Chapter 12 - Rio

When we reach the Silver Bow exit gate, the guards are understandably hesitant in allowing our escape. Astrid attempts to talk to her fellow pack members without outright stating our business, but is met with frosty looks.

It only takes one hard look at my black Alpha eye for the gate to open.

"You did ask for my help and that is what I'm doing," I comment. "Helping."

Astrid silently sighs in protest in the backseat.

"Does everybody in Silver Bow regard you and your family with such...warmth?"

"The guards were just doing their job," she replies dryly.

"So, it isn't because you're a tiger?"

She scoffs and through the rear-view, I watch as she rolls her eyes and shakes her head, hands crossed in annoyance.

And for the rest of the ride, she is mostly quietly seething in the backseat, a habit I've noticed has begun to develop. Alex occasionally quips a one-liner or two in Greek about how much he's looking forward to bringing Astrid back home. He is a half-blood Lycan, his father being French. I imagine he's looking forward to another foreign individual joining the pack.

I check my watch when we finally arrive at a lone building in a deserted area. Gilbert Greywood must be scrambling by now with the gala program almost over. Perhaps he's already sent a search party for us. Maybe even thinks we kidnapped his daughter.

"We should hurry," I suggest as Alex parks. "Alpha Greywood may think we're conspiring."

By the looks of it, Oscura has just opened its doors with scant customers eyeing the three of us as we enter in our formal attire. Astrid leads us into the VIP lounge with no objection met from the large and bald bouncer, and strides right up to the door in the very back. She swings the door wide open.

Valentina de la Mort is sitting at her desk looking rather sullen. She gasps mid-drink and spills thick red liquid down her velvet tracksuit, though it barely stains as her clothes are black.

"Can't say I wasn't expecting this ambush, but a little knock would have been much appreciated," she says as she gets up to clean the blood.

"Where's Bianca?" Astrid demands.

"How would I know?"

"Oh, cut the bullshit, Valentina. I know you were seeing each other."

That is news to everybody else in the room including Valentina herself. The daughter of Silver Bow, a lover of women. Perhaps it was only natural given how oppressively patriarchal Gilbert Greywood seemed.

Valentina tilts her head towards Alex and cocks a brow. He takes the signal and shuts the office door. Then the vampiress sighs and shrugs as she begins removing the stained velvet hoodie to reveal a short sleeveless top underneath. Her right arm is covered in a serpentine tattoo.

"So, the Princess's tiger pet knows all about her dirty little secret," Valentina chuckles.

"My name is Astrid," Astrid replies through gritted teeth. "And what kind of a best friend would I be if I didn't know?"

Valentina throws her head back and laughs.

"Oh, honey. But you don't know everything."

Valentina looks back at me and grins mischievously like there's a supposed joke I am to catch between us. Then she looks back at Astrid. A half-thought forms in my mind.

"Then tell me where she is," Astrid growls.

"I've never seen eyes like that," Valentina observes of Astrid's glowing yellow eyes. "It's cute."

"No more stalling, Valentina," I warn her.

"Okay, okay," she holds her hands up in surrender. "Bianca is gone. She ran away. Simple as that."

"Where?" Astrid asks.

The vampiress holds a finger up and retrieves a tablet from her desk drawer.

"I've been tracking Bianca since she came to me this afternoon. She must have gotten rid of her phone immediately, but I did manage to track her car up to an hour ago," she says, while clicking and typing through a few things on the tablet. "Et voilà."

Valentina shows us the results where a blinking red dot appears on a map near the airport.

"Of course," she continues, "she did zigzag through town before arriving there."

"That's it?" Astrid asks incredulously. "You didn't even stop her?"

"Chérie, I have spent over a hundred years overcoming my own demons. I believe Bianca is doing the same thing and that is her journey alone to undertake."

"How can you say that?" Astrid is shaking as she struggles to find the right words even though Valentina's may be sprinkled with truth. "You've known her for 4 years and I know somewhere in your dead heart that you love her."

"But she did not love me."

Valentina blinks and looks at me, then looks away scowling. And I wonder if Astrid understands the true scope of her friendship with Bianca.

"Do you know how much I hate this place?" Astrid abruptly changes the topic and I eagerly wait to hear the end of her argument, though Alex subtly taps at his watch to tell me time is running out. "I hate when Bianca asks me to accompany her here, to your pretentious little nightclub, when I'd rather be at home resting after a day of working with rowdy children. I hate the almost one-hour drive to your exclusive shithole where sweaty and shady people always look for ways to grab your ass in a crowd.

"But," she sighs, "this is the only place that lightens up Bianca's mood after a bad day at home or a business deal she wasn't able to secure or another reminder from her dad that everything she does is a reflection of the pack. This is the only place where she can just let loose and be herself and shine on the dancefloor under the eyes of people who couldn't give two shits that the 'Princess' of Silver Bow is out here partying with the likes of them. Where Bianca doesn't have to be the perfect daughter. Where she can be a complete mess if she wants to.

"And in some way, Valentina, you were a part of her little happiness. So, how dare you act so careless as to leave her all alone in a time when she needed you."

The room waits in bated breath as Astrid comes to a close. An odd sense of pride spreads in my heart as her speech shows the attentive and observant friend she is, although not enough to understand Valentina's unspoken accusation that she is the one Bianca loves.

Alex clears his throat. "We need to leave," he quietly announces.

He opens the door and I wait for Astrid to exit first. I nod at Valentina who watches us irritably from her desk.

As we get back to the car, Alex plugs in the coordinates to the airport.

"What are we going to do when we reach the airport?" I ask. "Bianca will already be at least an hour into whatever flight she took."

I catch a glimpse of Astrid in the side view mirror palming either sides of her temples.

Then a thought occurs to me.

"Astrid, come back with us to Midnight Shadow."

"What?" she exclaims as Alex eyes me suspiciously from the side. "Just because I asked for your help, does not mean I'm accepting to be anything to you."

"I know that. I am merely suggesting that we use the resources at my disposal back home rather than go on a blind goose chase."

"Alpha Greywood also has resources."

"Forgive me for interjecting," Alex speaks, "but the likelihood of Bianca's father helping you is quite very slim. Who do you think the Alpha is more likely to blame for this mess? His daughter? Rio? Or you?"

"Me?" she questions and gapes her mouth open as if to shout accusations, but she retracts.

I rebuke my Beta in Greek for his bluntness then turn around to face her. Astrid's brown eyes have not shown any signs of vulnerability until now as they well up, perhaps in realization that I am her only hope right now. That is how it should be anyway, for now my life will be to do whatever my destined wishes of me. Her lips tremble delicately. All I want to do in this moment is crawl back there with her and hold her tight.

I reach out to catch a falling tear and wipe it away. She doesn't flinch at my touch. She nods slowly, accepting my invitation and I am relieved.

"I should tell my family..."

"No," I immediately warn her. "I'm sorry, Astrid, but you may be naively setting us up to fail by letting him know."

"But..."

"Astrid, you may not be at all aware how much you mean to me, so I'm just going to say it. From the moment our eyes met, there was a massive shift in my world. You see, the Moon Goddess created Lycans and wolves as two halves of a whole whereupon the destiny bond would complete us and literally change our fate for the better. You complete me as much as I hope to complete you. Whatever and whoever you fight for, I will also fight for."

And for once, she looks at me without total annoyance.

"Do you trust me?" I ask tenderly.

A beat passes. Even Alex is holding out for an answer.

"Yes."

I sigh in relief, letting go of a breath I'd been holding in.

"I'm going to call my family as soon as we land," she adds.

"As soon as we land," I echo in assurance.

I turn back to face the front view of the car and smile at my little victory.

"Hey," Alex says in Greek. "Nice one, Alpha. You've successfully entrapped your beloved mate."

"Oh, shut up," I reply in our secret language, relieved Astrid has no clue what we're saying.

"Might I also mention how romantic that was. I didn't know you had it in you, Rio."

"Surprised I'm no Casanova like you?"

"Not like that. Surprised in a good way. You're doing good by her and, I suspect, she will turn out to be your betterment, too."

I sneak a peek back at Astrid, who is looking out of the window at the moonlit woodland scenery. I watch her chest rise and fall slowly as she closes her eyes.

Thank Goddess I found her.