Chapter 70: Chapter 70

By the time Azraiel and Charlotte come out of the cottage, it’s already evening. They walk down towards Azraiel’s house, him carrying a bag with all her clothes and she carrying a small bag pack with her books and journals. These are the only things she used and needed anyway.

As soon as they reach his house, they don’t have to knock on the door because Ayleen is already out there waiting for them. Her face splits into a wide smile as soon as she sees them. Charlotte barely has the time to smile back before she is engulfed in a hug.

“Oh my god…oh my god…He told you…!” Ayleen shrieks loudly in her ear, making Charlotte wince and laugh at the same time. She hugs her back and squeezes her eyes shut.

A sister…

“He did…” She says as she breaks the hug and holds Ayleen’s hands.

The young woman just beams at her and starts dragging her inside the house. Charlotte tilts her head to see Azraiel look at her with a small smile.

Ayleen immediately takes her bag from her and keeps it aside.

“Come on…! Charlotte…I’m so glad you are his mate…. You know how he is right? He needs a little bit of sunshine …Oh you know we can girl’s night any time we want…. And you can do my makeup…or rather I’d do yours…Come…!....Let me show you….!” Ayleen starts ranting about what they could do together and her enthusiasm is infectious.

Azraiel comes up to her side and softly whispers in her ear... “I’m going to the packhouse….to see the rogues situation.

There are many rooms upstairs, including mine…. You are free to claim any as yours….” He gives her a choice, though his voice and eyes speak otherwise. He wants her to choose his room…without pressuring her into doing so. Damnit…Why won’t you say it outright that I can’t stay in any other room because I am yours?

Charlotte just nods and smiles, mouthing a ‘bye’, and follows Ayleen as she gives her a home tour.

Walking down the corridor, admiring the warm and cozy vibe…. feeling at home….like she has seen it all even when she hasn’t…. as she belongs here…. as she has always belonged here….in this house….with them…

Home….

Their home…

***********

Azraiel rushes to the packhouse with a smile on his face. Come to think of it, he hasn’t stopped smiling ever since they left the cottage.

God...he really should have told her earlier…

You are an idiot….His wolf scolds him….

I know….! He agrees with his wolf.

The kiss….or rather the kisses they shared keep on flashing in his mind making him want to turn around and kiss her again…

He feels like the happiest man alive on the planet. He can’t wait for the marking….He knows he promised her that she wouldn’t undergo the shift without a mark but he feels afraid….afraid that if anything went wrong because of the marking, then he’d lose her….forever. So, he didn’t want to make any mistakes.

What about the mating...? His wolf questions in a playful tone...aware that Azraiel was thinking along the same lines...!

Let's focus on the problem at hand ...shall we...? He dismisses his wolf.

As the packhouse enters his sight, he tries to sober up from the happiness blooming in his chest. Matt and Theo would immediately smell her on him and conclude what happened.

Kira….on the other hand….

Releasing a deep breath, he enters the packhouse. He is grateful for the silence as everyone is either out or in their homes at this time. He quickly moves to his office and takes a seat behind his desk.

“Update me about the situation, Matt…!” He mindlinks his Beta.

“Alpha…! We have searched the entire coral woods….there is no trace of them…!” Matt replies, sounding tired.

Azraiel swears under his breath….there is definitely something else involved here…Rogues smell filthy and can be detected from miles away….Their smell is so bad that it lingers wherever they go…Then how the fuck can they be untraceable..?

“Kira…Increase the number of warriors on the borders…” He instructs his head warrior.

“Matt, Theo…take Katya and come into my office now…!” he says and then pulls out a blank paper and picks a pen.

He starts scribbling furiously with concentration and stops only when he hears footsteps approaching.

“Come in…!” He answers as they knock on the door.

Matt, Theo and Katya walk inside his office and he gestures them to take a seat.

They sit…and just after a second….Theo stares at him intently for what feels like hours…..then he sniffs….once….twice….

A grin breaks on his face as he narrows his eyes at Azraiel…. “You told her…”

Surprised by his reaction, Azraiel looks at him for a second and then smiles… “I did…”

Matt smiles too and says a quick “Congratulations…” and Katya does the same…

He greets them with a nod and then his face turns serious.

“How did we know about the rogues?” he asks no one in particular.

“One of our warriors on the eastern border saw something move behind the bushes….He alerted others and they started patrolling the borders….They saw one rogue trying to enter the border by crossing the lake….but as you know it's enchanted….he couldn’t swim in it….so he left…Our warriors followed him…but….as soon as they turned inside the woods away from the lake, he vanished…! Theo said with all seriousness.

“Vanished…?” Azraiel arched his brows…. “What do you mean vanished…?” He looked at all three.

“He wasn’t there Azraiel….We had alerted every warrior by that time…we surrounded every fucking border….One of us would have surely stumbled upon him during that time… but we didn’t…it was as if he wasn’t there, to begin with…”

“Yeah….there is no smell, Alpha….no footprints….not in the woods…not near the lake…!” Matt spoke up.

Azraiel heard his Gamma and Beta and contemplated about it for a few minutes….

Then he turned towards Katya….she was already looking at him with a knowing look in her eyes… “You think it’s all related…?” She asks, looking at him dead in the eye…

“What’s related…?” Matt asks, turning slightly to face Katya…

“Tell them…!” Azraiel nods at her.

He leans back and silently watches his Beta and Gamma as Katya narrates whatever happened to Charlotte in his house.

Matt seems to dismiss the idea judging by his face…Theo…. On the other hand,….

Azraiel had no idea what was going on in his head…. The way he has behaved for the last couple of days, it felt like he had feelings for Charlotte….but his reaction…when he realized he had told her about them being mates….it was that of Azraiel’s brother… kind and happy.

“I don’t think these events are related at all…. the timing might be a coincidence…. but that’s it…” Matt says, shaking his head as Katya finishes telling them about Charlotte.

Azraiel briefly nods at him, acknowledging his opinion, and then turns towards Theo and Katya expectantly.

“I don’t believe in coincidences….. it’s very well related…” Katya answers, looking troubled as well as worried.

“Yeah….I think so too…” Theo agrees with Katya and Matt is left bewildered at the words of his Gamma.

“You can’t be serious…!” Matt throws up his hands in the air…

“But…I am…! Theo answers calmly…. “Think about it, Matt….” He turns towards the Beta… “these wolves were spotted but they didn’t have any smell…. they vanished…..without leaving any sign that they were here in the first place….and this is not the first time something like this has happened….!”

The expression on Matt’s face changes completely as soon as he actually listens to Theo… especially the last sentence he uttered.

“Y...You are right this has happened before….hasn’t it…?” He looks at Azraiel and his Alpha nods darkly.

Theo nods at him and voices the possibility... “Matt…these might be the same rogues that dropped Charlotte near our pack border…!”