Claudius' perspective
After exchanging pleansantries with the board members briefly, I excused myself and left the meeting hall.
Caspian was waiting for me in the coffee shop down the RGC building.
"Here." He pushed an envelope towards me as I took my seat. "It was delivered to the Howling Island anonymously. Addressed to you."
My hand halted in the air when I was about to beckon to the waiter. Subconsciously, I sensed something unusual about this letter.
“It's Perseus.” I handed the envelope back to Caspian after tearing it open and peeping at the content in it through my fingers.
"What?!" Caspian stopped slurping his espresso while taking the envelope over.
“It's a picture of the same baby that we got last week.” I added between gritted teeth.
Clenching my fists, I took a deep breath to tone down all those emotions swirling throughout my system.
"You sure? There's nothing special about this picture." Caspian commented after examining the picture carefully.
"No." I shook my head in frustration. "I just got this feeling that my pup's still alive."
"Look, I understand you miss Perseus. But just because this baby has blonde hair and blue eyes doesn't mean he's Perseus.” Caspian looked into my eyes with great patience. "You were the one who found Perseus' lifeless body. You said it yourself that it was him, and his death—"
“What if I was wrong?" I interrupted him abruptly, unwilling to give up on any slightest possibility that my pup was still alive. "Eero said she couldn't feel anything when she saw that body. What if she's right? What if we got fooled to believe that our pup was dead, when he's not?!”
"Are you gonna tell Eero about this then? Or show her these pictures?" Caspian moistened his lips before asking.
"No." I shook my head, looking into distance. "I'm not telling her about this for now. Not until I got a solid evidence. I think we'll have to dig deeper.”
“But if you tell her, chances are it'll become way much easier for us to trace down the sender of this letter and find out if he or she has this baby.” Caspian advised honestly.
But it was just not a good timing to involve her in all these now.
“Eero has a battle of her own. It won't be easy for her to please those picky board members. She has to focus on her responsibility as Codrus heir.” My tongue rolled back in my mouth.
“But the baby is no less important than the throne.” Caspian raised his voice, arguing back.
“Let's just use some extra caution this time. She'd grieve for the pup all over again if I happen to be wrong about the baby again this time? As you said.”
"If only you were this considerate before." Caspian rolled his eyes at me. "Does Eero even know you'd rejected Adeline?”
“Not yet." I dipped my eyes back on the envelope. "I hadn't got to have a proper conversation with her ever since I saw her strutting down the royal isle in the throne hall. She was mad at me."
“She was?” Caspian pretended to be shocked, gloating.
“I know I'd been a jerk to her when we thought we lost Perseus—”
"More than that. You shouldn't have slept around with Adeline when you once dearly promised to Eero that you'd reject your fated mate once you found her—”
My jaw clenched at Caspian's constant reminder of all the terrible things I had done to Eero.
Just as I was to order him to stop, this brute came to an unexpected halt, his eyes fixating on something outside.
The scene leaping into my eyes exasperated my wolf and me as I followed Caspian's gaze onto the street.
It was Eero with a hewolf! They were ambling way closer to each other, chuckling!!!
I lugged my chair backward and levered myself, all set to separate them as Caspian took hold of me.
“What are you doing?” Caspian warned me in a low voice.
“Seriously?! You sure this question is for me instead of for Eero?!!" My wolf roared at him. "She's going on a date when she's mated to me!”
“You fucked Adeline when you're mated to her, too." Caspian only clung onto me tighter as I tried to flounder from his hold.
"It was my wolf!!! You know it was my wolf taking over me..." I tailed off while trying to justify my unfaithful deeds so as to feel less guilty.
"Cool down, man." Caspian pushed me back into my seat. "No one knew Eero's mated to you. I don't think the Alpha King and his beta will like that.”
An anguished smile stretched on my face as I recalled how she lied that she didn't have a second chance mate in the dining hall earlier this morning.
"Not many shifters like her here. You'll toss her into an even more difficult situation if you dash out and fight with that hewolf now.”
My wolf and I gave up on this fight reluctantly as Caspian's words sank into me.
“You know what, Caspian? It has never occurred to me that I, the ruthless Claudius, would have to keep my bond with my mate a secret. It's just so ironic...” I chuckled bitterly.
Unable to do anything about what was going on here now, I decided to go back to the Howling Island, setting about tracking down the source of the picture about Perseus.