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Even the most powerful man needs a break every now and then. Hell, even God rested on the last day.

And, he was wounded too on his shoulder, and his palms.

Eline was saying something to her but she wasn't listening, turning her head occasionally behind her to glance as his broad back as they walked.

Nalaila... Who is Nalaila?

Who is this woman that has a man like him in a knot?

CHAPTER 18. NALAILA.

"Who is Nalaila?" Ismena asked Eline as she led her to the clearing of a nice-looking dwelling.

"Someone we should never talk about. Ever." She deadpanned, leading her into the house.

"Woah." From the outside, Eline's dwelling isn't much, but on the inside, "This place is so beautiful..."

Eline smiled, walking deeper into the house, she began removing the weapons strapped to her body, "It's a small space, but I love it. We might not live out in the non-changeling world, but we try to keep up. My parents are dead, but this home will always remind me of them."

Paintings of nature hung on the wall, paintings of animals too. A fireplace dominated one side of the house. Paved tiled floor, fenestral windows, with rose frames that were covered in a fabric soaked in resin and tallow, allowed in light, butkept out drafts.

It doesn't have a modern decoration, but it doesn't make it any less breathtaking. Already, she is having the feeling that she belongs here, no matter how weird the feeling is. Not this house, but in this land.

Strange, but satisfying. She yawned tiredly.

"Come on, I will lead you to your room," Eline said, leading the way.

Ismena followed, still wondering why Wolfariane didn't take her to his home directly. When he stated that she will be in his custody, she'd thought that was what he meant.

"You don't want to live at the big tower, Ismena. Trust me." Eline's voice made her jerk.

A flush spread through her cheeks. She had no idea she'd said that out loud.

"Here's, your room. Get some sleep to regain your strength. It must have been a stressful night, last night." Eline was still wondering why the woman is here, and why the Alpha King came back with a wound to his shoulder.

Why is there an unmated human in their world? Something that has never happened before.

Most especially, no one expects it to be from Wolfariane who hated them more than the rest of them.

And with good reasons too.

Alphose and Degar led the way back to the Alpha King's tower, in quick steps and tensed silence.

The sentinels at the guard scented them before they got closer and opened the gate for the three of them, bowing their heads in greeting to their King.

The King beside Alphose said nothing. His muscles were bunched and tensed, his face a blank slate. But, everyone around can practically feel the tension radiating from him in waves.

Inside the big tower, they walked through the long hallways with large pictures frames hanging on them, to the curved stairway which they climbed to go up to the third part of the big castle. Their footsteps were soundless as they walked through the tiles of the long hallway, towards the door at the opposite end of it.

As they got closer, they began hearing faint howling that sounded like a wolf in anguish. Snarls and enraged roar. They got to the door, Alphose stepped forward and opened it.

It was dark inside. Degar walked in first, going straight to the sconces, and lit the flaming torch to all of them, which in turn brightened the room all of a sudden.

No, not a room. It looks more like a dungeon-room. A very big dungeon. Metal rods from floor to ceiling demarcated the room into two. Behind the metal rods, is a white wolf. It is smaller, like five-foot-four—it was raging and aggressive, howling and throwing itself at the bars of the cell over and over and over again.

Wolfariane stepped into the dungeon-room, his expression cold and blank as he took in the wolf behind the bars. Its fur was bloodied, including its paws.

"Open the door." His voice was hoarse, his eyes never leaving the wolf.