Gnawing Fear

London:

I sat in silence, leaning back against my swivel chair and staring into space for the last hour, lost in my thoughts. I was still reeling from Fuyu's shocking revelation that shook me to my very core.

I was still in disbelief that I was capable of treating Blaire, the love of my life, poorly, as Fuyu had described. Even more ludicrous was his claim that this was our third chance at life. Why didn't I remember any of this if it was true?

The way Fuyu's red eyes glowed in regret when he materialised in front of me, I knew none of it was made up. He had retreated to the farthest corner of my subconscious, leaving me to think about what he had revealed. How could I explain any of this to Blaire?

A knock on the door snapped my attention back to the present, and I sighed, turning to face the door.

“Come in,” I called reluctantly, picking up a random file on my desk to flip through, attempting to distract my wandering thoughts. Freya walked in, shutting the door behind her softly before she made her way towards me. Lifting my eyes, I gave her a once-over, noting that she was clad in a little black dress and her ginger hair was pulled back in a messy bun.

There had been a time when the sensual look in her green eyes would turn me on, but as I stared at her, all I felt was annoyance. The thought of her had never crossed my mind ever since I found my sweet Blaire, and now here she was. I might as well make it clear that whatever arrangement we had ended aeons ago.

“My King,” she drawled, batting her lashes seductively and taking slow steps towards my desk.

“You didn't call for me in so long, so I thought I should come say 'Hi' and maybe help release some of your stress,” she pouted before flashing me a charming smile that made my skin crawl. Her fingers slowly traced the rim of my desk as she leaned down, her cleavage on full display and the tip of her finger hovering over my forearm resting on my desk.

I snatched her hand before it made contact with mine, flinging it off me as if her touch burned me. She gasped, took a step back, and stared at me in horror. I stood abruptly, the speed nearly knocking my chair to the ground, and she shrunk at my heated glare.

“Let me make this clear, Freya,” I spoke through gritted teeth, my eyes flashing between grey and red as Fuyu fought for control.

“Don't ever touch me, talk to me, or even look at me,” I said slowly, enunciating each syllable so she'd get it into her thick skull.

“Whatever arrangement we had ended the moment I found my mate,” I added, and unsurprisingly, her eyes widened in shock. She knew my distaste for women and my ignorance of the idea of a mate in general, which was why she'd been trying to rouse feelings other than purely sexual from me, even though I had made it clear time and again that I wasn't interested in anything other than a good fuck.

“B-but,” she stuttered, tears filling her eyes, but I cut her off.

“Leave,” I growled in dismissal, turning to sit back down, marvelling at her audacity to come to me uninvited and, much more, to lay her filthy hand on me.

“This is all your fault,” Fuyu growled at me, and I gritted my teeth because I knew he was right about that.

“You should have ended whatever that was the moment we found Blaire,” he sneered, pacing back and forth in my head.

“I have no excuses,” I sighed, massaging my temple and thinking about how I'd explain any of this to Blaire. I should have told her about Freya from the beginning, but the thought never crossed my mind, and I wondered why exactly that happened.

Sighing, I stood up, sauntering to the door and pulling it open, shutting and locking it behind me before going in search of Blaire. I stopped in front of our bedroom door, pulling it open. I found it empty, and her scent was faint, indicating she had been gone for hours.

I decided to check the garden since she wasn't in our bedroom, and when I came up empty, I felt fear gnaw at my beating heart. But I maintained my composure and tried to think rationally, not blowing everything out of proportion.

I thought of Emmett, the little blonde maid my mate had taken a liking to; she should know of Blaire's whereabouts. With that thought in mind, I rushed to the kitchen, startling the servants as they sputtered and bowed quickly in greeting. I waved them off, my eyes searching for the blonde.

“Emmett?” I called, and her eyes snapped up to mine before quickly lowering to my chest.

“My king,” she answered, coming to stand before me with both hands folded neatly in front of her.

“Where is Blaire?” I inquired without wasting a second, and her brows furrowed in confusion.

"I thought she was with you, my king,” she responded, and my brows knitted together in worry.

“I mean, she left before I finished cleaning the bathroom this morning.” I felt Fuyu steering to the forefront of my head after he continuously tried reaching Hera but failed every single time.

“You can go,” I said through gritted teeth, turning and leaving immediately.

“Reece, my office, right now!” I yelled through the mind link, and his swift reply reached me a second later.

Barging into my office, I paced the length of the room as I awaited Reece's arrival. I ran my fingers through my hair for the umpteenth time when my mind raced and conjured up different scenarios in which she could possibly get hurt.

Reece rushed into my office without bothering to knock, making me pause my impatient pacing and turn to him.

“Gather as many guards as you can and find Blaire,” I ordered, and hearing the urgency in my voice, he bowed and rushed out immediately to carry out my order.

I continued pacing my office, racking my brain, trying to figure out where she could possibly have gone. There's no way she could have left my territory without being spotted by the Lycan warriors patrolling the borders.

“We shouldn't have left her alone,” Fuyu mumbled, pacing back and forth. A thought crossed my mind at that moment, and I rushed to my computer, logging in to search through the saved camera footage of the pack house.

My blood boiled when I reviewed the footage of Freya knocking on my bedroom door, which was then opened by Blaire. Since there was no audio, I couldn't tell what she had said to my mate, who rushed out after Freya left and headed towards my office.

She stood for several minutes outside my office door but didn't come in. I watched her run down the stairs and outside the pack house before she walked out of the camera's range, and I could no longer spot her. It meant she was somewhere within the pack, and that was a huge relief.

Rushing out of my office, I almost bumped into Reece, who had been rushing down the hallway. He quickly bowed.

“We found her, My King,” he reported, and I felt my fear dissipate, if only a little.

“Where is she?” I inquired with bated breath.

“She was found passed out on the street and was taken to the pack infirmary,” he rushed out, and I didn't waste a single second before dashing down the stairs to my mate.

I couldn't bear the thought of Blaire getting hurt. It was almost painful to think I might have hurt her unknowingly. I would do anything to earn her forgiveness in this lifetime and the one before it.