02. I Came Late.

Isla’s POV

When I wake up, I first notice how silent it is everywhere.

I have no idea about how much time has passed or what has happened.

As though it was timed, the cellar door was pushed open, and I squinted my eyes, adjusting to the light slowly.

I sat up the moment I saw him.

He is here.

He came!

“Dario!” I called out, lunging at my godfather's broad and familiar figure.

“Tesoro,” Dario groaned as he lifted me up and cradled my body against his. Aside from the relief, I couldn’t help the electricity that I felt from being this close to him.

“Are you okay?” he finally asked after a minute.

“Hmm, Pete locked me here and told me only one person had the key.”

Dario said nothing and silently brought me out of the cellar and into my room.

Even though the curtains weren’t drawn, there was still more than enough light, and I smiled as I stared at Dario’s perfect features.

While he was my godfather, I could not deny how drawn I had always been to him. Even worse was when my wolf had picked him as my mate.

After three months of not seeing him, I couldn’t help but let my eyes soak in the perfection that he was.

“I knew you were going to come.”

“I told Papa several times,” I added, and while my voice was barely audible, I knew that Dario could hear me.

His face fell, and I felt the energy in the room drop at a very fast rate.

“I came late.”

A bad, foreboding feeling filled my heart.

“Came late? I don’t hear the sounds of battle anymore. You came just in time!” Papa had already promised me that he would hold out till backup came.

However, my godfather's solemn and forlorn look made me step back.

“Where is Papa?”

I don’t wait for his reply and rush forward, opening my room door and running down the corridor.

I can hear Dario's footsteps hurrying to catch up with me as I rush out of my childhood mansion towards the pack centre.

Every mile I cover breaks my heart even further as everywhere is filled with dead bodies, and the stench of blood pollutes the air.

This was not the pack that I knew.

“Papa!” I called out at the top of my lungs, hoping that he could hear me from where he was.

Or was he heavily injured?

“Mio cara, stop!” Dario called from the back, and I halted for a second and then continued, this time a little slower.

“He’s dead.”

My body froze, and I almost fell from how abruptly I had stopped.

“What are you saying, Dario?” I asked as I turned to meet his now-close figure.

“I came late…” his voice had a tremble to it, and I felt my heart aching like it would break apart.

“Where’s my Papa?” Papa couldn’t be dead.

He was all I had left.

I was his princess.

I shook my head repeatedly, and I felt warm tears run down my face.

Dario moved forward, closing the gap between us as he tried to pull me into his embrace.

“Tesoro, I’m sorry.”

I pushed back, my body trembling.

“How convenient for you to say that you are sorry.”

“Sorry?” I scoffed and took two steps back.

He was the fucking Lycan king!

And my father’s best friend.

“Were you sorry when you made a vow never to step foot here three months ago?”

“Or were you sorry when you decided that you didn’t need your best friend anymore and cut off ties with Papa?”

I paused, taking deep breaths while glaring at Dario, who now looked completely broken.

“Even when his world collapsed, he insisted on not calling you.”

“I know you are angry right now and unable to process anything. But you also need to calm down, Isla.”

Calm down?

I had just lost the one person that I had in this world. He was the one man who held up my entire world, and he wanted me to be calm.

“I can’t believe that I misjudged you,” I spat out, and Dario’s face darkened.

“You were the one reason why our pack was attacked and the reason why Papa is dead right now. And you dare say that I should be calm?”

“What’s your heart made of?”

I was crossing lines. I knew very much that I was, and there was that quiet and rational part inside of me that was scolding me.

But the pain in my heart, the stifling feeling that I was feeling, was too much for me to bottle in.

Also, there was some guilt.

Because, at the end of the day, if my wolf hadn’t picked Dario, he would not have fled that day. Or made that vow to my papa.

Papa would have been able to call him. With Dario’s power, Papa would still be here now.

Alive.

“What are you talking about, Isla? I’m the reason why?” Dario asked and stepped towards me, pausing as he realised I didn’t want him close to me.

“Why do you care? You didn’t care three days ago; there’s no need to act like you care now, King Dario,” I snarled, and I saw his jaw clenched visibly.

“I guess you are exactly what the rumours say, right? Cruel and heartless.”

I was out of breath from ranting all at once and took a deep breath.

“Thank you for opening the cellar door for me, King Dario, but if you don’t mind, I'd like to join my papa…”

Before I could finish my words, Dario closed the space between us at lightning speed and grabbed my arms tightly.

“I know you are grieving, Isla…”

“But do not forget who you are talking to!” He snarled and then walked off without any care.

Bastard.