THE LADY WITH MY BITE MARK

CHAPTER 008

ARTFOLD’S POV

I was mad at her and at the same time not mad. Part of what she said made sense, but for my word to be used against me infuriated me more than anything. I could hear her screams at every step I took away from the room and although for some weird reason, it kind of broke my heart, I could not go back.

For some weird reason, I was feeling something for her. I wanted to be close to her and have her near me, I didn’t want her hurt, I just wanted her to undo whatever she had done to me.

I asked my beta, Callum, to look for information about her and that was where we got that she killed her child. I didn’t believe it though, but I wanted to know the kind of person she is even though I didn’t believe.

I stepped into my study room, far away from the room where she was being tortured and settled into my chair. I looked up to see my beta right in front of me, his arms folded on each other, “get Mia, let’s find out what she knows.”

He bowed before turning out of the room and walking off, leaving me alone yo plunge into my abyss of thinking, my abyss of her.

A one night stand, marking her and now all memories of Liana were leaving me. All memories of my dear mate. My heart ached and my brain stumbled back to her words.

“Maybe you treated her harshly and now you’re feeling guilty of it.”

Was it true? Did I treat Liana harshly? Was she suffering within and was that why she died? Or was it him again that caused all of it?

A low growl escaped my lips as I shut my eyes, slipping down on the chair and running my hand through my hair. Five years since my ex mate died, five years since I packed the ashes of her body from the ground in pain. Five years since I got the three word letter that I’ve been holding on since.

How? How did she die? Why was it that it was the first time I left her alone that she ended up dead? The first time we had our first argument, one I clearly could not even remember why we were yelling at each other and why I angrily left the house.

I had no idea how I also returned, only that my wife had gone, dead, and only her ashes remaining on the ground. I ran my fingers through my head again, opening my eyes before standing up from the chair.

I picked up the wine glass and poured some of the contents into the cup, downing it at one go. And for five years, I have done everything to remember her, to keep her in my heart because I had so much guilt.

If I hadn’t argued with her, she would still be here. If I hadn’t left her alone, we would still be together, happy in love. And yet just one fucking night with a lady in a slip dress and everything was leaving.

Her memories were fading in my brain, as if slowly pulled out, little by little. The times we shared together were going, and if this fucking witch…

“Fuck!” I yelled out, anger rising to my throat and slamming the cup on the floor.

The door opened at the same time, revealing Callum and the lady I had sent for. Both of them had fear in their eyes as they stared at my face which was practically growling and growing in anger.

“I’ll clean this up,” Callum broke the silence, stepping into the room first.

I picked another glass cup from the tray and poured more of the wine into it, returning back to my chair.

“Would you just stand there or would you report what you’ve heard?”

I watched the maid quickly pick herself up and rush towards me, her hands intertwined and shaking badly. My wolf was getting angrier at the way her body oozed of fear and terror, her eyes facing the ground.

“Your highness, I don’t think she has any idea of what happened. When we talked…she…se..didn’t…she seemed not to….even…know who you are…or who your….

She halted as I tapped my fingers on the table, slowly and in a stern warning, “Mia, it is, right?”

She nodded so fast I could barely catch, “yes. Mia.”

“Do you want to become one of the broken glasses on the floor?”

I could see her eyes snap to the glass Callum was picking, glancing up at me before looking back to the ground, “no…nope, your highness.”

“Then stop stammering and get to the fucking point!” I roared out at her.

Her body staggered on the spot, shifting a bit back from my table and I before starting all over. Her throat hovered and she looked up at me briefly before returning her gaze to the ground,

“She seemed not to know anything about it. She was shocked when I hinted at your mate, and at even you. She also asked if your mate had the mark on her arm. I don’t think she has any idea of anything at all, your highness.”

I shut my eyes, annoyance creeping into my veins slowly again. “Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!”

“You may leave now, Mia.” I heard Callum say.

“Thank you,”

“Have I asked her to leave?” I cut both of them off, springing my lids open and getting off my feet too.

“Look at me, Mia.”

My eyes clashed with hers and for some weird reason, my brain flashed back to the color of her own eyes, distinct and golden, unlike Mia’s purple orbs, “you continue to question and probe her and the next time I call for you, you better have some fucking good news for me!”

She nodded, “yes, your highness.”

“Leave.”

She scrambled away as if she was being chased, shutting the door loudly. I heard the bare sound of the glass hitting the dump basket as Callum poured them into it, the sound of his boots as they walked to my front again,

“What do you want me to find out for you?” He asked.

I turned and faced the window, not knowing what to say or what to do. It has to be her, she has to know why all of this was happening.

“Who do you think could be toying with me if not her?”

There was a long silence from Callum’s end before he finally said the obvious, “I wouldn’t say. You have a lot of enemies.”

I turned back to face him, trying to calm my aggressive wolf who badly wanted someone to feed on. “Then find out which of my enemies is plotting this.”

He nodded and turned to leave, “and also, find out why that fucking bastard treated his Luna like that, maybe he deserves to be punished for not knowing what he has.”

My mind froze at callum’s next question, plunging me deep into another wave of thinking,

“And what exactly does he have, your highness?”

I watched as a little huff escaped those tiny lips of his, “I think she’s starting to affect you, in a different way.”

He walked out of the room, and on a normal day when I’m left alone, I only thought of Liana, and allowed my guilt to eat me up.

But today, after Callum left, my mind went back to the lady with golden orbs and my bite mark on her wrist.