Revelations and realization

Chapter 21

Dorothy laid her head on top of Ronaldo's nude chest. The sun streaming in through their bedroom window was making them look beautiful. Ronaldo kissed Dorothy on her knuckles while holding her hand.

Ronaldo said to her, "My beauty, we should get up soon." Though he had responsibilities as Alpha, he had no desire to leave the comfort of his partner. She reached up and put her hand around his bicep, trying to get a firm grip.

"Just wait a little bit more, isn't it a beautiful day?"

It was a lovely day, but neither the sun nor the blooming flowers outside appealed to Ronaldo.

With his partner by his side, every day was lovely.

Dorothy muttered, "I never thought I would have this."

"Have what?"

"This connection with my destiny. "I never imagined I would experience love," she remarked regretfully.

"They are all dead."

A confused crinkle appeared on Dorothy's forehead.

"Who?"

"Everyone who might have had significance for him. Together with him, I slaughtered them all."

As Dorothy turned to look at Ronaldo, she gasped. She was aware of the person he mentioned. Recalling her past caused a tear to fall down her cheek.

"No one will hurt you again."

Ronaldo stared at his beauty, crying, his chest aching. An instant of regret overtook him. What if, instead of running away from her, he had set out to find his mate? He would likely have discovered her before the jerk could have tied the knot.

He mumbled, "I'm sorry. I should have found you sooner." He raised his mouth to her forehead, planting a kiss there.

She disagreed, shaking her head.

"It was destiny. Nothing we could have done would have stopped it."

Ronaldo remained silent. He had always believed that fate was absurd. Why would his mother be taken from him by fate? How might it torment his partner with a violent spouse? Why would love make him fearful? It wasn't fate, this lovely thing that delivered us what we were meant to have. The fates were not good. The devil in disguise, waiting for the right opportunity to rob someone of their most prized possessions.

He embraced Dorothy tightly. He was determined not to allow destiny to separate him and her.

"Ronaldo, the courtyard is so beautiful! It is surrounded by gorgeous flora."

"That settles it then, that is where we will have our marking ceremony."

Dorothy grinned as she glanced up at Ronaldo.

"Again, that would be perfect," she said to him. She kissed him quickly on the lips and looked back out the window. Ronaldo's hands fiddled with Dorothy's hair strands. Other than having sex, of course, it was his favorite pastime.

"Do you think that once we die, we stay connected through our wolves?" With optimism in her voice, Dorothy enquired. At last, she had acceded to her cravings and taken her partner. She couldn't picture her life without him now that she had him.

"I don't know beauty, but I do know one thing."

"What?"

"One lifetime isn't enough for a love like ours."

Lucia Lorenzo's POV

I walked toward the door with my feet dragging on the floor. My curiosity remained unsatisfied and my spirit was low. I made sure no one could see my face by keeping my head down while I moved. The vanilla scent made me know that I was here.

My forehead hits the door and I sigh. I had asked to go to the west wing, but Greg had refused. He thought it was extremely risky and something he had to tell his cousin Blaine. Though I have no idea how to get in, I would have sneaked in there myself. It's closed up like a bank vault at a major institution.

I took hold of the copper door knob and turned it to the right, sulking. When the enormous wooden doors opened, two happy faces greeted me.

"Surprise!"

I stare at them both in wonder, my hands automatically going to my mouth.

"Valerie! Rose!" I scream and then lunge at them with an embrace. I took a deep breath from each of them and held them closely. My eyes well up with tears as the homesickness sets in. Their scents took me back to my childhood home, the lake, my parents, and most significantly, pine.

Pine certainly smells the same to most people everywhere, but I can assure you that pine from home smells distinct. Sadly, the scent of him is also what I associate with home.

Blaine also always had a pine scent to him. When we were younger, I always believed that to be his greatest advantage. The youngster was hard to find because his scent blended so perfectly with his surroundings. That's not the case, as I discovered when I paired with him. Blaine had a somewhat distinct scent. It was more pure than Lake Tahoe pine.

I told them, "I missed you guys so much."

"We missed you more, Lucia," Valerie remarks.

"Enough of this depressing chatter! Rose put a hand under her chin and asked, "Tell us everything there is to know about your life in Italy.

"Since your previous visit, everything has remained mostly unchanged. Tell me everything about your house! "It's been missing," I say to them. They both give me a look, then turn back to face me.

Valerie exclaims, "He's amazing, Lucia," with awe in her eyes. They can leave out his name since I already know who they were referring to. Ever since I notified Valerie and Rose that we were mates, they have given me periodic updates about Blaine.

Yes, other people have informants besides him.

We can all sense that he's going to be a fantastic alpha. Our wolves bow their heads and our backs automatically straighten when he enters a room. It is something that you must witness. It's amazing!" Rose goes on.

Hearing this merely serves to validate my preexisting beliefs. I'm going to find the marking ceremony intolerable.

When he wasn't working hard to become an alpha, Blaine was a powerful man. I have no idea how he must be feeling right now. His presence used to dominate a room. He would be the one others looked to for guidance, even humans. Without even speaking, he could influence people with his black eyes. He must have changed greatly now.

"I know this is probably not what you wanted to hear but he also has many lady friends."

"How is my sister doing? Is that alright with her?

"Not really, but there's not much she can do about it," Rose shrugged in response. Since I had already heard about the news through the grapevine, I wasn't angry about it. I was merely perplexed by my sister's response. Mirabel was a girl who was all in. Everyone would know if there was something wrong with her. I suppose I just couldn't see her acting casually about it.

It's not like I had the right to be angry, either. I was just pals with Blaine in name only. Not that I've been a saint either.

"Now, tell us everything that's been happening with you!" Valerie yelled.

She was behaving as though I hadn't FaceTimed her and Rose often. I told them everything about Greg, Jessica, my race, and my flings.

"Does Jessica look like Clara?" Valerie enquired.

Yes, it is truly quite strange. Their eye color is the only distinction."

With a nod, they both surveyed my chamber. I tried to view everything through their eyes: the chandelier above my bed where we were lying, the adjoining bathroom that was nearly the size of my bedroom back home, and the glass doors that opened to a balcony.

Rose remarks, "Wow, you get the royal treatment around here." I didn't even mind if it was a little ostentatious because this area was so stunning. I could almost feel the past reverberating through the walls. The castle has been updated in most areas, although its original design is still present. I feel happy thinking about it. The cosmos chose that I would be one of the many diverse persons who have visited this location over the years that it has been there.

"It's probably because of Cyril not to mention all the races I have won here," I inform them. They exchange a glance, which is followed by a smile.

"Are you serious? Not related to a certain upcoming alpha? Rose smiled smugly and asked. All I can do is roll my eyes at their remark. That ship was long since in the past. In actuality, it never got to sea. It was permanently moored at a dock.

"He is marking my sister in three days and you are bringing that up?"

"Lucia, I firmly believe in love, particularly the mate bond. Rose says with optimism in her eye, "If you two weren't meant to be, Elena would have bound your souls for eternity." Rose was precisely like that. She was quite romantic, and I hope she finds her true love in the future. Not the kind of partner I have. I am referring to the person who would fall in love with her right away because they were destined to be together.

"Ignore it! I informed them that there is an urgent matter that requires our attention. They both look at me doubtfully but give me the go-ahead to continue.

"I need to break into the west wing and I need your help."

To help me relax, I inhale deeply. Rose is currently displacing the on-duty guard as I'm forced up against a wall. I'm not here to cause problems; I simply want some information, but I could have taken him down myself.

With tears streaming down her cheeks, Rose flings her arms about herself. Her normally pale face flushes as she sobs at the security officer. He appears confused, unsure of how to handle a woman who is crying. As Rose keeps trying to persuade the guard, she runs her hands through her blonde hair.

"Please, gentleman! You must assist me! She's losing her mind!" Rose screams.

"I'm sorry, but...”

"Please! She is destroying our room!"

"Ah!" Valerie cried out from their chamber.

The guard drew his eyebrows together and became quite thoughtful. He eventually nodded and motioned for Rose to take him to the insane woman.

"Perfect."

The guard had been standing there only a few moments ago, and I dashed over to the entrance. I start to tinker with the lock with a bobby pin. I wasn't worried about opening it because it was old. I did up-and-down movements with the pin. A grin appears on my face as I hear a click in the keyhole. That was much simpler than I had thought.

The guard must have been their main source of security.

I turn the handle and pull open the enormous doors. Once inside, I gently shut them behind me.

"Wow," I say to myself in a whisper.

The location was stunning. There was a long corridor ahead of me. Even though the entire wing was covered in a dense cloud of dust, the west wing's beauty was unaffected. Moving forward, I make my way toward what appears to be a ballroom. It's modest, and most likely only meant for those who were elite or close to the Alpha. Around the entire space, there was gold trim on the walls.

I spun around in the center of the ballroom. How wonderful it must have been to dance about in a ball gown with your partner, I can only speculate.

I had a moment of dizziness and my eyesight went white. Here I am in the ballroom dancing with Blaine. He spins me around and dips me, and my enormous gown swells with the experience. He hugs me tightly, assuring me that he won't let me fall, his hands encircling my waist.

I gave a headshake. Waoh! I have to get some answers and leave this place because it's starting to get to me. I make my way out of the ballroom and down a different hallway. There are a ton of white doors in this one. But what grabs my eye is the door at the end of the hallway.

It towers over the others. It has gold text carved on top and is white.

"There's no stopping fate."

My nonna taught me this. She used to say that fate would find a way because she thought that even though she and my nonno had been apart for a long time, fate would somehow find a way to unite them. That it is etched in the door is peculiar.

Shaking my head, I can now concentrate on the work at hand. If I don't find any answers, none of this will have been worthwhile. When I open the door, it opens slowly. I push it open with a bit more force. My mouth falls open as I enter the dimly lit space.

It is lovely. Compared to the ballroom I was recently in, this room is larger. I'm positive that this place was meant for a king. Most likely, it was the Alpha's room. His choice was so impeccable that I could see myself settling into this space for eternity.

There's a large window on the far right wall. It had a view of the courtyard where my sister was to receive her markings. Though I'm still infatuated with this room's beauty, the notion doesn't make me feel any less happy. Its walls exude strength and love above everything else. Once upon a time, this space was flooded with love.

The furniture is covered in sheets. Even through the linens, I can tell that this room was lavishly furnished, but one item stands out in particular.

There's a huge picture next to the magnificent window I was looking out of a while ago. It's covered with a sheet too, but it's taller than me. Grasping the edge of the dusty sheet, I pull. The sheet drops to the floor in one rapid move. I walk back to get a better look at the entire painting.

My gaze falls on what appears to be a marble floor at the bottom.

My eyes move up and I notice two sets of feet. Given that he is wearing pants, one appears to be a male, and the other a female. Her outfit is stunning, a rich crimson ball gown that accentuates her brown skin tone.

That's peculiar. I dreamed that I was wearing the same dress that she was wearing.

My eyes lifted, and I let out a horrified cry.

My gaze meets Blaine's. A bearded man with his arms encircling a young Italian woman's waist.

My gaze meets hers. I keep staring at the familiar eyes, and a shiver runs down my spine. Brown eyes with rich hue eyes that I look in the mirror at all times.

"My own eyes."