Lucas' POV
"How many secrets have you been hiding from me these years?" Lucian stared at me and asked.
"I'm sorry, brother. But my woman is missing. And she might be pregnant with my child. Can we just focus on looking for her?!" I said.
Lucian didn't say anything, he took the tuna head and got on horseback.
Then, he rode off without saying anything.
Oh, fuck. Now Lucian's not talking to me. Like I haven't got enough on my plate.
"I have a good suggestion for you."
I heard Finn's voice in my head.
"What now?! Don't tell me shit like rubbing the back of his neck. It fucking didn't work," I said.
Torrent snorted his nose, urging me to catch up with Lucian.
"Fuck, Torrent. Sometimes I get the feeling that you're fucking riding me! You can get as fast as you can, I don't give a shit as long as my ass is still on the saddle. I'm busy having a conversation with my fucking wolf," I patted Torrent's neck and said.
Torrent neighed and shook his head, picking up pace and catching up with Lucian.
"Has Torrent just cursed me?" I asked my wolf.
"I don't understand him, but can you blame him if he calls you an asshole?" my wolf said.
"Shut up, Finn. I have to figure out a way to explain everything to Lucian," I grumbled.
"I hate admitting this, but I'll just have to point it out for you. Every time you don't listen to your Beta, things end up going very wrong," my wolf said.
"What the fuck do you want me to do?! Give me some practical solutions instead of fucking taunting me!" I couldn't hold it anymore.
"Well, you can start by apologizing," he said.
"Finn, I need practical solutions."
"OK, so skip the apology and go straight at telling him the truth," he said.
"The truth?" I asked.
"Yeap."
"Which type of truth?" I asked.
"Luke, you look very adorable when you ask stupid questions like this," my wolf said. "Last time I checked, there was only one type of truth."
"I can't tell him the fucking truth. If I could, I would have told him years ago when I fucking faked Derek's death," I said.
"OK, so, let me straighten this thing out for you. You made a mistake by not telling your Beta what you had done years ago. Now, you want to make a second mistake by trying to make up a story about it?" my wolf asked.
I was speechless.
My wolf continued, "It's OK to admit that you have a kind and vulnerable side, Luke. It's not a sin if you didn't want to kill someone and wanted to protect him instead."
I sighed and approached Lucian.
He didn't look at me.
I cleared my throat and said, "I... OK, forget about it."
Lucian looked at me and said, "You didn't kill Derek. Why did you let him go?"
"I... I had a younger brother when I was little. He used to beg me to play with him all the time. You know, to make a snowman or things like that. But you know me. I... I wasn't emotionally available. And he died." I said and took a pause.
Lucian looked at me and said, "Luke, if you don't want to talk about it, I totally understand."
"No, I want to. I have to, brother," I said. "When I saw Derek in the brothel years later, I was... shocked. He looked exactly like my younger brother. He was happy and energetic. That's why I purchased him. I wanted him to be the replacement for my younger brother. We had a great time. I took him everywhere, buying him everything. You know about it. You were there."
Lucian nodded.
"But then, one day, someone came to me and asked me to lend Derek to him for a few weeks. This person was the late Queen Daliah."
"You met her in person?" Lucian asked.
"Yes. That fucking old chick was a maniac. She was a very formidable person. I was very surprised, but I told her that I couldn't lend Derek to her. But she made it very clear that she wouldn't take no for an answer. So, eventually, I gave in. I shouldn't have given in, but she threatened me with your life. She said she knew who you really are and she would kill you because you were supposed to be dead decades ago. Anyway, I made a bad decision and lent Derek to her. And things started to go very south."
Lucian looked at me with sealed lips. Like Zackery and Zabel, he tended to be very nervous whenever the Red Queen's name was mentioned.
"Why did she need to take Derek away?" Lucian asked.
I spilled the beans, "She wanted him to be a fucking translator, to communicate with those fucking traveling druids. That fucking woman was crazy and she wanted to change Zabel into a woman with the help of those fucking druids, because she wanted Zackery to get married to Zabel, so they can give birth to fucking babies with Lycan blood! Those fucking druids brainwashed the Red Queen, telling her that they could change Zabel into a woman. It's fucking bullshit, brother, but that fucking woman was crazy enough to believe in them!"
Lucian lowered his head. The tuna head druid looked up at him and looked at me with confusion.
"And the traveling druids lied to Derek. They told him that he could eliminate his imprint from Underground City. So he lied to the Red Queen that only by using the Amber of Star from the Underground City, the druid can change a man into a woman. He wanted to get away from me! Can you believe it?! I took him away from the fucking brothel and gave him everything! And he wanted to get rid of the imprint and run away from me!" I shouted.
"Luke," Lucian said in a calm voice. "He didn't want to run away from you. All he wanted to do was to stay with his brother,"
I was petrified and speechless.
I had never thought of that.
I could give Derek everything in the world, but I couldn't give him a family.
That's why he decided to run away from me.
All these years, I have learned nothing.
Now, my woman is running away from me.
Fuck.