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“No,” he said while pushing gently against Ronan’s chest. The latter cleared his throat and returned to his chair obediently. He looked like a wolf pup that just got rejected for a treat. Lucien could almost see a pair of wolf ears on his head, slumped forward in disappointment.

The man on the bed reached out and hesitantly touched Ronan’s cheek. “Not now,” he added in a low voice. It was only the two words, but for Ronan it sounded like the beautiful toll of wedding bells.

Lucien rarely said yes and he did not make fake promises.

A speck of hope was still a speck of hope. Ronan grabbed Lucien’s wrist and planted a chaste kiss on its inside.

“Alright.”

There were a lot of underhanded methods to drive a company to ruin. The Silverback Corporation and the Youngshaper Corporation for example were at it for decades : passive-aggressively launching attacks through smaller companies, ruining future and ongoing business deals, down to sabotaging each other’s shipment and complicating bureaucratic procedures via smaller companies.

Their hands were dirty with mud, but both parties still had to maintain their appearance in social circles. Greeting each other, complimenting each other with hidden barbs and dripping poison.

Then again the packs were still united in a werewolf community. Packs rarely ruined each other and sent them down the ravine of oblivion. Unless of course both packs openly engaged in a war.

.....

The Silverback Corporation and Clearwater Finance were no rivals in business.

The former was a bigger one, having various core businesses ranging from manufacturing to entertainment.

The latter was an investment company that invested in promising start-ups or projects of existing companies and drew their profit after the companies were established or the projects concluded.

And yet Dane Silverback went out of his way to gain control over Clearwater Finance. His goal was clear; he was looking to destroy the Silent Walkers Pack. Quite a drastic move just to force Gordon Clearwater to the corner.

The rest of the story was easy to guess.

At the brink of ruin, Gordon Clearwater was desperate for any way out.

Dane Silverback offered him a large sum of money. Money from his own pocket directly to Gordon’s bank account with just one very humble request. For Lucien Clearwater to please end his ill-fated romance with his son, the heir to the Alpha position of the Infinite Eclipse Pack.

What option did Gordon Clearwater have?

Lucien was not the type to choose his own happiness over his parents’ or his whole pack’s. Ronan hated him for that, but it was inherent to Lucien’s character.

One week passed by without any other occurrences but feverish bouts that came and went as Lucien struggled to keep his wolf at bay.

After the first visit when Lucien nearly ripped him apart, Kinnon decided to give him some space and took care to recover from his own injuries.

Alice Clearwater made a point to visit with Annalynne every day to accompany her son during the day. Unwilling to disturb the peaceful family time, Ronan only showed up at night. Sometimes he came close to midnight and Lucien was already asleep, so he only held the latter’s hand and stayed with him until the wee hours. Before morning sun broke through the horizon, the Alpha already left. Only his scent lingered inside the ward to tell Lucien that Ronan was there.

It was a peaceful time, but Lucien knew that it was calm before the storm. There was still the issue between the Silent Walkers Pack and the Night Prowler Pack. And about him attacking Kinnon. This time it was he himself who injured Kinnon, not some rogue werewolves whose corpses disappeared mysteriously.

Sooner or later, the Werewolf Council would come knocking.

The uncertainty of the situation was the source of Lucien’s restlessness. He feared the implications for his family and his pack. And for Landon.

When he was awake, he racked his brain for solutions. When he was asleep, he was plagued by nightmares about the worst outcomes of the situation.

One day, Alice Clearwater could not take it anymore and forced Lucien to go and take a walk with her.

“You need to move around to clear those dark clouds above your head,” she declared.

Lucien did not share the same opinion, but he was too lazy to argue with his mother. He thus let himself be dragged out of his ward and out of the hospital.

The St. Clarence Hospital was run by a werewolf family who did not stay with any pack but was considered part of the werewolf community. It was necessary to ensure fair treatment for every werewolf who needed one.

In the backyard was a huge garden where patients were encouraged to visit at least twice daily to get some sunshine and exercise, including those in wheelchairs.

Alice dumped Lucien in the garden and forbade him from going back to his room until at least thirty minutes had passed.

Lucien ghosted around mindlessly, stopping only to admire the marble statues that the hospital placed at strategic spots for aesthetic purposes. The chubby cherubs with their golden trumpets at four corners of the garden, and a benevolent angel at the center of the fountain. She was looking down at the mortal subjects with compassionate eyes, that were painted so vividly to resemble human eyes.

This was not the usual practice. The cherubs’ eyes were not painted. Why were the eyes of the angel statue painted?

Gripping the fountain railing to maintain his balance, Lucien’s upper body leaned forward to take a closer look at the statue.

Behind him, a gentle female voice spoke up.

“Careful, Lucien. You will fall into the fountain if you do not pay attention.”