Chapter 66: Chapter 66

Ora’s POV

I was about to step inside when Sandy grabbed my arm. His eyes flitted with conflicting emotions as he spoke up, “Did you umm… hear everything that I told the Lycan King?”

I raised my eyebrows, “What exactly are you referring to, Sandy?”

“I…umm… I was just wondering if you heard everything right from the start about…ummm….” He paused for a moment, “Nevermind…. It is nothing important.” He paused for a moment, “Let us go inside.”

A long, suffering sigh escaped my lips, “I heard everything, Sandy. I heard you beg the Lycan King to grant me sanctuary. I also heard that….” My voice trembled as I continued, “I also heard the part where you told him about faking everything…. How you would let me fall deeply for you and when I am completely trapped….”

He covered my mouth before I could finish speaking, “I…I didn’t mean any of that, Ora… Those were just empty words. I really love you. I was about to confess to you back then…..”

I took a step back causing his hand to slide down my mouth, “You don’t have to try so hard to explain, Sandy. Your plan won’t fail because I have already fallen for you.” Tears rolled down my cheeks, “Your words have already shattered my heart to tiny bits.”

“Ora, I….”

My lips lifted in a weak smile, “I can understand your hatred; your need to take revenge. I will let you play with my life as you want. The day you want to kill me, I will hand you the magical dagger with my own hands. So, Don’t worry Sandy. You will get your revenge.”

“Ora…. Please don’t say like that… You have to let me explain….”

I wiped off my tears and walked inside; ignoring him completely. I wasn’t going to let his words fool me anymore. He could play with my life or kill me but I wasn’t going to let him play with my emotions any more.

When I stepped into the hall, I found Nivaan seated with Emilia. Kevin and Kiara were there too. Evaan’s face flashed in my mind causing a huge lump to form in my throat. He should have been a part of this setting; sitting between his parents happily. That was the kind of life I had envisioned for him.

My nails dug into my wrists and my eyebrows furrowed. How in the world did all my plans get ruined? Why in the world was I standing here with a shattered heart?

Nivaan must have sensed my gaze. He raised his head and our eyes met, “It is you!” NIvaan’s words sounded followed by a gasp. He got to his feet and walked towards me followed by Emilia.

His lips lifted in a wide smile as he halted a few steps away from me, “It is really you.” He held my hand and spun me around to face the others, “I had told you about a witch who helped me get back my memories, right. She is the one. She is the one who reunited me with my family.”

Emilia Looked at me with those eyes filled with tears, she spoke in a choked voice, “No words in the world are enough to express my gratitude. If it weren’t for you, my life would have been still barren like a desert.” Her eyes lit up suddenly, “I wish Evaan was here. He would have been so delighted to meet you.”

My heart clenched and his name left my lips in a soft whisper, “Evaan…”

“Yes, Evaan; our son. He is at my father’s place but he will be back this weekend.” Emilia said, her smile widening.

My heart went numb. How was I supposed to tell her that her son was never returning? I know I should have told her everything but I just couldn’t bring myself to speak.

“I want to apologise for my intolerance, Ora. If I knew that you were the one who saved Nivaan, I wouldn’t have refused to let you stay here.” His lips pressed in a thin line, “Now that I know the truth, I promise to protect you.”

“He is right, Ora. You are family now. We will protect you even if we have to go against the Lycan King,” Kiara said as she skipped to my side and held my hand. My heart filled with warmth at her sweet gesture. Would she have treated me the same way, if she knew that I am responsible for Evaan’s death? Probably not.

The moment they figured out the truth, these same people would condemn me, torture me and possibly even kill me. I shrugged off the thought with a sigh. I would bear the consequences of my actions when it was time. For now, I just wanted to revel in this feeling of being cared for.

“If enough number of Alphas support us, The Lycan King would be forced to let her stay,” Nivaan said, massaging the back of his neck; his expression somber and his gaze determined. There was no trace of confusion or hesitation like I had seen in him when he lived with Valence. At least something good came out of everything I attempted to do.

“I will send a message to Alpha Zodek and Alpha Norton explaining the situation. I am sure they will support us,” Kevin said as he beckoned the guard to come closer.

“I don’t think that would be enough, Kevin. Let us reach out to all the alphas we helped in the past. What do you say, Nivaan?”

“You are right. We have helped so many packs while suppressing the poisoned wolves. I am sure they will be willing to return the favour.”

The sound of footsteps interrupted the flow of conversation. I turned around to find Sandy walking towards us. His expression was stoic and it was difficult to figure out what he was about to say. Maybe, he was going to tell them about my betrayal; now that his plan was exposed. My heart pounded against my ribs and I clenched the hem of my shirt; waiting in anticipation.

“There is no need to do that, Alpha Kevin, Nivaan. The Lycan King has agreed to grant her refuge.” He said simply. He didn’t say anything about my betrayal or Evaan’s death. He didn’t even give any further details about our deal with The Lycan King. What exactly was brewing in his mind?

Kevin’s eyes flashed with anger and he grabbed Sandy by his shoulders, “Don’t tell me that you went to meet the Lycan King alone?” Sandy didn’t reply. He stood there, looking dead into Kevin’s eyes. I could sense some sort of hostility between them. Earlier, I thought that the tension was because of me. But, now, I had this feeling that the cause of this hostility was something way deeper.

Kevin gnashed his teeth angrily before snapping, “You really went there alone, didn’t you. You didn’t even feel the need to discuss with me before taking such a drastic step. Do I mean nothing to you?” His voice croaked, “Did you pause to think what I would do if King Augustine ordered your execution?”

Sandy snorted and shook his head, “I will never understand you, Alpha Kevin. You were furious because I was implicating you and your family for a witch. Now that I have resolved the matter, why are you still angry?”

“Kevin is just worried about you Sandy,” Kiara tried to explain in a soothing voice. But, it didn’t have any affect on Sandy. Instead, his expression hardened further.

“Kevin was worried about me?” He taunted, shaking his head, “You don’t have to lie for his sake, Kiara. I know his true nature,” Sandy’s had eyes turned bloodshot now. “He only cares about his position. He is probably just worried that King Augustine will think less of him as he wasn’t the one to approached him.”

“Have you lost it, Sandy? Why in the world will I think like that?” Kevin’s voice got choked with emotions, “I know that I don’t express myself well but you are my brother, Sandy….”

Sandy shrugged off Kevin’s hand, crossed his arms over his chest and raised his eyebrows, “So, you finally remember that I am your brother.”

“Sandy, don’t say that…..” His voice trailed and spell of thick, uncomfortable silence hung in the room for some time. When Kevin finally spoke, his voice was thick with emotions, “I know you are still upset about what years ago.”

“Just upset? I was shattered, Kevin. Do you have any idea what it was like to live under the impression that you were gone? Six months, Kevin. Six months we lived thinking that you were dead and you didn’t bother to send us one message.”

“I am so sorry, Sandy… I swear, I didn’t do it deliberately. The situation here was very bad. We were fighting at so many different fronts. I just didn’t get a chance to think about it, I swear….”

“It is no use pretending, Kevin.” Sandy snorted, “If you hadn’t used the power of command to make me leave, none of this would have happened. We would know that you were alive and mother; she wouldn’t have died of depression.”

Kevin staggered as Sandy stormed out of the room. His face turned pale and he gasped, “Mother died of depression?”