Amelie gazed at him. "You are my home, so there’s no question to leave you."
Gabriel smiled at her response. For a while, they stayed in that place before returning to the mansion.
"Goodnight, Gabriel!" Amelie said, wanting to head to her own room. Tonight Gabriel didn’t stop her from sleeping alone because he had a certain work outside and he didn’t wish Amelie to know about that.
"Hmm. Goodnight," Gabriel said and they both went to their respective rooms.
Amelie freshened up and changed into her night clothes. As she sat before the mirror, she lowered her t-shirt from the neck to look at her mark. She touched it, feeling joyous. She removed her earrings and switched off the lights before heading to bed.
However, sleep didn’t reach her eyes. She would only toss and turn around the bed, feeling suddenly craved for something sweet.
Amelie went out of the bedroom and headed to the kitchen. As she opened the refrigerator, her eyes fell upon the pudding. She took out one in a small plate and began eating it.
"Gabriel didn’t insist on me to sleep with him tonight. I wonder why?" she murmured as she finished the pudding and put the plate in the sink.
"I should check on him," Amelie mumbled as she reached the staircase. However, before she could ascend it, she heard a sound, something like glass breaking within the mansion.
A frown appeared on her forehead and she decided to check.
~~~
Casaio had his eyes shut after finishing more than ten alcohol bottles. However, the pain of betrayal wasn’t lessening. His wolf was as shattered as him, growling and whimpered in agony.
With a bitter grunt, Casaio crushed the bottle in his hand. Shards sank into his skin, and crimson drops trickled down his fingers. But even the sting of glass couldn’t compete with the pain in his soul.
He had given his heart to his mate, Zilia, trusted her more than life itself. And now, with that trust shattered, he searched for numbness through this alcohol. But no matter how much he bled, he couldn’t bleed the betrayal out of him.
Casaio stood up holding another bottle and threw it against the wall. "Why did she do it?" He growled, his eyes turning red as the fury inside him grew immensely.
Amelie, who was nearby heard that sound again. This time she was more than sure from where it came.
"Isn’t that Prince Casaio’s room?" Amelie went close to the door. He had chosen a room, close to the swimming pool, a bit far from the usual other rooms.
"Fuck! I’ll go insane at this rate! I am the one who rejected her, then why I am the one getting hurt?" Casaio muttered, the growl behind his voice couldn’t be hidden.
Amelie knocked on the door lightly. "Prince Casaio, are you... Alright? I heard..."
The door suddenly opened and Amelie was flustered seeing the red eyes focusing on her. She got a strong stench of alcohol from Casaio, so she quickly covered her nose and mouth.
She promptly lowered her eyes. "I–I heard a sound. That’s why I came to check on you. Oh my God!" Amelie saw his right hand bleeding, "Your hand... It’s bleeding," and grasped it from the wrist.
Walking inside, she found out the room was enshrouded in the darkness. It wasn’t difficult for her to walk to the couch and made him sit there.
She was quick to turn on the lights and found the room wasn’t in a good condition.
It was a mess. Shattered glass glinted on the floor and a broken vase lay in pieces.
"Leave, Amelie," Casaio said.
"How can I?" she asked with concern. "You need immediate treatment for your hand."
"I’m an Alpha. The wound has already started to heal," he replied, casting a brief glance at his palm. "Leave. I don’t want to yell at you and end up clashing with Gabriel later."
Amelie hesitated, her fingers curling into her palms. "I don’t know what happened to Prince Casaio... but he shouldn’t be hurting himself," she said softly. "I will take my leave, then."
She gave a respectful nod and turned toward the door.
But his voice stopped her. "Why are you walking around at night?"
"I—I was craving something sweet," she answered, touching her lips with the back of her hand. Suddenly, the sharp smell of alcohol in the room hit her, and her stomach churned. Her face paled, and she instinctively took a few steps back.
"I need to go," she whispered quickly, and without waiting for a response, Amelie rushed out and up the stairs to her room.
She barely made it to the bathroom in time before she vomited, the nausea finally spilling over. After a moment, she rinsed her mouth and splashed cold water on her face. Her trembling hands gripped the edge of the sink as she steadied her breathing, eyes shut, trying to calm her racing heart.
Drying her face with the towel, she returned to the bedroom. She finally lay on the mattress and placed her hand on her stomach to caress it. She turned on her left, pulling up the duvet.
’I wonder what made Prince Casaio act in such a manner. He drank way too much. Does Gabriel know anything about his brother’s condition? Should I tell him in the morning?’ she thought.
However, she shook her head. "It won’t be a nice idea to tell Gabriel. His equation with his brothers isn’t good. And Prince Casaio may get furious too." Her eyes slowly shut close as sleep took over them.
~~~~
Gabriel tightened his grip around the neck of the middle-aged man, lifting him off the ground effortlessly. "You really thought I wouldn’t find out who dared to dump a wolf’s corpse in my mansion?" he snarled, his eyes darkening into a deep shade of violet.
The man choked, gasping for air as his legs dangled, the life slowly draining from his eyes under Gabriel’s unrelenting hold.
"Tell me who gave the order," Gabriel demanded. "Name them."
"E–Eric," the man rasped, barely able to speak.
With a swift twist, Gabriel snapped his neck. The man’s body went limp before Gabriel tossed it aside like garbage, the corpse thudding onto the forest floor.
"Clean this area," Gabriel ordered without looking back at his beta.
Karmen hummed and stepped forward. "Our research was accurate."
Gabriel’s gaze remained fixed on the distance, where moonlight barely touched the tips of the trees. "Yes," he said. "And this time... I won’t leave Eric breathing."