Moana
Once I saw Olivia leave through the coffee shop window, I waited five minutes before leaving myself and walking in the opposite direction. We had planned to leave separately like this just in case anyone was waiting for me outside; at the very least, I could make up a convincing story that Olivia and I didn’t recognize each other at all, and it was likely that no one would ask too many questions.
As I walked, I couldn’t stop thinking about everything she had just told me. It felt as though the entire world that I had come to know over the past few months had been completely turned upside down, and I didn’t know what to do. If it was true that I was the Golden Wolf, then that meant that I was already in enough danger of being hunted as it was. Not only that, but if Edrick already knew that I was the Golden Wolf, then he was deliberately keeping it from me. And, judging from everything that I had learned recently, I knew why he was keeping it from me.
However, I still had no way of knowing for sure. I hardly knew Olivia, and although she seemed genuine, I still didn’t know for sure if I could completely trust her. I decided that before I would jump to any rash conclusions, I would have to do some digging of my own. Until I did that, though, at least my wolf had regained some of her energy and I could talk to her now.
“What did you think about all of that?” I asked my wolf as I walked down the sunny street toward the penthouse. “What about the part where she said that he might be lying about being my mate?”
“I’m not sure yet,” Mina replied. She still sounded a little sleepy, but she was lucid at least. “I think I’m still a little too foggy from the potions to be able to think clearly. I need a little more time.”
I bit my lip as I walked, thinking that there was a good possibility that we didn’t even have time. However, if Edrick really was planning on producing a child of the Golden Wolf, then at least there was a good chance that I would be somewhat safe until the baby was born. But then again, I still had no way of knowing. I couldn’t read Edrick’s mind, or anyone else’s, for that matter. And although part of me felt silly for thinking that Edrick would ever want to hurt me, I couldn’t help but wonder if the kind, sweet part of Edrick was just an act. Maybe he really was just like his father after all.
Suddenly, as I turned a corner, I saw a familiar car speeding up to me. My eyes widened as I saw it come to a screeching halt in front of me, blocking me from crossing the street. The window rolled down and Edrick was sitting in the driver’s seat.
“Get in,” he said, sounding stern and aggravated.
Swallowing, I hesitantly got into the car. Did he know that I met up with Olivia? What was he going to do if that was the case?
However, as he pulled the car around and began to drive again in the direction of the penthouse, it seemed as though he was angry for a different reason.
“You didn’t bring the driver or a bodyguard,” he said. His voice was low, so low it almost sounded like a growl. “You know how dangerous it is, don’t you? Why didn’t you listen to me, Moana?”
“It’s just a few blocks away,” I said, feeling my face getting hot with a combination of fear and embarrassment. “I don’t see the issue.”
Edrick scoffed. “You really don’t see the issue? You put yourself and our baby’s safety at risk, Moana! Why couldn’t you just have the driver take you?”
“Because I just wanted to feel normal,” I lied, folding my arms across my chest. “I was only meeting up with a friend for coffee, and besides; I wore the surgical mask like you told me to, I dressed discreetly, and I wore my hat to cover my hair. No one recognized me and it was fine. You worry about me too much.”
With a shake of his head, Edrick came to a hard stop at a red light. When I looked over, I could see that his hands were wrapped so tightly around the steering wheel that his knuckles were white, and he was clenching and unclenching his jaw repeatedly.
“You don’t understand how dangerous the city is,” he muttered as he waited for the light to turn green again.
Now, I was the one who scoffed incredulously. “Seriously?” I asked with a bit of a wry chuckle. “I’m the one who doesn’t understand how dangerous the city is? I grew up here, Edrick. I didn’t live in a fancy palace outside of the city like you did, without a real care in the world. I’m the one who has spent her whole life living here, so I think I know the city a little bit better than someone who was raised in the lap of luxury like you.”
Edrick opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. I instantly felt a little guilty for the nasty things that I said, and as the light turned green and Edrick began driving again, I wondered if I should apologize. But then again, I reminded myself that Edrick was up to something, and aside from that, he still hadn’t even properly apologized for the nasty things that he said when we argued the other night.
When we pulled up to the penthouse, I immediately unclicked my seatbelt and went to open the door. But when I pulled on the handle, it was locked, and I froze.
“I need you to listen to me from now on,” Edrick said, his voice low and quiet as he spoke through his teeth. “And furthermore, I’m not letting you go anywhere without me anymore. I’m tired of having to be scared half to death that you’ll get yourself hurt or killed whenever you go out for coffee.”
I ground my teeth together, unsure of how to respond. But it didn’t matter anyway, because the lock clicked open. I swung the door open and climbed out, slamming it behind me before I stormed inside.
I didn’t even wait for Edrick to park the car before I got onto the elevator and headed upstairs. And the entire way up, I couldn’t help but wonder if I should take Olivia’s advice after all.
What Edrick said was just more proof, in my eyes, that he saw me as an expensive object that needed to be tucked away neatly into a glass cabinet where no one else could get to me. I didn’t feel as though I was a person to him, but rather a commodity; and when our baby was born, would he discard me once he had what he wanted? Would he send me away like he did with Olivia? Would he sell me to bounty hunters who wanted the Golden Wolf? Or would he kill me, just like his father killed Ethan’s mother?
The more I thought about this, the more appealing the idea of running away and returning little Ella to her real mother became.
