SWNOVELS Chapter 21
Chapter 21
Theo’s POV
“We still don’t know who is behind our mother’s kidnapping, and that’s why, I want to keep your identity as the princess secret for the time being, Crystal. It may be possible that he is still looking for you if he knows that our mother gave birth to you. In that case, he can come behind you and try to harm you, Killian explained, explaining why he didn’t tell everyone that Crystal is the princess.
I clenched my jaw when his statement made me realize that Crystal would indeed be in grave danger if someone came to know about her real identity. I was still processing this sudden twist in her life, and this unknown danger was now making me scared about her safety.
“You are right, Prince Killian. Although we didn’t find anything about your mother there, not even her scent, but, (he took a deep breath)…. I could tell that she took all the measures to keep Crystal safe before leaving her there alone. We later found that Crystal’s scent was completely hidden due to the mud painted all over her b*dy. The rogues must have listened to her cries that made them find her,” Uncle Warrick told us in a worried and firm tone, and Crystal’s grip on my hand tightened immediately.
I could understand her inner turmoil right now. Everything that she knew all her life had changed in less than a day, and now it was heartbreaking how her mother tried to save her after giving birth to her. I squeezed her hand lightly, signaling to her that she didn’t need to be scared at all. I was capable enough to keep her safe. She didn’t look at me, but I could say that she was stressed. Who couldn’t be after knowing how her mother tried to keep her safe when her life was already in danger?
“We can’t let her efforts go in vain by announcing to the world about her existence. We already told everyone that you guys found her deep in the forest on the way back here. If…. if he was present here yesterday night, he could join pieces together, and it may be possible,” Killian continued but trailed off while looking at me.
There was a dead silence in the room when his words sank into my mind. “You need to take your training seriously, Crystal. You have us, but your training is still important,” he said in a serious tone, making me nod in agreement. “We are capable enough to keep our mate safe, but I also agreed with the prince, Thunder muttered angrily, making me sigh internally.
“That’s why we started her training right after her wolf shifted for the first time. You already know how strong Luna is, and Crystal was struggling to keep her under control. Even I and Warrick have planned a complete training program for both Luna and Crystal, Alpha Adrian said this time calmly.
“She indeed needs to finish her training. No matter how strong we are, she has to face the danger one day on her own, and at that time, she must be strong enough to keep herself safe,” Killian replied to them calmly, but his statement still Infuriated me. I clenched my jaw and resisted myself confronting Killian for showing distrust in my capabilities, bút Thunder stopped me. I knew Killian meant well and that he was right. Still, his statement hurt my ego.
We were sitting in the living room of Uncle Warrick’s house. They shifted into this house two years ago, and now I know the reason why they came into it. This house was far from other houses but close to the pack house. Also, the backyard was completely hidden inside the high walls, making it the perfect place to train Crystal and Luna without being noticed by anyone else.
“I am not doubting your abilities, Theo. In fact, I am glad that she has you as her mate. You are one of the strongest alphas of our generation. But you can’t deny that this will restrict her from going outside alone. She has to stay close to you all the time, and it will suffocate both you and her,” Killian suddenly explained while looking at me calmly as if he had read my mind, making me purse my l*ps into a thin line.
I looked at Crystal and saw the sadness written all over her beautiful face. She was not afraid, but sad. She was looking somewhere with sad eyes. “What do you think, Crystal?” Killian asked her this time in a calm tone, making her come out of her stance! She looked at him with a sad expression. She was always an independent girl, and Killian was again right that making her live under restriction would suffocate her.
“I want to be trained, and I think it will be perfect if I stay here for a few more days and Dad and Uncle Adrian trained me just like they were training me earlier,” she said to me in a calm tone, and I immediately growled lowly in disagreement. “No…you will not stay here,” I immediately replied to her, and she huffed while looking at me annoyingly. Thunder also growled in disagreement. We just found her. How could I allow her to stay away from me now?
This is my home, Theo. The place where I lived for eighteen years. I am taking care of so many matters related to the pack and to the company in the human world. I have to hand over my work to someone else before going back to The Crescent Moon Pack,” she replied to me in an annoying tone, but I refused to listen. There was no way that I would leave her here alone. I shook my head negatively and was about to say something when she beats me.
“I am not asking for your permission, Theo. I am telling you that I will go back to the Crescent Moon Pack after finishing my work here. I can’t just close my eyes on my responsibilities just because I have found my mate,” she retorted back in a slightly raised voice this time.
I growled in a low tone again to warn her that I would not stand for any disrespect. I huffed internally when’t heard so many low growls around me. I forgot that I was sitting with people who were not only protective but possessive of Crystal Crystal had a smug smile on her l*ps, and I just looked at her annoyingly.
“She is right, Theo. She is dealing with so many matters here that we will be in a mess if she leaves everything just like this. Moreover, her safety is more important than everything, and you can’t deny that Warrick is the best trainer in the whole world,” Killian said in a calm tone, but I could feel his anger hidden in his voice. I might be a strong alpha, but he was still of royal blood.
“No… don’t let her stay here. She can take care of her work from our home too.” Thunder protested, but I knew I had lost. this battle to her. She now had three brothers, and Killian was also as possessive of her as William and Vincent were of her. I tried to suppress my anger and frustration and looked at all of them.
“For how long does she have to stay here?” I asked Uncle Warrick this time in a calm torie, He smirked and looked at Alpha Adrian. “Uhhhh… about three months, Alpha Adrian answered me, and I immediately shook my head negatively.
“No… this is not happening.” I refused to leave her here for this long. Three months????? Not possible for me to leave my mate here for this long. I hadn’t even k*ssed her, let alone done something more than this.
“Now the whole world knows that I have found my mate, we have to hold my alpha ceremony and her Luna ceremony soon. Three months are too long,” I continued, and everyone around me groaned in frustration. I didn’t care about what they were thinking about me right now. I just wanted to be with my mate.
“What’s your opinion, Crystal?” Alpha Adrian asked Crystal in a calm tone, and I immediately looked at Crystal with hurtful gaze. She looked at me and pursed her l*ps into a thin line. There was silence in the room now, and my heart started beating furiously inside my chest.
Suddenly my mother cleared her throat, and all of us looked at her. “Uhhhh…. Sorry to interrupt this conversation, but we have told a few alphas and Lunas that we are going to hold their ceremonies on this full moon…. after five days,” she said in a calm tone. Crystal’s grip on my finger tightened immediately.
“How can you tell without discussing with us?” Uncle Warrick scolded her in a frustrated voice.
“What’s there to discuss, Warrick? We told everyone that they are mates, and we got the approval of the whole world. It’s obvious that they would ask about the mating ceremony, and I don’t think that Sylvia did anything’ wrong. The full moon without any ecl*pse is the best night for holding ceremonies. I can understand that she has obligations and responsibilities towards this pack but don’t forget that she is now the future Luna of The Crescent Moon Pack too. Whatever is going on in her personal life, she can’t close her eyes on them,” Aunt Martha scolded Uncle Warrick in a stern tone, and I looked at her with admiration.
“But,” Uncle Warrick wanted to protest, but Killian stopped him. “She is not wrong, Beta Warrick. The full moon is indeed the best night for holding ceremonies. Let’s do this. Crystal will go back to the Crescent Moon Pack after four days, and finish the ceremonies there. We can’t ignore this fact that staying away from each other for a long period of time without marking each other could weaken their wolves,” Killian said in a serious tone, and I took a breath of relief.
“You are right. We can’t ignore this. After finding your mate, marking is important for their wolves to strengthen their bond,” Alpha Adrian agreed with him in a serious tone. I looked at Crystal once again and found het biting her lower l*ps nervously. Without marking her as mine, I couldn’t mind-link her, and it was really frustrating. “It’s sad that we still have to stay away from her after the ceremony Thunder whined, making me pity myself this time.
“So… it’s final then…. Crystal will stay back and will go back to the Crescent Moon Pack after four days to finish the ceremony. After that, she will come back here to finish her training and also to hand over her work to Vincent. I think he can handle her work here. During her stay here, Theo can come anytime to meet her, but Crystal will not go out of the pack during this period. I will go back and discuss the whole case with my father one more time, and we will start searching for any clue that can lead us to the queen. Let’s hope that we find her before the end of three months, and eliminate the threat hovering over Crystal’s life,” Killian concluded the discussion in a firm tone.
I sighed internally and looked at Crystal once again. This time she also lifted her head up, and our gazes met. I passed a small smile to her, ensuring her that I am with her no matter what the situation was in front of us. It’s just…… I don’t want to leave her here…..