002

~~ ARIA ~~

“You dare show your face here after what you did?” Alec thundered, making Thorne scoff.

I looked at Thorne, expecting him to say something related to it, so I could finally try to understand what had made their friendship end.

“Fuck you, Alec. I don’t care what you think, and I believe you know why I am here. So, where is it?” Thorne barked.

The tension in the air spiked.

I still didn't understand what happened that made Alec and Thorne's firm friendship go down the drain, and even made them wage war against each other.

“Where is what?” I asked with creased brows.

“Stay out of this Aria,” Alec angrily snapped at me, making me huff in annoyance.

Mrs Hale held my hand and drew me closer to herself, then she told me something that made me frown.

“He has been coming here for a few weeks enraged and asking Alec to give him what he stole from him,” She whispered to me, making my frown deepen.

“And what did Alec steal from him?” I whispered back.

“He refused to tell me. But it’s not money. I think it’s something very valuable to Thorne and his pack. Aria, I’m scared this might aggravate the war,” Mrs Hale whispered back.

My pulse spiked because now that I was back to the pack, I didn’t want to leave in an environment where anyone could die at any time.

So I turned to Alec, “Alec what did you take from Thorne?” I demanded to know.

Alec glared at me probably about to yell at me for butting into their conversation again, but then he did something that made my brows furrow.

He smirked and then looked at Thorne who looked like he would pounce on Alec at any second.

“Why don’t you ask Thorne to tell you what he claims I stole from him?” Alec told him, but his eyes were locked on Thorne.

Thorne’s eyes fell on me again, softening a bit. I hated the way my heart still skipped whenever I looked at him.

“Thorne, what did Alec steal from you?” I asked him.

Thorne opened his mouth to speak but hesitated. That was when I knew there was more to this than meets the eye.

Because tell me why Thorne was accusing Alec of stealing, but couldn’t say what it was that Alec took from him?

“He… Your brother knows what from me, and I want it back, else, he won’t like what I’ll do,” Thorne answered.

“This thing Alec took from you, is that why you are at war with him and our pack?” I asked Thorne.

“No it isn’t. And for the record, I have never attacked your pack Aria. All I have done is defend my pack from your brother's attacks,” Thorne said with the most sincere look I had ever seen.

Trying to piece everything together, and figure out what Alec took from Thorne, and what caused the war between our packs, made me a bit dizzy.

“You claim I stole something from you and you can’t say what it is?” Alec chuckled coldly.

Thorne’s palms balled into a fist and his jaw locked.

Anyone could tell he was restraining himself from doing something rash.

“You’re doing this on purpose because you know I can't say what it is. But I promise you Alec Stone, you will come to me, and beg me on your knees to collect it back from you,” Thorne said with a deadly look on his face.

Before Alec or I could say anything, he turned around and stormed away.

I sighed deeply and looked at Alec with narrowed eyes, but he ignored me and walked into the house.

This was definitely an unexpected welcome scene, but I was more worried about Alec’s safety.

I wanted to chase after Alec but my conversation with him could wait.

There was something I had been looking forward to doing.

“Mrs Hale, please can you take me to where my mom was buried?” I asked her.

She looked at me with sadness in her eyes as she nodded.

️️️

My mom was buried beside my Dad just like I thought.

My heart clenched painfully in my chest as I looked at her grave stone.

If I knew that my mom would die of heart failure, I would have been by her side all night that day.

There was something I never wanted to remember, because it was on that day my mom died, and the same day Alec shipped me off to the human world.

It was on that fateful day at the banquet five years ago. I left the banquet hall to receive the cool breeze outside.

Thorne was outside at that moment too.

One thing led to another and just when he was leaning in to kiss me, that was when Alec dashed out of the banquet hall.

The thing is, on that day I didn't leave the banquet hall because I really wanted a cool breeze.

I went outside because I saw Thorne leave too. At that time, my whole life was about Thorne.

I wanted so much for him to see me as a woman.

If I weren't too busy with my obsession for him, I would have stayed by her side all night, and at least gotten to say goodbye to her.

“I’m back mom. I know you won't like the war going on between Thorne and Alec. That is why I'm going to try my best to stop it,” I smiled, fighting back tears as I dropped the flowers on her grave.

I walked to my Dad’s grave and dropped the second batch of flowers there.

“I’ve always wanted to know who killed you Dad and now that I'm a mature woman, I promise. I will avenge your death,” I said to my Dad’s grave, hoping my Dad would hear me.

These were the things Alec should have prioritized, not his fight with Thorne.

Then turned to Mrs Hale, “We can go now.”

She nodded as we left the cemetery. On our way back home, Mrs Hale briefed me about everything going on.

However, even Mrs Hale didn't know the real reason why Thorne and Alec were fighting.

Or did she know and didn't want to tell me?