THE ISLAND WOLF - EPISODE 65

“What? No! Damn, I hate her!” Avril retorted and her hand unconsciously moved up to her hair. She winced in pain from her back and dropped her hand immediately.
“Oh sorry. Be more careful. That shit is painful,” Verona sympathized.

“Uhm, Verona. Can I find somewhere to sit? I’m tired of standing,” Avril said.
“You’re taking permission from me? Don’t be that soft, please. There’s a bench under that tree. Wanna sit there?” she pointed at a tree close to her building and Avril nodded. They walked there silently, except for Verona’s frequent bubble bursting.

Avril heaved a deep sigh as she sat down. Something was wrong with her and she didn’t know what. She was suddenly feeling nervous.
“I need to see my friends. Gia, how can I see them today?” she asked Gia who was behind her.
“Ehmm.. when today? I don’t think they’re also strong enough to meet up right now. You’ll have to wait until, at least tomorrow morning,” Gia answered.
“Yeah, wait until tomorrow. I’ll keep you company if you need one. Are you hungry? We can go have brunch if you’re,” Verona stated while scrolling endlessly through whatever she was looking at on her phone.

“Gia and Aida, can you go home and get brunch ready for us? Verona will take me further until it’s ready and we’ll be back.”
“Okay. Okay, ma’am,” Aida said and she left with Gia without any arguments.

“Something tells me you just sent them away,” Verona teased with a sideways smirk.
“Your something is right. I just sent them away,” Avril chuckled.
“I don’t even like maidens. Got rid of mine during my first week. I go lone.”
Avril chuckled softly and looked ahead of her. Her heart was beating fast. Why was she nervous?
“Can you… Can you please accompany me towards the prince’s castle?” she spilled out and Verona lifted an eyebrow at her, like she was asking why.
“I… I find him attractive. Just wanna peep,” Avril added and faked a smile.
“I do that too. Dude is so friggin’ hot. But we have to be careful. Come with me,” Verona took her hand gently and they walked hurriedly yet stealthily between the buildings, until they reached his castle. Avril’s heartbeat doubled as they stared at the building.
“He’s usually back at his garden by this time. It has a small stone fence that we can actually see over, so let’s go,” Verona whispered really low. Avril wondered how her voice could be so low, yet smooth and hearable. It was definitely a wolf thing.
They walked quietly, looking here and there until they reached the back of the castle. Avril could see the fence already, and the trees swishing here and there with the wind. She bit her lower lip and realized they were taking a big risk. What if they were caught?

“Come on,” Verona nudged Avril gently. They bent low and crawled behind the fence until they reached the middle of it. It was obvious Verona was used to doing this with how swift she was. They gently raised their heads and peeped over the fence. There he was, sitting under a tree by a table. His hair was not in his signature ponytail, but was freely flying about with the wind. He wore a white singlet, and his wolf head tattoo was visible on his shoulder. He looked hot just sitting down there and reading a book. Avril’s breath almost seized as she stared at him. That was a man that was once her playmate and even servant. What wouldn’t she do to have him cook for her again?

Suddenly, his thick eyebrows creased into a furrow and he stopped reading. He heaved a sigh and bit his lower lip. Then he looked up at their direction. Verona was quick to pull down Avril’s head along with hers. Five seconds later and Verona tried to peep again but, Prince Dakar was still peering at their direction. She immediately pulled down again. That was weird, he never stared that long when he sensed anyone. What Verona didn’t know was that he knew Avril’s scent more than anything else, and he knew she was there.

He scratched his left eyebrow at Avril’s stubbornness. Why couldn’t she just sit down and let him be? Well, she was always stubborn.

“Thinking about her?” came that sly voice he dreaded so much.
“No,” he replied with his mind.
“Liar,” Dojo teased. Dakar glanced at his arm with the burnt lines. He regretted ever pulling that stupid stunt he pulled bact at the island. He had a bit of ocean water in a jar, and had always planned to use it on himself to see if it would not burn him. That was supposed to be when the curse was broken. So, when he turned human again, he thought the curse was fully broken. He wanted to make sure and that was why he poured the water on his palm. It burned him mercilessly, and began to move like tiny snakes up his arm. Burning the flesh it came in contact with, and causing him pain. Dojo had been able to take over his mind and body at that instant, and he had almost killed Avril. He regretted that day.

Dakar looked ahead again and sensed that they were gone. He rubbed his jaw gently with his thumb and breathed out with his mouth. He had to do something about Avril. He couldn’t stand the torture he received from Dojo, and couldn’t stand not talking with her. He loved her. He sincerely loved her.

At that last thought, his hand glowed red and he groaned in pain.
“Arghh,” he tried to surpress the sound he made. He bent over and held that arm, as it hurt like it was being roasted in a bread furnace.
“Don’t think about her!” Dojo gritted and Dakar ran his good arm through his long hair. Dojo could not really hear his thoughts as long as it did not involve her, so he needed to think something out.

“How to stop him from inflicting pain on me,” he mumbled. Suddenly, an idea flicked into his mind. He heaved a deep sigh as he glanced over his arm again. It was time to go on another trip out of the pack again.