#Chapter 149: Fated Mate & Missing Love
Enzo
“Come with me, Enzo,” my father said after stepping out of the portal. I frowned, taking a step back. How did he even find me? “I’m not going anywhere until I find out where Nina is,” I said.
My father looked concerned, but said nothing about Nina. Instead, he only sighed and said, “Everything will be alright. Just come with me. Please. You’ve been summoned.” “Summoned by who?”
“The Alpha King.” I felt my eyes widen. The Alpha King summoned me already? Why now?” But the campus-”
“The campus will be taken care of,” my father said. “Our men are preparing to clean it up as we speak. With the Alpha King’s men, I’m confident that we’ll have the campus back to normal in no time.” He gestured then for me to follow, and I did; not because I particularly trusted wherever he was leading me to, but instead because something seemed to be telling me that this would lead me to Nina. Fio seemed to be certain of it.
We walked through the woods for a few minutes in silence, which was only broken by the sound of the leaves and twigs crunching under our feet, before my father led me to another road. A black car that I didn’t recognize was waiting for us there. He opened the door and got in, then I got in behind him after a few moments of nervous hesitation. “Ronan-“I began, thinking back to Ronan and Lisa’s plan to execute me on camera as the car started to drive away.
“I know.” he interrupted solemnly. Your friends did well in apprehending him and the girl, and we’ve taken them both into our custody. I knew that his father would pull something like this; I just didn’t think it would be so soon. I thought that he would at least give the tournament a chance first, but I was wrong about him once again. I was naive to think he’d changed somehow.”
“You knew him in college,” I said quietly. “Tiffany told me about the Peacekeepers, about you, Ronan’s dad, the dean… And Nina’s mother.”
Once again, my father nodded grimly. He seemed to tense at the mention of Nina’s mother. “I did some research after you mentioned a curse on Nina’s brother,” he said finally after a minute of silence. “I believe it was Ronan’s father who inflicted the curse on his own illegitimate son.”
“But… Why?” He shrugged. “An unwanted child, perhaps. Or a threat to his bloodline. The boy is a halfblood with no wolf it’s possible he saw that as a means of sullying his lineage, and he thought the boy would die from the curse.”
I frowned as I thought about it. To think that young love could result in something so heinous… It made me sick. “As for Nina?” I asked then, rather angrily, pressing him once more for information. “Don’t you know where she is?”
“I’m afraid I’m not quite sure,” my father replied so nonchalantly it made me sick. “I’m sure she’s fine. I’ll send some of our men to look for her so she can go home safely with her friends, if it means that much to you.”
My father’s words were a slight comfort, but it wasn’t enough to ease my anxieties. The road twisted and turned, and eventually, we came upon the enormous mansion estate where the Alpha King lived with the Luna. Here, I would meet their daughter, I assumed, but all I could think about was whether Nina was within those walls… Because as the mansion came closer, I could smell not one, but two very similar scents. One was strong. The other was incredibly faint, but it was there, and I knew it was Nina’s scent.
“Why did he summon me now?” I asked.
“Enzo, I’m afraid that the Crescent attack has grave consequences on not only our pack, but the entire world. This is just the first attack of many; if they take control of Mountainview, they’ll only continue to spread. Soon, the world will be overrun with rogues.”
“So the alliance is going to happen now,” I replied. “The alliance, yes. The marriage will still wait, but the Alpha King wanted you to meet his daughter now. He wants to make sure that you are indeed his daughter’s mate before he allows the alliance. I know it’s sudden, but…”
“I know. We don’t have another choice,” I said. I still only cared about finding Nina, but if this was my link to finding her, then so be it. Even if I would have to mark the Alpha King’s daughter before I could find Nina, I would do it if it meant bringing her to safety. As we pulled up the long, winding driveway to the mansion, I felt a pit form in my stomach. The two scents grew a little stronger – but why were they so similar?
The driver pulled us up to the front, where several guards were waiting. Fix your hair,” my father said. I sighed and checked my hair in the rearview mirror before getting out and smoothing my bloody, dirty shirt down. Then, I followed my father and the guards up the massive marble stairs to the mansion and walked through the enormous front doors.
We entered into a large throne room with a long corridor that led down to the throne where the Alpha King sat ahead of us. Next to him stood a girl; her face was covered, but I could smell her scent from here, and I knew it was my mate. Fio responded strongly inside of me, but I quelled his excitement. I had to keep a level head because, above all else, I had to find Nina… And I knew, somehow, that I would find clues here.
The throne room was silent as my father and I walked down the aisle. We stopped in front of the throne; I felt my heart start to pound as I felt the princess’s eyes staring at me through her veil. My father dropped to one knee in front of the Alpha King, as did I .
“Rise,” the Alpha King said nonchalantly. My father and I stood. The Alpha King was silent for a moment, then stood and slowly walked down the steps to meet us while his daughter stood motionless beside the throne. The King was tall and thin, with salt-and-pepper hair and a well- groomed beard. He wore a pristine suit and tie.
“So,” the Alpha King said. “You’re my daughter’s fated mate.” He looked me up and down, taking in my appearance.
“So I’ve been told,” I replied. “I’m sorry for my appearance-” The Alpha King raised his hand for me to stop. “No worries. I understand that your campus was attacked earlier today,”
“Yes, sir.” “I also understand that you fought valiantly to protect your fellow students.”
“I tried. I’m afraid I wound up losing them,” I said. There was a pause. I wanted so badly to ask where Nina was, what had been done with her, but I couldn’t. Somehow, I had a bad feeling about all of this, and I was worried that mentioning Nina wouldn’t be a good idea. I was completely alone in this.
The Alpha King was silent for a moment, but he didn’t seem unkind. Finally, he turned and waved for his daughter to come forward. She lifted up her long skirt and slowly walked down the steps, finally coming to a stop in front of me. Her scent overwhelmed me and I felt my head begin to spin, but I gritted my teeth and tried to keep a level head. I just had to find Nina; that was all that mattered. Finally, the girl lifted her veil.
My eyes widened and my heart leaped into my throat.
She looked… Exactly like Nina. I almost jumped for joy, thinking that it was her at first, but at a second glance I knew she wasn’t. There were subtle differences in their appearances. The princess lacked the freckles that dotted Nina’s nose, and her eyes were gray, not brown. And… I could also sense a more faint, similar scent on her skin. She had a trace of Nina’s scent on her. I was sure of it, and it made my blood boil. Had she done something to Nina? Had my father had something to do with it? I wouldn’t be surprised if they had her locked up somewhere, hidden from the rest of the world-
“Well, my darling Selena?” the Alpha King asked, breaking my train of worried thought. “Is he all you hoped for?” Selena looked me up and down. Then, a coy smile spread across her attractive, familiar face.
“Yes, daddy,” she said. “He’s perfect.”
