The sun peeked through the small window of the old, abandoned cabin where Ava and I spent the night. I stretched, feeling the warmth on my face, and took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh morning air."Good morning, Emily," Ava yawned, rubbing her eyes.Don't mind me, I have told that my name is Emily , as I said earlier, I preferred to be safe than sorry."Good morning, Ava," I said, smiling at her.We packed our bags and stepped outside, ready to start the day. As we walked towards the village, we saw a group of villagers gathered around, curiously looking at us."Don't worry," Ava reassured me. "They're just curious. They'll warm up to us soon enough."As we approached the village square, a man with a friendly smile stepped forward."Welcome to our village," he said, extending his hand. "My name is Peter.""Hi, Peter," I said, shaking his hand. "I'm Emily, and this is Ava."Peter introduced us to the other villagers, and we spent the day getting to know them. They showed us around
Chapter 10 Maximus POV But as the night wore on and the trackers failed to return, my impatience grew. Hours turned into days, and still there was no sign of them. Finally, they returned, looking battered and defeated. "What happened?" I demanded, unable to hide my frustration. "Your highness," Marcus said, bowing before me. "We're sorry. We were unable to find Felicity." My anger erupted like a volcano. "What do you mean you couldn't find her? You had a lead!" I slammed my fist on the table. " Damn it! You're just useless!" I snapped. "We followed the tracks to the neighboring pack's territory, but Felicity wasn't there," Marcus explained. "We searched everywhere, but she was nowhere to be found." I couldn't control myself any longer. I picked up a vase and hurled it against the wall, shattering it into a million pieces. "This is unacceptable!" I yelled. "I need answers, and I need them now!" Marcus and the other trackers flinched at my outburst, clearly take
Felicity's POV The next morning, Ava and I woke up to the sound of the village coming to life. People were bustling around, preparing for the day ahead. As we got out of our sleeping bags, we noticed a group of people gathered around a man who seemed to be giving orders. Curiosity getting the best of us got Ava and I walked over to see what was going on. As we got closer, we recognized the man as the village leader. "Good morning, travelers," the leader greeted us. "I hope you slept well." "We did," Ava replied. "I have an announcement to make," the leader said. "As you know, our village has been struggling to survive for some time now. But with the arrival of these two travelers, I believe we have been blessed with an opportunity." I raised an eyebrow, wondering what he was talking about. Ava and I exchanged a curious glance. "I have decided to offer these two travelers a permanent home in our village," the leader continued. Ava and I exchanged a surprised look. W
Maximus's POV Chapter 12 As I sat in my throne room, contemplating the betrayal that had been uncovered, I knew that I couldn't take any chances. The map that Titus had shown me was a clear indication that there were traitors in our midst, people who were working against me and the stability of our kingdom. I needed to act fast, and I needed to be careful. I couldn't just start accusing people without proof, or I would risk causing even more chaos and confusion. But there was one person who I knew I could trust, one person who had always been loyal to me no matter what. And that was Marcus, my head tracker. "Marcus," I said, turning to him. "I need you to gather a team and investigate this map. Find out who created it, and why." Marcus nodded, his expression serious. "Consider it done, your highness. We'll get to the bottom of this." As he left the room, I couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. Marcus was one of my most trusted advisors, and I knew that he would d
Chapter 13 Felicity's POV As we were escorted out of the leader's house, we noticed that some of the villagers were watching us closely. We wondered if they were bandits, or if they were simply suspicious of outsiders. "Something's not right here," I whispered to Ava. "We need to find out what's really going on." Ava nodded in agreement. "But how do we do that without getting into more trouble?" "We'll have to be discreet," I said. "We'll need to keep our ears open and our mouths shut. And we'll have to stay out of sight." Ava nodded in agreement, and we walked in silence for a while, our eyes scanning our surroundings for any clues. Suddenly, we heard a rustling in the bushes, and we both froze. "Who's there?" I called out, my hand instinctively reaching for the dagger at my waist. A figure emerged from the bushes, and we both let out a sigh of relief when we recognized him as one of the villagers we had met earlier. "Are you two okay?" he asked, looking around
Chapter 14 Felicity POV "Do you recognize them?" I whispered back, trying to keep my voice calm. "No, I've never seen them before," Ava replied, her eyes still fixed on the figure outside. I gasped, "Who do you think it is?" Ava shrugged, "I have no idea. But we should probably alert the authorities." I nodded in agreement and reached for my phone. But just as I was about to dial, there was a knock on our door. Ava and I exchanged a glance before she cautiously made her way to the door. She peered through the peephole before opening a crack. Standing on the other side was a familiar face. "Peter? What are you doing here?" Ava questioned. Peter grinned sheepishly, "Hey guys. I was in the area and thought I'd stop by for a visit." I let out a sigh of relief, "You scared us for a second there. We thought we were being watched by some stranger." Peter's expression turned serious, "What? Are you sure?" Ava nodded, "We saw someone lurking outside our window just
Chapter 15Maximus POV. Days turned into weeks, and still, Felicity was nowhere to be found. My anger towards her grew with each passing day, and I found myself becoming more cruel and calculating in my quest for vengeance. My advisors and guards were beginning to fear me, but I didn't care - all I wanted was for Felicity to pay for her disobedience. "Why can't you find her?" I snarled at my servants one afternoon. "I've thrown every resource I have into this search and yet she still eludes us. Do you enjoy failing me?" "Y-your Highness," one of them stammered, "we are doing everything in our power to locate the princess." "Obviously not enough," I spat back. "I should have you all thrown in the dungeons for your incompetence." "Your Highness," one of my advisors spoke up, attempting to calm me down. "Perhaps we are not looking in the right places. We could try expanding our search-" "No!" I interrupted. "We have already scoured every inch of this kingdom. She must be
Felicity POV Ava and i walked into the market and immediately felt the tension in the air. The villagers were talking in hushed tones, looking over their shoulders as they whispered to one another. Ava tugged at my sleeve, making me stop in her tracks. "Do you feel that?" she asked, her eyes darting around the market. I shook my head, unsure what Ava was getting at. "Feel what?" "The atmosphere," Ava whispered, her eyes scanning the crowd. "It's different. Everyone seemed on edge." "Something's not right," Ava said, grasping my arm. I looked around, and Ava was right. The usual chattering and laughter had been replaced by hushed whispers and furtive glances. Something was definitely up. I nodded, feeling my heart race. "I know. Everyone seemed suspicious. It's making me nervous." As we made our way towards our favorite vegetable stall, we overheard two women talking in low voices. "Did you hear?" one of them said, her tone anxious. "The men of the alpha from the