Beasty (A Royal's Tale Book 2)

by Jennise K

  “Now you’re going way over your head. Honestly, get yourself into a shower!” Abigail snapped suddenly. Leaning forward, she placed her own mug of cocoa on the table and grasped my hand, pulling me up to my feet.

  I could only stare at my best friend as she dragged me up the stairs, with almost no effort, into her bedroom and then into her bathroom.

  “I will not have you getting self-destructive from guilt!” She snapped again as she closed the bathroom’s door on my face. “Every human being is capable of making their own decisions. I’m sure you know that River isn’t an idiot. He never was one to get into peer influence. He makes his own decisions. So, stop beating yourself over it and take care of yourself!”

  “He must be all right, right?” I asked. I was tired. I was worried and tired. Leaning my forehead against the door, I waited for my best friend to reply.

  “Of course!” Abigail replied immediately, and I sighed in relief. Her bright tone did wonders to defuse some of my tension.

  Slowly, I smiled.

  “I’ll believe you.”

  Maybe Abigail is right. River must be fine.

  ~

  “Olivia.”

  I opened the bathroom’s door, a new towel wrapped around my freshly showered body. I smiled brightly at Abigail. “Your turn? Sorry I took a bit longer than necessary. I almost fell asleep under all the hot water.”

  “Olivia, Jay just called. Romanov has called us. We should go.”

  I can’t explain how I felt in that moment. Suddenly, my heart thumped in my chest, and everything around me began to spin in slow circles.

  “Is River okay?” I whispered, my wide eyes already brimming with tears.

  In front of me, Abigail had already begun to cry. She shook her head, sniffling as her hands found my shoulder, and she began pulling me towards my bag on her bed.

  “Get dressed. We’ll go there afterwards.”

  ~

  My white sneakers crunched on the dead, dried golden leaves as I slowly made my way towards Romanov.

  One step. Then another.

  One after the other until the tip of my sneakers touched the tip of his own.

  I felt his arm go around me, but my wide eyes remained rooted on the grey Volvo being pulled out of the large lake by a large crane.

  It was a gloomy day. A promise of a rainfall hung high in the air as I watched one of my best friends, and one of my closest remaining family member’s van being pulled out of the stagnant green water.

  “River…”

  His name sounded like a distant whisper, but I knew I had just spoken it. Immediately, I bolted forward, trying to get to my friend. My brother.

  “River!”

  Romanov’s hold around me tightened.

  “River! River!”

  I clawed into Romanov’s steel-like grip around my waist as I tried to get closer to the Volvo.

  “Let go! Let go, Rome!” I screamed into the bitter winds as the air swept into my face. “River!”

  “Stop, Livia,” Romanov whispered into my ear as he pulled me closer to him. I shook in his arms as the tears tumbled down my eyes. My heart hurt, my head hurt! I didn’t know what to do! Was this all my fault?

  “It’s all my fault.” I shook my head as my feet went limp.

  Memories of my mother’s lifeless body flashed before my eyes. I saw myself holding my mother’s bloodied body begging her to wake up. My sister’s and brother-in-law’s bodies beside each other in the mortuary. In coffins. Jaydin’s dead body on the floor beside me. Slowly, my eyes focused on the scene before me.

  “It’s all my fault. Everyone. It’s all my fault.”

  I fell in a heap, and I found Romanov sinking to the ground with me, his arms never leaving mine.

  Somewhere in the distance, Abigail had begun to scream too. My tears flowed freely.

  How would I ever be able to look at River’s parents in the eye? Their son had just died because he knew me, because I was a part of his life.

  “No, it isn’t.” My head snapped up, and I met Jaydin’s dead eyes staring down at me. “It was never your fault.”

  I shook my head, closing my eyes as another round of tears slipped down my face.

  “It’s not your fault,” Romanov’s soft voice whispered into my ear. He pulled me onto his lap as we sat beside the highway. Car after car passed us by slowly. I knew they, too, were looking at the devastating scene of a stranger’s tragic end and speculating of possible causes on the way to their destination.

  “He knew something about the curse,” I croaked out. “He was on his way to tell us.”

  I shook my head again as I felt Abigail’s presence beside me. Her arms wrapped around my shoulder, and I broke down again, sobbing with her as her head fell on my shoulder. Romanov’s grip never faltered around my waist.

  “It’s not your fault.”

  ~

  Two days later

  “So, his body was not found,” Romanov spoke with the detectives seated in front of him. His black suit and large frame gave him an aura of authority.

  “Since the lake is infested with crocs, the chances of finding his body had been quite low since the beginning, Mr. Naight. I apologise.”

  “What about his personal belongings? His phone? Wallet? Watch?”

  “We couldn’t find any of those. Except for his watch and what remained of his clothes. It is also hard to search through the lake because of the crocs.”

  “Do you expect us to believe he is dead like this?”

  “Do you think he would survive in a crocodile-infested lake, Mr. Naight? We have checked every hospital and every clinic. River Welshnit is dead.”

  I cringed where I was seated, pulling my legs closer to my body as I kept the blanket carefully over me.

  Two days had passed since River’s Volvo was found. Two days of restless nights and exhausting ourselves trying to get any information we could from the authorities.

  River’s mum hadn’t stopped crying since I called her. His father managed to keep a straight face, but I had noticed the red eyes and dark circles on his face. He was just as heartbroken for his son.

  The heart-wrenching thing, though, was that they couldn’t bring themselves to holding a funeral without River’s body.

  “We are closing it as death by accident.”

  “What about the door that was broken. That is not normal,” Romanov argued, his frown mirroring my own. My hands fisted the sheets closer to my chest.

  “That could have happened through a collision during the tumble.”

  “Could have. Could have,” I finally snapped. Staring straight at Detective Tim, I spoke in a clear voice. “I’m sorry, Officer, but all I’m hearing are speculations.”

  “With such a case, that is majorly what we can do, Ms. Fredson. The car had no fresh DNA except for River himself. There was no one in the vehicle with him. CCTV footage of the streets, roads, and highway he passed showed that Mr. Welshnit’s vehicle was in an isolated area for miles. No suspects without a concrete alibi. No lover’s revenge. No life insurance policy. It clearly was an unfortunate accident.”

  “What about River’s girlfriend? Have you talked to her?” I asked desperately, trying to give them something instead of hearing everything I already knew. Still, I didn’t want to hear them. They still hurt.

  “We have not found any records of a recent girlfriend, Ms. Fredson. We have gone through his social media accounts, his emails, his phone records. You have also stated that none of you and his friends had ever met his girlfriend. From the look of things, it seems there wasn’t any girlfriend, at all.”

  “He told his best friend Jaydin where he had dates with her. Did you check the restaurants’ and venues’ CCTV?” Romanov inquired. His demeanour was the complete opposite of mine. While I was flustered and on the verge of a breakdown, Romanov was just as calm as the lake water had been. I shuddered.

  “We have checked the CCTV from every venue, Mr. Naight. We did spot the victim. However, Rive
r Welshnit was always alone in the footage. There was no girl.”

  “May we view these videos, Detective?” I asked quietly, keeping my head low as I remained looking at my white blanket, frowning. How could River be alone? Had the cameras glitched? All of them?

  “Ms. Fredson, I’m afrai—”

  “She just wants to be sure, Arthur. Maybe a fresh pair of eyes will help.” Romanov cut in, stopping the determined-looking man from completing his sentence. “Do you want me to push this through to the Judicial Intelligence and Investigation Bureau for W.A.L. instead? Or maybe you want my Royal Crime Investigation Unit to handle this instead? I wonder what the chief will think.”

  At once, I felt the air in the office grow heavier. My eyes took a chance at looking at Romanov, and I immediately regretted it.

  “Rome,” I mumbled softly, breaking the beast of a man out of his heated glare at the two detectives in front of him.

  His eyes remained on them as he spoke his next words. “I think you’re forgetting that you’re sitting in front of the alpha king and queen of a majority of countries in Europe right now. And I know you don’t need reminding, but our population is more than half of you humans. Fifty million alone in Germany.

  “I have behaved like a normal civilian for the past two days. I have let you handle this case. I am even letting you sit in front of me when millions of my subjects can’t have such opportunity and will never even get to meet me even once in their life. I can get that CCTV footage in the next fifty seconds if I wanted to. But I’m still letting your human judicial system handle this. So, in this case, when my fiancée, the royal luna, asks to see those videos, you give her what she wants. Understood?” Romanov spoke slowly, taking his time to deliver every word with as much clarity despite his growing fury.

  Listening to him, my mouth went dry, and I could not look away.

  “Understood, Detectives?” he asked again. This time, in his voice came out a louder, deeper growl.

  In front of him, the detectives sat stiffly in their seats. Slowly, they nodded, giving in to Romanov’s alpha voice.

  “Understood.”

  ~

  Four days later

  Not a single new lead had been found. The case was walking towards a cold end.

  “Olivia! Have you been well?”

  Sophia signed brightly as she pulled her luggage behind her. Rose slowly walked behind her, her own luggage hanging from her shoulder as she walked further into the living room.

  Why are they here? Aren’t they on the suspects list?

  “Sophia! Rose! How are you girls here?” I asked the girls as I watched them from my spot on the sofa, a bowl of Bluebird chicken-flavoured chips on my lap.

  Quickly, I wiped my hands with tissue paper and placed the large bowl away. Straightening the wrinkles out of my light blue skirt with my hands, I quickly pulled myself together on the sofa and desperately tried to look more civilised.

  How the times have changed. Once I was so happy seeing these two girls. So carefree was I in how I behaved. But now…

  I sighed.

  “Marsha thought you need more than the castle does.” Rose smiled awkwardly at me as she let her bags drop to her sides gently.

  “She’s stayed back to handle everything, so we’re here to handle you.” Sophia grinned at me before rolling her own suitcase to a stop beside her left leg.

  “Handle me? What am I? A child?”

  I laughed for the first time in days, thinking of Marsha’s slightly overbearing but well-meaning self. Ah, it felt like ages. I really did miss everyone back at the castle.

  “I meant ‘take care’. There, does that make you feel better?” Sophia signed, looking at me teasingly.

  “Yes, it does.” I smiled at the two girls warmly.

  “There you are,” Romanov called out brightly from the doorway as he walked into the living room. His grey suit stuck to his muscles perfectly, and I could see each ripple of his muscles under the material as he walked closer towards us. Behind him, more than three dozen able-bodied and intimidating men, also in suits, followed Romanov closely behind.

  “Hi.” I smiled at him. I was sure his sudden appearance was because he had felt my uneasiness.

  Lately, Romanov knew almost everything—my mood, my thoughts. I couldn’t even get upset about the intrusion into my mind. I had been a wreck since River’s death. I couldn’t keep my mind strong even if I tried.

  It was hard accepting it at first. It still was. We were trying everything for the case, and still, this case seemed more and more like an accident. But I was still not convinced. I couldn’t just let River die without giving him justice.

  The detectives had told River’s parents that they were working on every lead they got for the missing person posters they put up, but ultimately, they ruled that this was an accident.

  At this point, just like River’s parents, I was coming to terms with it, too. Even Romanov was beginning to think that it was just an accident. River was probably speeding and lost control of the wheels.

  Romanov had been very supportive since the accident. When I cried, he silently held me. When I got headaches because of crying so much, he’d give me painkillers. He did tiny things that would make me smile. He even talked to Grandma Liz on the phone when I was too depressed to update her on the situation here.

  “Hey,” Romanov responded softly, and I immediately beamed at him. His outgrown hair was gelled back today. I strangely liked this look on him. It reminded me of when he was in the shower.

  My attention turned towards the men next. I smiled at some of them politely before getting up on my feet.

  Reaching forward until Romanov’s arms slipped around my waist, I stood awkwardly facing the towering, authoritative men.

  “Rose, Sophia, could you please bring some refreshments over here? Afterwards, the head maid, Miss Georgina, will show you your rooms,” Romanov spoke to the two girls politely, motioning towards the direction of the kitchen. From the periphery of my vision, I saw as the two ladies quickly dragged their luggage away towards the kitchen.

  “Olivia, these are the alphas of my kingdom. They are here for the annual reports meeting we hold every year. You already know Lyam, don’t you?”

  My eyes snapped towards the large redhead, and I nodded when I noticed his piercing eyes watching me. Immediately, I felt myself flush under his strong gaze.

  Ah, I had forgotten how weirdly he looks at me.

  Despite myself, however, I smiled at him, extending my hand towards him. “Hello, Alpha Lyam. It is good to see you again.”

  The man’s sharp eyes widened slightly by surprise before he slowly took my hand. For a second, I stood, surprised that his hands were softer than I had imagined them to be. Romanov’s hands were rough and hard. How could his be so soft? My eyes snapped up to his, and I hurriedly shook our hands, already missing the feel of Romanov’s rough hands on mine.

  “It’s nice to see you again, Luna. You’re looking well.”

  “Thank you,” I replied, giving him a small smile.

  Letting go of his hand, I quickly began greeting and shaking hands with the rest of the alphas. Each one seemed to have a completely different personality. Some smiled and engaged with me as friends, while the others bowed once in a while and refused to look me in the eyes out of respect. Some looked at me with evaluating eyes as if judging me whether I deserved to be their queen or not. Regardless, to all of them, I smiled and tried to be as respectful as possible. My behaviour wouldn’t only represent me but also Romanov. And I could not risk harming him. There was no compromising when it came to him.

  “Oh God, I can’t even remember half of their names. Oh God, I’ll never admit this!” I groaned to myself as I looked at the large group of men seated on the large sofas, talking and mingling.

  When Romanov chuckled amusedly behind me, I turned towards him with a sour expression. Of course, he would know about my dilemma.

  Looking up at him, I pouted.

 
You’re going to help me learn all of their names tonight.

  “Why are you standing here alone, Luna?”

  Turning away from the beautiful view the large window provided, I turned towards the voice who had spoken. My breath hitched in my chest when I came face to face with Lyam. He was almost an inch or two away from me.

  Instantly, my eyes snapped to where Romanov sat. He was busy discussing something important with a group of alphas, all of their heads ducked over a large blueprint.

  He’s probably busy.

  “You—you’re a little too close for comfort,” I whispered to him. My eyes looked into his sombre ones, and I began to take a step back. His hand, however, was quick, and he held my wrist, keeping me there.

  “You have a shadow behind you. It follows you around everywhere. But it’s not yours.”

  Just then, a soft breeze hit me against my face, and I felt a million goose bumps stand up in fear and cold.

  He…he can see…spirits? What does he see?

  “What—what are you talking about? What shadow?” I frowned at the weird man, glancing towards Romanov again. This time, I noticed him looking up from the group, his eyes on mine.

  “A woman’s. She’s not you, though. But she’s always here. Behind you. You need to get rid of her shadow before she gets rid of yours.”

  Edika?

  I could feel it, the hair on the back of my neck standing suddenly.

  “The woman the shadow belongs to, can you see her?” I ask desperately

  Lyam’s intense eyes peered deeply into mine. His thin lips, pulled together into a grim line. He shook his head. “Blonde hair. That’s all I can tell.”

  Just as he spoke, long strands of dark hair began floating behind him, and my breath hitched when Edika slowly peeked at me from behind his shoulder. Her fingers slowly crept over Lyam’s shoulder, and I saw him tense. I watched as she leaned closer to him. Once again, her lips moved, but I couldn’t hear anything. Lyam looked extremely uncomfortable.

  “There is another. She’s attached herself to you. You must protect her. And she will protect you.”

  “Protect her?” I frowned, my eyes on Edika. I could feel Romanov beginning to move our way, but I just couldn’t look away.