C30 Art's peak

Freya’s Pov

“How did you know Demitri was my father, I never said that,” I said in a Fahrenheit tone. The temperature dropped drastically, I was caked in fear. The goosebumps on my body arose like soldiers going for war, the hair on my body stood erect. Pointed and in full fledged alertness.

“Everyone in Waterfall knows that, it’s no news again,” she gave a shady reply not rendering how she knew I was his daughter which made my fear double, triple maybe.

Oh I hope Artemis will come looking for me.

The elevator door chimed open and I was flying my ass out of it. The human lady came out gradually, taking her time.

Of course she wants to take her time before killing me. My eyes searched around in their own accord to see if my stalker was skulking anywhere.

She smiled and said, “this way.”

There was no turning back now. So this was it, this was how I died.

Yeah, I’ve lived a good enough life, who’d thought I’d be a Luna and I’d meet my mate in a contract marriage. Not just any mate, but the most powerful alpha, most feared by all. My life was like a book, even if it came to an end now, I was happy. In this short while I had led a memorable life.

I’m sorry father that I wouldn’t be able to avenge you, my deepest apology. I do hope we reconcile when we meet in the afterlife.

I didn’t know if there was an afterlife, but whatever it was that existed, in any plane, I’d be glad to meet my father. The famous Demitri.

Suddenly I felt grateful for the dress I wore, it was beautiful, my hair, I was grateful to Racheal, it was well adorned, my heel, made of glass. Even if I was poor and wretched in this life, I was very much sure that dying this way would definitely upgrade my status in the afterlife.

Who knows maybe I could roll with celebrities. Wow a free ticket to meet celebrities I never had the chance to.

Suddenly it wasn’t so bad now.

“How did you meet Artemis,” she tried to make small talk.

“I’d prefer to meet the masterpiece, I ain’t really in the mood for small talks,” I told her. Not wanting to evoke a retrospection of sweet and fatherly memories, it would only make me try to avoid the unavoidable.

She smiled ‘okay’ understanding. We walked and stopped in front of a glass door. She took one glance at me and pushed the glass door open.

Taking a deep breath and making small cheeping talks to myself, I stepped in with my eyes closed.

Okay, any moment from now, I should feel something hard on my head.

Breathing 1….2….

“You can open your eyes now,” she told me, like that was the initial plan or it was some sort of surprise.

Slowly, gradually, drumming hearts, I peered my eyes open. Just small enough to see my environment, I was on a lookout for small chair, ropes and some torturing tools but all that was heard were voices that formed a buzzy noise like bees.

Curious driven I opened my eyes wide and gasped. The place was…… beautiful!!!!!!!

“Wow,” I gasped out.

She smiled. “Beautiful isn’t?” It was rhetorical question but i still felt the need to answer because really it was a masterpiece.

“It’s lovely, you made this?” I asked, taking just a fitful glance at her. My eyes didn’t want tear from the work.

It was a Mosaic of a picture. One of her mate. Instead of using sharp object, she chose to use pictures, their old pictures, cut them and shredded them into pieces then pieced them on the wall and together while incorporated on the wall formed a beautiful picture of her mate, still in his wolf form.

Staring at it brought a flood of imagination to me. The image conveyed was introspective. It was pretty how she melted single pictures into one another, conformed them into such elegant, imaginary, retrospective and extraordinary piece. This was art and it couldn’t be bought.

I heard a sniff but snapped my head thinking I was the one. By reflex my hand reached out to damp my eyes, but I wasn't the one. So if it wasn’t me, it has to be——

Turning on my spot slowly, I saw a sulking human. It occurred to me that I didn’t know her name by now. She had a white handkerchief in her palm, squeezed and brought to her nose discreetly, the tears betrayed her and rolled down her cheeks like a waterfall. I saw her trying to muffle the sob but they continued effortlessly.

Just like before, I’ve heard rumours of what happened when people lost their mates. It was the most heartbreaking thing. Time didn’t heal such pain. The scar always opened and stung like a newly acquired wound. It was as though one lost his better half. The pain was so stabbing that some mates followed their mates into the grave if committed suicide. It was dreadful.

Jade felt sorry for her. I don’t know what I’ll do should anything happen to Artemis.

I patted her back gently, the only action I could come up with. The only thing soothing enough.

“He made me promise not to end…my life…he fu-cking made me promise,” her words were stifled and tight, coming out croaked and rough.

My knee buckled watching a full flown fledged woman cry a river. My heart ached and grew heavy. I felt my eyes dampen and I blinked back multiple times. I couldn’t cry in front of her, I wasn’t allowed to. I was supposed to be rendering support not on the verge or sulking alongside her.

Racheal’s words blew into my head like winter. Cool and chilly.

You’re a Luna, never let them see you sweat, don’t show weaknesses. Smile in the presence of chaos. You are the strength to the people, if you’re broken you leave them hopeless. You’re our hope.

Her words stung at me like bees. The cloudy eyes dried up immediately. I sucked at motivational talks, there weren’t many motivational talks for me. It was more of a backlash and down grading, so I was pretty sure I’d be saying gibberish, nevertheless, I felt the need to render her some words of comfort. Any how little they may be, I had to say something.

“I haven’t ever met my father,” I incipiented.

There wasn't a better motivation in life than sharing your misery and joys to others. I hadn’t tried it, but that was the best shot I had.

“I didn’t know him, but coming to this pack, meeting all these people, made me feel like I have an inkling of whom he may be. It’s small but I felt him better here. I felt his heart here and somehow I felt him better in me. I’m talking gibberish, I know,” I said and she let out a chortle.

“But I’m saying the ones we lost are never truly gone, met or not, they are always in our heart,” I used her hand and placed it on her breast area, where her heart was posited and did likewise, “we feel them here. They may be an imagination; like me, or a memory; like yours but the most important thing was that we felt them,” I told her and she smiled.

“And crying about them doesn’t mean we are weak, it only mean that——“

“Freya!” I heard my name laced with desperation and needing. At least that was how it sounded in my head. I spun and saw my mate, and the sudden need to cry overwhelmed me like darkness.

The human let me go, “thank you, go to your mate, I’m going to the restroom,” she said. I was down, sprinting to Artemis and he likewise.

I couldn’t hug him as I wanted. People were watching and were here. Another Luna talks. Comportment.

The longing was only visible in both our stare. He was pulling me away when I said, “I made a human friend,” his brow was already knotted in confusion.

“Where?” He asked. I turned and pointed but she was no more. I remembered her saying she was going to the restroom.

“She went to the restroom. Let’s wait a few minutes,” I told him. We did, we waited but she never returned.

“Let’s go,I have something to tell you,” Artemis said and I nodded in agreement.

We strolled out of the room for the masterpiece. We immediately hugged each other when we were in the hallway.

I’ve been longing for this warmth, this assurance that I was alive. A few minutes back I had been so scared for my life, I was thinking I’d say bye-bye to him and I didn’t and I saw her crying like that and all I wanted to do was cry, but I couldn’t because of that damn Luna speech. I had to down everything and act alright, but here was someone I could cried in his presence and he wouldn’t tag me as weak and vulnerable.

Now I understand that speech. The act of being strong for the people, because everyone needed someone strong like a shield that could protect them. I was able to cry here because Artemis was stronger than me. I wonder whom he had should he want to cry. Did he have to go along, all strong, when his feelings were threatening to splash out? That was awful. I hope he would be able to cry in front of me, I would not judge or tag him as soft and weak.

I sniffed, “what did you want to tell me?” I asked, lifting my face from his jacket.

Seeing my stained tear cheeks, he tilted his body and arched his brows, “what happened Freya?” He asked slowly, his voice dropping to minus thirty degrees Celsius.

That voice would have sent me spiraling some months back, but now I smiled, “no one, don’t mind this.” I swiped my hand across my eye like a four year, “I’m okay,” I told him.

He didn’t believe my words, “if any one, any one at all hurt you, you know you can tell me.”

I smiled and plastered a kiss on his cheeks, “I’m okay Artemis,” a smile on my face seeing get all heroic for me.

“Say that again,” he said. I knew what he meant so I did it. “I’m okay Artemis,” even I, love the taste of his name on my tongue and he smiled, while I bit my tongue

“So what were you going to tell me?” I asked.

His face immediately fell by that, “Artemis,” I called. Every seductive tone was gone and replaced now by worry.

“The court,” he said and I knew immediately it wouldn’t be something good.

“What happened?” I asked cautiously.

“They said you’re going to fight Merona,” he said angrily and I felt my stomach churn.