"So, little fire, are you going to tell me what you were going to do once you escaped the Pack? Hmm? Were you going to be a rogue?"
Even though the words were said conversationally, Emira felt a shiver run through her. Prince Zen was a hunter.. An Enforcer. His job was to capture rogues. If he thought she was going to be a rogue... Hurriedly, she shook her head and with her head still bowed, spoke, "I was going to the ruins. I would never be a rogue..."
Emira continued to kneel in front of the couch, shivering, the robe still clinging to her damp skin. Across from her, he sat with only a towel slung low around his hips, droplets of water glistening along his chest, trailing down to where the fabric began.
"The ruins?" Zen raised an eyebrow. "What are they?"
Emira looked away and answered slowly, "The ruins are… it's an old place. Kind of like a cathedral. Abandoned and hidden, but still standing. It is a temple of the Selene Goddess." As she said the name, she hurriedly joined her hands in prayer for taking her name in vain, and continued slowly," They are protected by ancient runes and spells. And no wolves are allowed near it."
She clenched her hands as she thought of how close she had been to escape and continued," The Ruins are just across the river. All I had to do was..."
Zen said nothing as he heard this. As a Prince, how could he have not heard of something like this? But he did not interrupt her, letting her talk in a low voice. He liked her voice, he decided. It was sweet... "According to the lore, if an omega goes there and surrenders herself completely with no violence, no resistance, no hatred in her heart, then she can give up the wolf inside her. She loses her connection to the pack, to the Alpha bond… to the entire hierarchy. She becomes… just human. Ordinary. Free."
Zen's gaze didn't waver from her. "You're telling me there's a place where an omega can stop being a wolf altogether?"
Zen stilled. What was this nonsense about? A wolf and human... Sould were intertwined...
She nodded, her eyes still lowered. "That's what I heard. I don't know if it's real, but… that's where I was going. I didn't want to run away just to live as a rogue, hunted and half-wild. I wanted to stop being part of all this."
A long pause stretched between them. Then, a faint scoff left him and he goaded, "Really? This Ruins? Why have I never heard of it before?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe because you're a prince. No one would dare speak of it around you."
His jaw tightened slightly. Emira didn't see it-her head was still bowed, fingers clutching the edge of the robe. He leaned back against the cushions, one arm resting along the back of the couch as his wet hair dripped steadily down the nape of his neck.
"Come," he said at last. "Dry my hair."
Her eyes flicked up in confusion.
He tapped his fingers once against the couch. "You're already here. Might as well make yourself useful."
Slowly, Emira stood, dragging the heavy fabric of the robe with her. She walked over behind him, stopping as he leaned slightly forward. She reached for a dry towel from the nearby rack and began blotting the water from his thick, dark hair, her fingers careful not to linger.
His eyes shut.
And in the quiet, something shifted as he spoke in his mind," What are you doing here?"
But Zen received no reply which had him even roll his eyes mentally, as he kept his eyes closed, liking the feel of her fingers running through his hair.... and ordered his brother, "Go back to your own damn head and stop trying to eavesdrop."
A low chuckle echoed in the space between thoughts.
"You're enjoying this. Her touch. Her submission. I thought I'll come and get a second hand experience too." The voice answered with a grin.
"Bas*ard Kael. Don't ruin my fun..."
Prince Kael chuckled at that and said," I can feel your pleasure all the way here, Zen.. If you were in your wolf form, you'd be wagging your tail by now..."
Zen imagined a large door closing and let it bang loudly making Kael wince at the resonance and smiled when his own brother uttered a few choice curses... Then he asked, "So what did you find?"
Zen exhaled slowly, "Find? Find what? I didn't even know I was looking for something."
"Don't play dumb. You've been there long enough to know if she's just another runaway omega or something else. What's the verdict, dear brother?"
The towel paused mid-motion as Emira hesitated and was about to step back... But Zen caught her wrist and brought her fingers back into his hair, letting her know to continue and not stop...
No verdict. I am just enjoying some time exploring a little fiery Omega..."
"Shut up. Karl cut him off sharply. Who are you trying to fool? As if you've ever been interested in sex when you're on a mission. You get annoyed when they try to seduce you. Just tell me what intel you've collected."
Zen opened his eyes, fixing them on the glass of water across the room. His mind, though, stayed in the silent link.
Did you know there's a place just outside the Moolville pack... called the ruins?
He felt his brother's confusion then and the same question," The ruins?"
"Where an omega can be separated from the wolf. Where the bond is broken permanently."
"That's a myth."
"I thought so too. But she believed it enough to run straight toward it."
"If it's real... the thought trailed off, serious now. Then someone's hiding something very big. A place like that shouldn't exist without the Royal Circle knowing."
Zen shifted slightly in his seat as Emira carefully dabbed at the back of his neck.
"I agree. His tone turned colder. Which means either she's been fed a lie... or there's something going on here... which could be related to our mission..."
"Keep watching her, Zen. This is not good. She might not be as innocent as she looks..."
Zen didn't respond as his brother's voice faded out, simply pulled the little fire into his lap, as she almost squealed from fear.