Chapter 264: Chapter 264

264 A Lone Queen

“I did what I thought was best. If Cole hadn’t...”

“If Cole hadn’t stopped you, you would have died. And the rogue king knew his place as well. If he’d done something to get you from Cole’s grip, he would have risked getting killed as well,” the moon goddess confessed, “The two of you would have perished. He clearly knew the right answer to his problem.”

“So you’re always watching us, huh?” Katie’s mind, agitated, was all over the place.

“Of course, I’m always watching. I am your goddess after all,” Celeste responded calmly looking upon the girl like she was a child that didn’t realise all she did for her. The goddess’s face then took on a much sadder frown, “Although, I won’t be your goddess for much longer. I hoped the rogue king would give up all this while he was still in custody, but alas, that has not happened.”

“I didn’t quite understand the first thing you said. What do you mean you won’t be our goddess?” Katie asked her, worry seeping into her voice. The previous defensive tone she’d used was gone completely.

“You almost sound like you’re worried about me...” the woman smirked at the girl.

“Clearly it was a mistake and one I shall not be repeating,” Katie huffed and turned from the goddess. The goddess chuckled at her antics, “But... what am I doing here?”

“Well, if I’m being honest, I wanted to talk to you. To tell you what’s happening in the heavens,” the goddess replied quietly.

“What’s that got to do with a mortal such as me? The gods can do whatever they like,” Katie replied indifferently.

.....

“Yes, that is true. However, among those things is taking me away from the position of the goddess of the moon. While I might be the one that brought the curse of werewolves to mankind, I didn’t use my power. The goddess that’s meant to seat at this throne will soon return and I shall step down and resume the normal duties that I’ve always meant to be doing,” Celeste announced.

Katie turned back to look at the benevolent being seated on her throne. She couldn’t form words. She didn’t know what to think at first. “When?”

“On the next goddess’ eighteenth birthday,” the goddess replied.

“So the goddess is... human?” Katie asked her.

“Well, she stems from the family of the weakest werewolves in the world,” the woman responded.

“Oh, I see... So she’s a werewolf, but just a... Wait, Honour?” Katie couldn’t believe what she was hearing. The goddess nodded to confirm the girl’s suspicions. Katie’s mind froze at the information she’d been handed, “How do I end the rogue king once and for all? He’s already killed so many and now he’s out there. He won’t be easy to track now that he’s more cautious of me... I had that one chance...”

“The rogue king will be much easier to find now than you might imagine,” the goddess replied, “But I think you won’t get the time to participate in the investigations this time.”

“I didn’t participate in the investigations the last time as well,” Katie argued.

“Well, you did play a major role in the king’s movements. He might have mistimed his attack when you hid your marking, but it was all based on your actions,” the goddess said to her, “But this time, you won’t play any role in his movements.”

“You’re not making sense,” Katie asked her.

“Well... You’ll understand it later when you’re awake... For now, just take care. Get lots of sleep and wake up to your mate. He’s waiting for you, you know. I’ll have lots more to tell you the next time we meet,” the goddess waved her hand while the girl thought of a complaint to make. However, she was sent back into her body before she could make up her mind. ‘Is it just me or is the goddess hiding something from me?’ the girl thought to herself, trying to figure out what had triggered the thought. Before she knew it, she’d lost the ability to form coherent thoughts altogether and drifted into unending darkness.

.......

Katie’s eyes fluttered open and she awoke to the sound of a beeping machine. the scent that had been driving her wolf crazy for the better part of the last months wafted into her nose. Trying to move her body sent pain through every muscle that she thought she had and some she found new to her. She bit down on her lip at the sharp pain that shot through her body from the mere effort.

“Hey, slow down... You’ve only just woken up, Katie,” his voice reached her ears calming her senses and thwarting the pain, yet still filling her with regret and fear at the same time. Tears began to stream down her face while she thought through the goddess’s words to her.

“Cole, I’m sorry...”

“You have nothing to apologize for... No, you were reckless,” the man corrected himself, “You were very reckless and you nearly got yourself killed.”

“That’s why I’m...” Cole placed two fingers on the girl’s lips to keep her quiet.

“No, Katie... An apology is meaningless if you’re going to do it the next time like your life doesn’t matter,” Cole replied, falling back into his seat beside her. Katie, against the pain in her neck, turned to face him. He’d done his best to wash his face and keep his composure, but she could tell from just one look at him. Great pain was eating at him.

“Then... thank you,” the girl replied after a moment of silence.

Startled by the sudden change, the man looked her in the eye, “For what...”

“For saving my life...” Cole stood and reached out for the girl, pulling the girl into a hug and taking away her pain while he did. It was the second time she was in a position where he had to take care of her and she hated it. The mate bond they shared allowed both their emotions to be heard by the other... And Katie could tell how much worry she’d caused him. How to apologise, however, was quite beyond her at the moment and so, she could only weep in his arms...

.......

Thorrin returned with Tom’s wife and got her to the infirmary. The palace was in a state of disarray. Tales of a coffee brown wolf and a hunter apprehending the escaping prisoners filled the mouths of those that had witnessed what had happened. The hunters that had been knocked out woke up only moments after everything had happened. The prisoners that managed to escape were long gone by then and Tom, along with the capable werewolves that were present worked at getting the recaptured prisoners back into their cells in the dungeons.

Not a word was heard from Cole Lycaon while his mate was recuperating during that time. The Perfect Warrior had the other hunters take care of bringing the capital back to a state of calm. They swept through every part of the city in pursuit of the criminals. Word was sent to all citizens to stay in their homes and activate their rogue protection systems while the situation was taken care of.

A few more criminals were apprehended during their widespread search and once it was clear that they’d searched everywhere, a roll call was made and seven escaped prisoners were taken note of. Wanted posters were immediately printed and citizens were advised to keep a look out and measures were taken to keep them safe. The work only reminded Thorrin that he hadn’t had an ounce of sleep, but soon enough it was all done. He sat in the conference room with barely an ounce of energy left within him.

“Thorrin, you need to get some rest,” Evelyn said to him.

“Yes, I know that... The girl... Did she wake?” he asked her.

“Yes, she did. Cole Lycaon took care of her and set her to sleep before anyone could be allowed to see her,” Evelyn replied.

“Okay then... I’ll pay my visit to her tomorrow then,” the man replied before collapsing on the table...

“A bed would have been a better option, dummy,” Evelyn grumbled before turning to her brother who was only just arriving, “Get him a blanket, Micah.”

“Of course, because you’re my boss,” Micah replied with a smug look on his face.

“No, he’s the boss of both of us. Besides, I have somewhere to be right now and you have... Oh, wait, nothing to do at the moment besides going to sleep,” the woman whisper-shouted.

“Oh, and what makes you think my sleep is really not that important? I wouldn’t want to burn out like that man over there. I’m quite sure he would have got the rogue king if he hadn’t spent his time awake and run out of divine energy,” Micah was now leaning against the wall yawning heavily.

“You’re just trying to be obnoxious right now, aren’t you? The only sleep you’ve had was given to you by a sleeping draught. You hadn’t slept either. Why am I having this conversation with you? Your brother is cold over there. You know he would have done the same thing for you if he was in your...”

“Alright alright... You’re giving me a headache... I’ll go get the stupid blanket. Gosh, Thorrin, have you been giving her yelling lessons again?” the man complained, walking out of the conference hall. Evelyn took one more look at her brother and listened for his even breathing.

“I hope you don’t blame yourself for losing him. You did all you could. No doubt you’ll get him next time,” with that, she left the conference room and started her walk to the king’s chambers. Within the room, the woman she’d come to see was seated sipping a cup of tea while she watched the orange sky turn darker. The sun had already set and the last rays of light were only starting to disappear.

“You came... I thought you would decline my request,” the woman sounded surprised.

“I wouldn’t. Although I’m not sure if I’ll be of any help to you,” the woman responded with a slight bow.

“I haven’t left this room since it happened. I don’t even know how to conduct myself outside this room now. How will they look at me? What do I say to them? How do I keep myself from breaking down in front of them? It’s all too much for me,” the queen replied.

“You won’t have to do any of that. Your subjects know what you’re going through. All werewolves know what it is like to lose a mate,” Evelyn tried despite her being human.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” the queen responded, wiping a stray tear from her face. Stepping around the three caskets, the hunter came up to the queen. Her eyes bore a darker shade beneath them and her make-up was all wrong.

“But you can’t go out looking like this,” she said to her, gesturing to her entire figure. The gown was a mess as well, bearing blood stains from god-knows-where...

“What!” the queen exclaimed, taking a look at her dress before coming to the inevitable conclusion that the hunter was telling the truth. Blood stains and creases riddled the once glamorous dress she wore indicating her conduct in the past hours, “Oh, I see what you mean. I don’t even know if he’s holding up just fine. He hasn’t even had the chance to see his father and yet... I was able to sense his distress through the mind link.”