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Heart pounding, pulse racing, breath stopping, it could be fear, to could be confusion or extreme happiness. Our hearts are like a drum when we experience something we didn't expect. It creates a raucous in our chests, expressing the things that we feel inside."

                                                                   -MC
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Marquése's eyes flew open and like second nature, his first reaction is to reach for his mate. His hands reach over to the space in the bed beside him but to his disappointment it's empty and cold which brings a sense of dread to him.

Marquése raises up slightly, looking down at Kiara's bed, the bed she should've been in beside him. He turns his head, looking out the window at the bright, new, happy morning that was just a little out of arms reach.

He sighed again with disappointment.

He had to get her back today. He would go crazy if he was to sit in the room that smelled so much of his mate, just waiting for something to happen. He wasn't that person.

He was contemplating what to do when he remembered what Hailey said to him yesterday. The situation wasn't ideal but he had to wait for them to come.

Morning soon turned to afternoon and still they didn't show up.

Where were they?

Marquése couldn't risk anyone coming  into the room so he took a chair, jamming it under the lock just as a little precaution.

He walks to the window, peeping outside, seeing if he could maybe catch a glimpse of Khal and Hailey when suddenly the knob of the door started rattling dangerously.

"What is wrong with this door."

A female voice spoke lightly and Marquése quickly straightened out the sheets on the bed, then rushing to hide himself in the closet.

The door was forced open and in stepped someone he thought he would never have to see again anytime soon. The queen herself stepped in and the very image of her standing in the same room as him knocked the breath out of his lungs.

This couldn't be happening

Ciara walked further into her daughter's room slowly taking in the image with slightly swollen eyes.

She had been crying all night at what King Aldermen had done.

She walked in, sitting down on Kiara's bed and as soon as her body touched the sheets an unknown warmth met her skin.

She turned her eyes to the sheets, her fingers caressing them lightly,

"That's strange."

She was talking to herself, seemingly wondering if someone had slept there and
Marquése kept as still as he possibly could. He went so far as to holding his breath until she spoke up again.

"I'm so sorry that I couldn't be strong enough for you my sweet baby girl."

That statement was all it took for realization to it hit him.

Khal and Hailey was nowhere to be found and the queen was the only one who could possibly help them get Kiara back.

So with that one thought on his mind,
Marquése took a deep breath and with the last of his will power, pushed onto the closet door to open it and walked out.

"Hello Queen Ciara or should I say Luna?"

His voice was cold and chilling and the queen sat still, so shocked that she couldn't even move.

"Who are you? What are you doing in here!"

"Don't scream ok, i just want to talk to you."

"Do you expect me to believe that! Gu-"

Before she could finish her statement, Marquése runs up to her clamping his hand over her mouth to silence her screams. His wolf crept forward and his eyes changed colors to a less inviting one and her eyes turned to saucers.

"Don't scream. As I'm sure you're aware now, I can hurt you if I wanted to but I'm not. I just want to talk to you.
Are you gonna scream if I move my hand?"

Ciara shook her head, no, slowly and he moved his fingers a little testing her. He stood between her and the door in case she tried to make a run for it.

"Actually I'm kind of disappointed really, you don't remember me?"

It was like realization dawned on her in that moment and he could see it in her eyes so he moved his hand a little more so that she could speak.

"This can't be real, you can't be-"

"Oh but I am."

She was sitting still, staring wide-eyed at him and he took that as his moment to calm her before she did something he couldn't survive.

"I love your daughter."

That one statement quieted her in matter of seconds again and her eyes got wider if it were possible.

"What did you just say?"

"I said I love your daughter."

"No! You can't have her. Do as you wish with me but she's innocent in all this, she didn't do anything to you-"

"I know, and it's not like that. As much as I hate you Ciara I would never hurt Kiara. She's my mate and she loves me too."

"What?"

"It's the truth."

"You were, you're the person that she was talking about? You're her mate?"

"I am."

"Oh goddess."

The Queen's eyes glossed with tears and she held her chest lightly.

She couldn't believe that this was happening

"After all that we did to you, the Moon Goddess still paired you two together. Maybe it was because of that why she did.
Oh my, I can't believe this."

"Neither could I in the beginning but I guess that karma is a bítch."

"Marquése I'm so sorry-"

"Save it. I don't want to hear your apologies, they can't bring them back-"

His voice cracked and his anger brewed but he took a deep breath trying to calm himself so he wouldn't kill the mother of the woman he loved. He couldn't do that, no matter how much he hated her.

"I just want your help to get her back. Can you at least do that?"

"Of course. Wait, does Khal know that you're here? That's her best friend-"

"Yes he does. I'm waiting on them."

"I'm sorry but you should know that you won't be seeing them, well not in here. They don't have access to the main pack house anymore."

Marquése scoffed shaking his head,

"I should've known it. That bastard!"

Marquése couldn't take it anymore, he felt like everything in the world was against him being with his mate.

Ciara sat still watching his reaction and her heart warmed a little besides the situation. He really did love her daughter; that thought pleased her but she still didn't know how to tell him the secret that she had been carrying with her for over a decade now.

"You have to go and get her Marquése. I don't know how you guys are going to do it but you have to. She shouldn't be in there and you have an advantage because no one would smell you coming."

"You're right. I have to."

She told him where to go and how to get out the pack house safely and to the dungeons. Marquése nodded taking all the directions to get to his love.

"I know it's not a fix, but I really am sorry Marquése."

With that last statement, Marquése picks up the small vial, using the last of the oil that he had on his body. He then turned around, pulling the door open to look out into the hall to see that it was clear.

He took one last deep breath before stepping out the door and into his fate.

From this point forward he had to act like he was just anyone else in the village in order to get through safely.
Plus he had to somehow find his way back to Khal and Hailey.

                                         ***

Marquése was walking along one of the halls, trying to follow the queen's directions and navigate his way out. He got to a hall that looked familiar when suddenly someone shouted behind him.

"Hey! Stop, who are you?"

"Marquése turned around slowly trying to not let his face give him away,

"Uh I'm sorry, I'm kind of new working in here. I just got lost."

The guard stepped up to him and as soon as he was close enough he realized that he couldn't smell the man.

Marquése saw it in his eyes before he could react physically and he launched up, grabbing the guard around his neck and into a choke hold.
The man struggled against Marquése's body, tapping at his strong arms in a sign of surrender.

Marquése knew that he couldn't let the man go in a conscious state, risking him alerting everyone else in the pack. So he squeezed at his neck, cutting off his air supply until the guard passed out.

Marquése pulled the man's body into a corner,  out of sight, before squatting down to check for a pulse. The rhythm beat against his fingers lightly and he sighed in relief, getting up to look around if anyone saw him.

As soon as the coast was clear again, he took off, walking speedily towards the pack house exit.

As soon as he gets to the exit, he exhales in relief, the wind gently blowing past his face as if to wash his worries away.

He sighs

                                          ***

"Hi, excuse me have you seen Khal?"

"Uh no sorry."

Marquése has been walking aimlessly for about five minutes before he got lost, having absolutely no idea where to go. He needed to find Khal and he couldn't find his way back to the house so he decided to start asking people for him. So far he had no luck whatsoever but that didn't mean he was going to give up.

"Excuse me, have you seen Khal?"

Another of the pack's young women stared up at him with lust-stricken eyes and he tries to smile politely.

He had only been asking women, trying to use his good looks as a distraction so maybe they wouldn't realize they couldn't smell him.

"Um yes, I think I saw him go up to the healer's house. Are you guys friends?"

The petite woman smiled up at him and he laughed lightly.

Wasn't that the understatement of the year?

"Yes we are, would you mind showing me to where the healer lives? Pretty please?"

He gave the million dollar smile and he could just imagine seeing Greyson making a disgusted face in his head at his current behavior.

"Sure I'd love to."

The woman smiled up at him again before  walking off, leading him into the direction of the healer's house.

They got to what seemed like the back of the territory and there he saw a small wooden house.

"That's her house right there."

"Thank you so much for your help. I hope I see you again soon."

"You're welcome."

The smile never left her face as he walked off and that could possibly be the most annoying thing he had seen but he didn't pay it any mind. At least she was of help to him.

Marquése walked up to the healers house, knocking on the frail door before a small voice welcomed him in.

Something in his heart shifted and his feet carried him through those doors.
He walked in the house with purpose and as soon as his eyes made contact with hers, his heart started pounding loudly.

Marquése grabbed onto his chest, clutching at where his heart would be tightly,

"Well if I didn't know any better, I'd think that I was dead."