Chapter 56: Chapter 56

HUNTER ABRAHAM

I opened the refrigerator and wrapped some ice cubes in a towel. Standing in front of the kitchen counter, I carefully applied a compress to the bruise on my face.

“Ow, this hurts so much. I’ve never felt a blow like this before. Who is that man in black? Why did he suddenly appear and beat me?”

I slammed the ice cubes wrapped in a towel onto the counter hard. I swung my fist.

“Fuck! He’s hurt my handsome face.”

I massaged my jaw, which felt stiff and sore.

“This is weird. Why aren’t my wounds healing right away? Usually, the wounds on my body will heal and disappear completely in a matter of seconds. Who is that man?”

While carrying a bottle of mineral water, I rechecked my phone.

“Should I call Jonea? Is she okay? What if that man meant something bad to her?”

I should have stopped him before he took Jonea away. I couldn’t even watch them leave. He knocked me out for a while. This is so embarrassing!

***

JONEA

I sat at the dining table, still shivering. Even though Daran had helped me change clothes and given me a thick blanket, the shivering wouldn’t stop.

Daran returned from the kitchen carrying a bowl of warm soup and placed it in front of me. “You should eat to restore your energy. I made pollack soup for you.”

The aroma of the soup was so fresh and rich in spices. But I really had no appetite to eat it. Meanwhile, Daran sat before me, staring at me from behind his mask. It was as if his eyes could swallow me alive if I didn’t eat this soup soon.

I took my hand out from under the blanket and spooned the broth. I sipped it slowly, and the warmth flowed down my throat to my stomach.

“How does it taste?” Daran asked enthusiastically.

I glanced at him briefly. “Well, it’s not bad. Not too bad. But, Loko’s soup is still the best.”

Daran immediately leaned back in his chair with a disappointed movement. “You always mention Loko’s cooking. I have to admit, Loko’s cooking is the best.”

Daran was silent momentarily before saying, “So, how was your day with that guy?”

I choked on my soup. Daran immediately handed me a glass of water. I wiped my mouth with a napkin and drank the water.

“You have to report your activities to me, right? I’ve given you enough freedom for the past few days. Now I can no longer entrust your supervision to my naughty nephew. Starting today, I will personally take action to supervise you.”

I was flustered. “He’s… Someone I know from the past. We met again on campus.”

I was very aware that I would never be able to hide anything from Daran. I also didn’t want to cause any problems later, so I better be honest with him from now on.

“We met because I needed information regarding the whereabouts of my old friends who disappeared after the attack from the dragon country. But, it seems, he has changed a lot.”

“The man with the red mark on his forehead. Are you sure he’s a werewolf?”

I immediately looked at Daran. “Do you know anything about the red mark on his forehead? I don’t think he used to have that mark.”

“Maybe he’s had it for a long time, you just couldn’t see it. The red mark on his forehead means that there’s a possibility that he inherited the blood of a warlock.”

“Impossible! Hunter Abraham is an alpha werewolf.”

“Abraham, you say? The Abraham family has a long history and their relationship with the warlocks in the past. Why do you think the Abraham family is the only one who submits and chooses to be loyal to the current dragon king? Even though the dragon kingdom led by Luke Draken has attacked your country. Shouldn’t he have mobilized his strength to fight Luke Draken?”

My head hurt so much listening to Daran’s explanation, which I thought was unreasonable. Or actually… I was the unreasonable one. Because I kept refusing to believe and accept that Hunter Abraham might be involved with the warlocks and the dragon kingdom.

Instantly, my stomach felt nauseous.

“Excuse me, let me go to the bathroom for a moment.”

I immediately stood up and left my blanket on the chair.

***

DARAN CARVER

Junea has been acting strange lately. Who is this man from the Abraham family?

She dashed to the bathroom and left her phone on the dining table. Her phone screen flashed, and a message came in.

[Are you okay? Sorry, I can't take you home. Can we meet tomorrow?]

My hands were clenched tightly on the dining table. The plates were broken in half in front of me. The spoon and fork were bent without me touching them. Jonea shouldn't see me angry. She might be scared.

After cleaning up the mess I had caused, I immediately went to my room.

***

JONEA

I woke up early in the morning. I was even dressed neatly and made up. I also wore lip gloss today. But, when I was about to leave, I was still hesitant about my decision.

Last night, Hunter sent me another message. He wanted to ask me to meet today. I should have rejected his invitation after what happened last night and the previous days, right? But why did my heart tell me that I should meet him?

I reread the message he sent me. [I will definitely save you, Jonea.]

I bit my lower lip to hold back my nervousness. I should keep this a secret from Daran. Because I can't trust anyone right now, including Daran Carver.

I went down from the room. I walked towards the gate. Daran greeted me with a small shovel for planting in his hand.

"Are you going out?"

"Yes, I have to meet a friend."

"You're dressed up today," he muttered. "Okay. Don't come home too late."

It seemed that Daran didn't suspect anything of me. I hurried away and called a taxi.

I went to the art gallery in the city center. The weekend atmosphere was relatively quiet here. Several people had already arrived and were queuing to enter the gallery.

Marilyn greeted me at the entrance. She hugged and kissed my cheek. "Wow, you're dressed up today? Is this for me?"

"Of course. This is a special day for you. So I have to look my best. Congratulations. This is the first exhibition you have organized.”

Marilyn looked so enthusiastic and happy. She even dragged me to the waiting room provided by the organizer for the curators.

“Jonea, I’m so nervous. Because today everyone came to see my work.”

Meanwhile, I wasn’t focused on Marilyn’s words. My mind was still on the message sent by Hunter.

“Jonea? What’s wrong? Did something happen?” Marilyn asked while touching my shoulder.

“Oh, no. I was just thinking about something,” I replied.

In front of Marilyn, I couldn’t hide any secrets at all.

“Okay, I’ll confess. It’s about Hunter. Yesterday he asked me to meet and I was so sure that he would tell me about Aland’s whereabouts. In reality, he just kept doing unreasonable things. He called our meeting a ‘date’. Isn’t that annoying? I even tried to refuse and asked him to stop contacting me.”

Marilyn was shocked and seemed to be trying to control herself. “Why didn’t you tell me all that, Jonea? Am I not your friend anymore?”

“I thought I could solve everything myself. I even did my best to make him not interested in me anymore. But, do you know what happened? Last night he even sent me another message and asked me to meet again. I guess my plan failed.”

Marilyn glared at me.

“Is the rejection I conveyed to him still not clear? What if he spreads strange rumors about me again like when we were in high school?”

“I don’t know,” Marilyn said, looking annoyed. “I don’t know what his plan!”

“Then what should I do?”

“You know… He is an Abraham. He has power and strength. Moreover, he is currently close to Luke Draken, the dragon king who rules this country. I suggest you don’t act rashly and just let him be.”