Chapter 9 : Unsuspicious Circumstances

Karenina

Xavier smiled with a slight smirk on his face. "No matter what you say, you are still attractive to me, Karenina. Your uniqueness as a hybrid and your spiritual powers attract me. But I know you won't be easy to conquer. Perhaps that is what attracts me to you."

Karen was shocked at his statement. She could not believe what he had just said. Then she finally decided to get off his back, which was still transformed into a big wolf, and Xavier finally returned to his human body. The man then walked closer to Karen until the distance between them was only a few centimeters.

It was only when the man's hand wrapped around her little finger that she realized her mistake. Karen stared at him, swallowing, nervous about her next move. Karen was afraid he was going to break her finger, especially when he looked at her and squeezed her finger in warning.

Her eyes were caught by Xavier's beautiful golden eyes, though they were also intimidating. But she couldn't see any warmth in them, only cold ice. Her feelings became confused as his eyes also reminded her of her friend Rylan and pain filled her chest. But Xavier was not her friend, the man's eyes held no warmth for her, only emptiness.

Xavier saw the change in her eyes and felt it in his body. He relaxed, trying to deal with his own feelings as his eyes met Karen's sad brown eyes. He wished he could erase that look because it made him feel strange.

"I'm just testing your strength, Karenina," he said with a hint of hardness in his voice, knowing it would make her angry. He needed her anger more than the sight of her sad eyes.

When Karen showed her angry face, he knew he had succeeded.

"You can't treat me like some kind of entertainment. You should have asked me instead of telling me to kill all those women," she cried. Fear and anger consumed her because Xavier had put her in a dangerous situation. She felt resentful that this man was so indifferent to the lives of others, focused only on himself. Karen cherished life and to see it wasted in this way was disgusting to her.

Xavier saw her, she was crying and somehow his chest tightened when he saw her like that. He hugged her wordlessly with a straight face and they continued on their way with Karen still in his arms.

She struggled in Xavier's arms, trying to get away from him, not realizing that they were at a high altitude.

Xavier's arm was tightening around her, but his hand was not squeezing her fingers, it was wrapping around her wrist. He wanted to make her angry, to end the strange feeling inside him caused by Karen's grief. But somehow he made her feel better. He didn't understand it, but he had to calm her down.

"Calm down, Karenina. We're in the air. You're just going to fall and die," he said calmly as he stopped flying and jumped far up into the tree.

"Put me down," Karen said in a quiet voice.

Ignoring her order to put her down, he asked, "Why are you angry?"

The man didn't understand what she was angry about, and he wanted to know why. He had never acted so rashly in her presence. Maybe she was crazy, but he was going to give her a chance to talk.

Karen couldn't believe her ears. He didn't know? Then she frowned. Of course he didn't. He was just a heartless monster. Killer Perfection, that was his dreaded nickname.

"You have sent so many of the she-wolves to their deaths and for what? The most powerful mate? Are lives other than yours so beneath your esteem?" She demanded more than was asked.

Xavier nodded in understanding. This girl was truly a being of light. He admired her radiant and genuine spirit. He did not notice that her fingers began to caress his delicate white arm as she spoke.

"This is how a strong Alpha like me finds a mate. It is their choice to fight. They know the risks they are taking. I need to have a strong mate who will be able to protect herself and her future pups from those who would try to take them away from me or use them against me." he said.

She stared into his eyes. Her brain processed what he had said. He was right, of course. If they knew the risks, then it wasn't his fault that someone else wanted to fight to be with him. She recalled her conversation with Maya. The she-wolf had been aware of the situation all along. She remembered that all the she-wolves who had fought against her had done so with a clear purpose.

Besides, Xavier must have many enemies who wanted to use his family as leverage against him. Of course, his mate must be strong and intelligent enough to avoid such dangerous situations. Karen understood the reason behind Xavier's actions, although she still felt resentful.

She just bowed her head and whispered an apology to him. She was ashamed of her false accusations against him. She had overreacted. Her short-sightedness must have been the cause of his hatred for her even more. But when she felt a finger under her chin, it forced her to look back into his golden eyes. Instead of seeing the hate she had feared, she saw only a calm yellow color.

"I didn't mean to upset you, Karenina," he said quietly.

Her eyes widened. He apologized to her! Then Karen gave him a small smile of gratitude.

That smile, though small, lit up her face, turning it into something beautiful that stopped Xavier's breath. Her lips were soft pink and full. The man suddenly wanted to lean down and—

"Your arm!" she cried in surprise.

He snapped out of his strange reverie about her, staring wide-eyed at the hand wrapped around her chin. He understood her confusion at once. Releasing her chin to flex the fingers of his left hand in front of him to give her a better view, the man could not help but curl his lips into a triumphant little grin.

"Yes, it finally came back to me after my adventures in the underworld," Xavier told her.

"What do you mean? I don't understand," she asked, not taking her eyes off his arm, even going so far as to reach out to touch and feel the man's skin on her wrist, not daring to hurt his smooth alabaster skin. Sometimes she thought he was too beautiful to be real. Then she put on a sad face as she confessed, "I always feel bad for being a part of you who lost your arm.”

And the girl really does feel bad when she realizes that Xavier is not the monster she thought he was when they first met, when he was determined to kill his half-brother. After seeing the attention he shows Raine, the 10-year-old little girl who lives with him and his half-brother. Does Raine see the warmth and care he tries to deny to the world he lives in?

He can see that Karen is deeply troubled by an injury to his half-brother's arm several years ago that she herself witnessed.

"I lost my arm in battle, not due to anything you have done, Karenina," Xavier tells her, shaking off the false guilt. It was his mistake that caused him to lose his limb, not the girl.

He could see that she didn't fully believe in her innocence, and he didn't want to waste time trying to convince her, but he tried to distract her.

"A few months ago I felt I needed a mate, but the threat of Nathan overshadowed that decision. To protect the pack in the future, I must regain what I once lost. This competition is also meant to help me find the strongest mate who can survive the dangers of being mated with me. With the help of the heirloom sword, I can break through the portal to the underworld-" Xavier paused for a moment, reflecting on his journey, before continuing, "And there I can regain the arm I once lost."