toussaint
I wrapped both hands around the warm coffee mug and looked around the little apartment. It was small, but it felt peaceful. A faded couch stood against the wall, a tiny bookshelf leaned in the corner, and the smell of fresh coffee drifted up from the café below.
I looked at Maya, “How did you manage all this?” I asked her, “This café, the apartment. It can’t have been easy.”
She let out a quiet laugh and shook her head, “It wasn’t,” she admitted, “And this?” She gestured around the room, “It’s only temporary.”
I frowned, “Temporary?”
A small smile tugged at her lips, “I was waiting for you, chipmunk.”
Her words caught me off guard.
She reached over to grab my hand across the table and squeezed it, “I have enough money for both of us. Once I found you, we were supposed to leave the place and open a café in one of the safe zones.”
“Is it not safe here?” My question made her purse her lips into a thin line.
“No, silly. This place is near the border. If they ever decide to look for you in the human world, they’ll start from here.”
Look for you . Not look for us .
She was safe, and she knew someday the lycans might start looking for me. My friend must have read my thoughts because she placed her coffee cup on the table and got to her feet to come around the table and sit beside me, “Don’t worry. With all the precautions we’ve taken, they won’t reach you, Aria.”
She had already started calling me by my new name. To keep me safe.
“For you, I’ll change my name too. To reach you, they might start searching for Maya…” She thought for a moment and then eyed me with a thoughtful expression, “How about Mia?”
I nodded at her with a chuckle, “Mia sounds nice.”
We were both happy with our new identities. While taking a sip of coffee from my mug, Lucien’s face popped up in my head. He must have gone crazy and must have started searching for me.
Because if that was the case, we couldn’t afford to stay here for long. I quickly lowered my eyes, hoping Mia hadn’t noticed the change in my expression.
Thankfully, her attention shifted behind me.
“Where did you find those two?” She asked with a funny face. I turned to see Toby and Tessa standing near the tiny kitchen.
“Don’t you know we are guests here? And you burned the toast!” Toby argued, pointing an accusing finger.
“It’s not burned,” Talia shot back, “I toasted it. There’s a difference.”
“It’s black. A toasted one is supposed to be golden brown!”
I couldn’t help the smile tugging at my lips, and I turned back to Mia, “They just happened to cross my path,” I murmured, “They helped me find you.”
She watched the siblings for another moment before laughing softly, “They’re too loud,” she whispered.
“Exhausting!” I whispered back, and we both laughed.
But then her brows knitted together as her gaze shifted to my neck, “The mark.”
My heart gave a sudden jolt, “What about it?” I raised my hand and touched the spot where it used to hurt.
But today there was no pain.
She leaned closer to inspect it, “It’s not there… it looks like… it was never there.”
“Really?”
I got to my feet and walked over to the mirror mounted on the wall. Mia was right. The skin on my neck was completely clear, as if there had never been a mark in the first place.
The last thing given by Lucien was gone. I should have been relieved; instead, it was giving me a bittersweet feeling.
I’m sorry, my king. Maybe someday you’ll understand why I had to leave. Please don’t come looking for me.
And if you’ve started hating me, then perhaps this goodbye was for the best.
He had asked me several times to call him by his name, but even in my thoughts I couldn’t do it.
My best friend must have sensed the storm inside me because she walked over without asking a single question and hugged me tight.
For a moment, I just stood there frozen. And then I buried my face against her shoulder and closed my eyes. She kept rubbing my back gently. A shaky breath escaped me, but I didn’t cry. Some wounds ran too deep for tears.
***
It had been a week since we moved to a safe human city and opened this café. Life had started settling into a comfortable routine. Tobi and Tessa decided to accompany us here. Toby handled customers, and Tessa managed to chat with every single person who walked through the door.
Mia had started acting like she’d been running cafés her whole life.
As for me, I tried everything. Baking, cooking, and managing finances. From keeping track of supplies and paying the bills to organizing shifts and making sure every table was clean before the customers noticed.
For the first time in my life, I felt like we were actually living instead of surviving.
One fine evening, Mia looked around the cozy space with satisfaction and asked me, “Are you liking our new home, Aria?”
I smiled as my gaze wandered across the wooden tables, “It’s feels good to not be a slave and… to finally make my own choices.”
And then I asked her the question that had been bothering me.
“Mia… how did you afford all this?” With an exhausted smile, she leaned closer, “Promise me not to judge.”
I narrowed my eyes with a shrug, and a mischievous grin spread across her face, “Before I left the pack…” Her voice dropped to a whisper, “I stole a few pieces of Vanessa’s jewelry.”
My mouth hung open in surprise, “You what?”
She rolled her eyes in response, “Take it as emotional compensation,” she said with a shrug.
I burst into laughter, “Mia!”
“What?” She asked me with fake innocence, “I’m sure that bitch won’t even notice. She owed us this much.”
I shook my head, still laughing.
She winked, “Besides, stealing from Vanessa isn’t a crime. Now let’s hope she never finds us.”
I raised my arms and showed her my crossed fingers. Indeed. May none of them ever find us. Especially King Lucien.
While making this prayer, I had no idea the Moon Goddess had already started weaving our paths together once again.
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