Chapter 93: Eloise again
The loud roar of engines jolted Yuki awake. Her brows pulled together as she heard hurried footsteps and felt an intense sense of dread wash over her, as though something had gone terribly wrong.
She pulled herself out of bed, her forehead creased with concern as she made her way outside. It was still dark, the early hours of the morning, yet it seemed as though the entire house was awake.
"I can’t believe Eloise did something like that..." a maid whispered, and Yuki immediately felt chills race up her spine.
The maids were huddled in a corner, whispering among themselves.
Her eyes narrowed at them. As though sensing her gaze, they looked over and locked eyes with her.
"Lady Yuki..." one of them gasped, taking a step back.
Yuki glanced between them, noticing the fear plastered across their faces.
"What were you talking about?" she asked.
The maids’ faces drained of all colour. They immediately lowered their heads.
"It is nothing important, my lady," they answered in unison.
They remained silent not because they respected Yuki as a lady of the house, but because they feared her as the fated mate of the Alpha heirs.
A slow smile curled across Yuki’s lips.
"It doesn’t look like nothing," she said matter-of-factly. "You mentioned something about Eloise. What happened to her?" she pressed.
The maids shrank back.
Yuki knew something serious had happened. She could still feel the dread flowing through the incomplete mate bond. The brothers were worried. That was why they had rushed out.
The maids glanced at one another, hesitant to speak.
Yuki’s fists clenched.
"You’d better talk, or Alexander might find it interesting that the staff gossip about his family."
The threat immediately straightened their backs. They knew that if Alexander heard about this, their jobs would be on the line.
After silently reaching a consensus, one of the maids stepped forward, fidgeting with her apron.
"I heard Eloise threatened to kill herself this morning," she whispered.
Yuki’s stomach dropped.
"She woke up crying from a nightmare, then climbed onto the rooftop holding a bottle of wolfsbane."
The air left Yuki’s lungs.
Her hands began to tremble.
"Why would she do that?" she whispered, a bad feeling settling deep in her stomach. Eloise was unpredictable.
"I have no idea. My sister works at the Beta residence. She just told me that Eloise is refusing to come down unless the Alpha heirs come."
As soon as the maid finished speaking, a sharp voice echoed through Yuki’s mind.
It was the first time she had heard the deep voice inside her head.
Yuki, please come over here.
Kieran’s voice startled her.
Her head snapped around, thinking he was behind her, but she quickly realised it was a mind link.
He was communicating through their incomplete mate bond.
She didn’t reply.
She wanted to ignore him.
Then another voice, filled with panic, entered her mind.
Yuki, we know you’re awake... Please come to the Beta residence. A life is on the line.
It was the first time she had heard such humility in Kaden’s voice.
Let me guess. Your precious Eloise, she sneered through the link. Since you can sense I’m awake, you can clearly tell I have no intention of joining whatever game your girlfriend is playing. I’m going back to sleep.
She hissed before turning around.
Her bare feet padded across the cold floor as she headed back to her room.
This isn’t the time to be selfish, Yuki. Just come.
Killian’s voice entered her mind.
His emotions were far more composed than the others’.
Selfish? she scoffed.
You think I’m selfish because I won’t run to Eloise like her loyal puppy? I don’t care what you do, but I’m not wasting a second of sleep because of her.
Before any of them could reply, she completely blocked the mind link.
She could still feel them trying to reach her, but she refused to let them in.
Yuki slammed the bedroom door behind her before striding over to the bed and rolling beneath the sheets, determined to go back to sleep.
It was only five in the morning.
Even though sleep was now far away because their emotions were affecting her through the bond, she was determined to close her eyes and drift back to sleep.
But, of course, peace was the one thing she could never find in Ravencourt.
Just as she was beginning to feel drowsy again, the blanket was suddenly ripped off her.
Cold air brushed against her skin.
Her eyes flew open, and she was just about to snap.
Instead, they met a pair of cold sapphire-blue eyes.
"Kieran..." she blurted, staring at the man before her.
He stood in front of her looking like a drowned rat. His clothes and hair clung to his body, his skin pale as though he had been standing in the rain for hours.
Her bedroom door was still shut, but a strong wind blew through the open window, a window she distinctly remembered closing.
The curtains billowed violently.
Rain sprayed across the floor.
At some point, it had begun pouring outside.
Water dripped steadily from the ends of Kieran’s hair onto the wooden floor.
His breathing was uneven from running through the storm.
His jaw remained tight, as though he had rehearsed a hundred different ways to convince her.
His large wolf tail hung soaked behind him.
It was the first time she had ever seen him half shifted.
"What are you doing in my room?" she hissed.
His gaze softened into the pleading eyes of a puppy, something she might have found adorable if she didn’t know he was lowering himself because of her.
"Yuki, please..." he said, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
His cold fingers brushed her cheek, sending sparks racing down her spine.
Her expression turned even colder.
She swatted his hand away.
"Don’t fucking touch me," she hissed, backing away from him.
His hand shot out and wrapped around her wrist, yanking her back.
Her body slammed against his chest.
She could feel his heart pounding.
Without another word, he swept her into his arms.
"Let go of me!" she screamed, but the roar of the rain swallowed her voice.
Kieran leapt through the window with her secured in his arms.
He dropped three floors in a single bound before landing on the ground.
Rain hammered against them, drowning out her struggles.
He didn’t even bother using the doors.
Holding her close, Kieran sprinted through the storm at an inhuman speed, still half shifted, his long tail swaying behind him.
Yuki thrashed and screamed in his arms, demanding that he let her go.
The bastard acted as though he’d gone deaf.