Chapter 91 Home

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Nikolai

"Are you sure you want to keep going ahead?" Ava asked wearily.

After the... incident earlier, it was best for us to stay together and walk carefully instead of running or jogging.

"Very," I replied, gripping her soft hand tighter.

"Whatever is up there, it doesn't want us there." Her sides brushed mine. I'm enjoying keeping her on this short leash.

"Well too bad because that is my land," I replied. "And if whatever is up there doesn't want us there, that means there is something important there that needs protection." I looked straight ahead and kept a steady pace, determined to go to the top. "And I intend to find out what that is."

"But what if we are better off keeping things the way they are? I'm not sure if I like this Nikolai. This place is giving me weird vibes." She stepped closer to me.

"My instincts tell me that I need to go up. They have been telling me that for a while." I told her the truth. "If you are not comfortable, I can drop you back." But I want her to be with me.

"No. I'll come." She sighed softly.

"Thank you." I squeezed her hand and we continued walking forward.

After a couple of miles, we reached the bank of a river. We have to cross it to move ahead but the current is too fast to swim or walk through it.

It's not safe.

Also, the odd this I noticed about the river was that there was not a single fish inside it.

There can only be one reason for it but I need to be sure.

I flicked out my claw and made a cut in the middle of the palm and squeezed a couple of blood drops in the river.

"What are you doing?" Ava asked me.

"Checking something," I replied and just as I had thought, a couple of seconds later, a lot of fishes appeared near the bank— piranhas.

"They will eat us if we fall in the water, won't they?" Ava asked.

I gave her a sharp nod.

"How will we go ahead?" She asked.

"Let me think," I replied and observed the area.

"Can you throw me to the other side, then exchange our places and then flick me to that side again?" That way, she will be out of danger.

"It's too dangerous, Nikolai. I don't want to do it. One mistake and you are dead." She shook her head firmly. "And this river is too wide for me to experiment with your life."

I knew she would not agree but I hoped.

"Can you make us fly in the air?" I asked her softly.

"I don't know. Let me try." She closed her eyes and then slowly but steadily we rose in the air and then moved in a circle above the land itself.

Ava is magic.

We slowly landed again and Ava opened her eyes. "I think I can do it." She nodded.

"Good girl." I pecked her lips and she gave me a sweet, dimpled smile.

Then she caught both my hands in hers and close her eyes again. "Help me, okay?"

"Always." Just as I replied, we rose in the air again and began moving towards the river, and slowly started flying over it.

"A bit higher, Love." The piranhas can jump. But we should be fine until we aren't bleeding.

"Yes, Nikolai." She whispered and we flew about two feet over the river and started moving towards the opposite bank again.

It was slow and tedious. A small frown was present on her face but she was successfully doing it.

"You are doing very good, Love." I praised. We had covered more than half of the river by now.

And then something happened. I saw a drop of blood fall down her nose. I caught it before it fell in the river.

Why is her nose bleeding?

Her breathing was accelerating and now I'm getting worried.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

She didn't answer but her frown god deeper, like she was concentrating very hard.

That's when I realized that she is using a lot of her powers and it's taking a toll on her.

We still had about a hundred meters to go.

I held her hand tighter, hoping to help her somehow.

After another fifty meters in, Ava's frowning reduced and her eyes opened and she kept looking at me. When we finally reached the bank, she lowered us to the ground gently and let out a deep, tired sigh.

I circled an arm around her waist and wiped the blood above her lips with my thumb. Both our eyes fell on it and unlike me, she didn't seem too shocked.

"Is this the first time this happened?" I asked her.

"No." She said softly. "It happened when I was getting you all out of the dungeon."

"Why didn't you tell me?" I demanded.

"I didn't think it was that big of a deal." She replied.

"Not big of a deal?" I snapped. "It's related to you. Of course, it is a bi—"

"Nikolai." She cut me off and rested her head on my chest. "You can shout at me all you want later. I'm too tired to listen right now. I feet a bit dizzy."

I grabbed her waist with both arms. "I'm not going to let this go, Avalyn. We don't hide things from each other." She nodded against my chest. "But right now, I think you should rest." I picked her up in my arms and began walking.

Her head rested against the juncture between my neck and shoulder and her eyes fluttered close.

I made sure to keep a steady pace and avoided ways that would require me to jump or duck so Ava could get in a quick nap or a little rest at the least.

After another hour and a half, I started getting thirsty and a bit hungry. But I don't trust this mountain enough to eat any berries or fruits handing on the plants and trees. Normal didn't apply here.

The weird vibe of the mountain, Ava hearing a child crying and growling of snow leopards, her seeing an illusion that there is land ahead of her when there was a waterfall, and lastly the piranhas.

The only place on Earth where piranhas live is in South America— in the rivers of the Amazon.

Thank goddess I'm suspicious and realized that something was wrong with the river.

Another ten minutes into the walk, I came across a hut.

Why is there a hut here? In the middle of nowhere.

And who the hell lives here? All alone?

Though we were still many, many miles away from the peak, a hut being here is still suspicious.

"Why is there a hut here?" Ava asked. About half an hour ago, she had woken up and asked me to place her down again and to let her walk but I refused.

She needs more rest and I can easily carry her.

But her arguments made a fair point—that I need my hand free so it will be easier for me to climb. So I simply shifted her on my back.

"Let's go see." I saw and walked towards the hut. "Stay behind me," I ordered and opened the door.

It was pitch black.

Even with enhanced vision, I could see nothing.

Nothing at all.

It immediately made me suspicious.

Because this is not possible at all. I should at least be able to see something. Anything.

It was almost like there is a void— a black hole in the hut. And with the way this mountain has proven to be nothing but a series of unnatural events, I'm a hundred percent sure that this is too.

But all of these have just made me more solid about my decision to build a palace at the top of this mountain.

Because the mountain itself will be a huge difficultly for people to climb. Especially unwanted people.

And I will stand with the mountain for that.

"What is it?" Ava asked, peering in from my side.

"There is nothing. Nothing." I replied.

This has to be a sort of trap.

But my instincts tell me that I need to find out.

"I have to go in," I told Ava. It's just something I need to do.

"Then I'm coming in too."

"No, you're not." I'm not sure what is in there. And I know that Ava is still tired.

I'm not going to put her in any more danger, especially when she can't use her powers to the fullest. And I can't afford to lose focus if I need to fight.

And while Ava is my greatest strength, she is also my biggest distraction.

"Then I won't let you go in either." She grasped my hand, trying to make a point. "I mean do you want to build our home on top of the tallest mountain? It's already so cold here." She rubbed her arms for effect but it was cold. "There's snow everywhere. And not to mention that the winters will be unbearable, even with our wolf's ability to generate heat."

I wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her flush against me before I grabbed her ass. "Don't worry, I'll keep things warm." I winked and she blushed. A lot of packs around the world were on mountain tops to avoid humans. Sure, they were smaller in numbers, a hundred at the most but still. We would get used to it soon.

"Okay fine. But I'm still not letting go in alone."

I gave her a flat look but she glared at me.

This has to be a first. It amused me greatly. She looked like an angry little kitten.

"We are in this together, Nikolai. Together. As equals. I know that you want to do what's best for me but I get to make that decision too." She tried to sound mad but her voice was so soft and melodic that it only amused me further.

"Don't laugh at me." She reprimanded me and slapped my chest.

"I know, Love." I squeezed her tighter and her boobs brushed against my diaphragm and I grinned. I know she is right. Whatever she said was a hundred percent right.

And it was darn hard to argue when she made a good point and looked so cute.

"Don't 'Love' me." She reprimanded and slid out of my hold. "We going to build a home together now. And yes, it might be a palace— most probably an outrageous, enormously colossal and grand palace, especially if you want it to be the best one ever, but it's also going to be home." I nodded at her description. "Our home."

"Not to mention," I added, "sprawling gardens around its periphery. I also plan to have state of an art security system. No one without our consent will be able to enter. And I'm going to have it built strategically. The design will be a mix of classic royal and modern—the best of both worlds."

I own an architectural firm in which all employees are strictly werewolves or vampires. I wanted to rebuild the packhouse and construction works are common in the pack so owning the company and having supernaturals working for you is great to get the job done because they are stronger and quicker. Also, no unnecessary questions are asked. I will also have to hire more people because of the enormity of the project but it will be easy when you will pay them handsomely.

"Do we have enough money?" Ava asked.

"You hurt me, Ava." I placed a hand over my heart and mocked hurt. "You think I make empty promises?"

"Of course not." She said quickly and then added, "I just don't want you to spend too much on my fantasies. It's going to be overly expensive and not to mention difficult."

"I'm sure I will be able to manage it."

"Exactly how rich are you?" She wondered. I knew she wasn't asking because she wanted to extract money for me or to start spending insane amounts. It was a genuine question arising from her curious little mind.

"We are comfortable enough," I replied evasively.

"That's exactly what a rich person would say." She muttered under her breath and gave me an unimpressed look.

I chuckled and decided to give her an answer that would satisfy her. "Mom had inherited a lot of money from her parents so she set up a small business will a small portion of it. Volkov Corps. is what it is today because of her." A smile slid on my face at the thought of mom. "Now I own companies that own companies that own companies. In the time that we have been standing here, outside this hut, we roughly earned a hundred thousand US dollars."

A squeak escaped her.

A smile tugged at my lips and I tugged a lock behind her ear. "Does its wealth scare you?"

A small breath escaped her lips. "It intimidates me. I have never fully realized the extent of power and influence you have over the world."

And with that, I promised myself that one day, I will take her for a world tour.

I know that while living in the pack, it is very easy to forget that a world exists outside of it and just how beautiful, amazing and vast it is.

"One day, Ava. I'll show you the world." I caressed her dimple and then turned towards the hut again.

With mutual understanding, we both stepped into the void that was inside the hut.