Claimed by the Mad Lycan King

”What did you do to me?” Jeremy was holding his head. He still had that splitting headache, and the way things had happened to him earlier, not to mention the way they had acted, felt weird and creepy.

”What did we do?” Jude and Oliver looked confused, and they looked at each other.

”You suddenly fell on the bed and said that you had a headache. We came over to check on you,” Jude said with an innocent expression.

”No, I didn’t.” Jeremy massaged his temple, but he couldn’t say that for sure either, because he didn’t really remember what actually happened.

”Bro, don’t make it sound even weirder,” Jude said. He punched his arm lightly. ”Why do you think we surrounded you if it wasn’t because you were complaining about your headache?”

Chloe watched the conversation between them, which sounded weird, because a shifter was rarely sick, and unless they were under a lot of stress, a headache was not something they would suffer on a daily basis.

”What happened here?” Zephyr came over with Jazz. He looked at Jude, but the young man simply reiterated what happened, and Zephyr didn’t find anything weird about him.

[They are not under influence,] Zephyr said to Zade through the mindlink. [They look normal. I know when someone is under the influence of the devil, and these two are absolutely not.]

Currently, Jeremy, Jude, and Oliver were bickering about what exactly happened, but none of them backed down from their version. Jeremy couldn’t prove himself right because it was two against one, and no one else was inside the room aside from the three of them.

This behavior prompted Zephyr to say that they were not under the influence. He had seen more than a handful of people who were under the influence of the devil, and they were like puppets. They couldn’t think on their own, and the only thing in their mind was the goal they had to achieve.

However, Jude and Oliver were having a full-blown argument with Jeremy. They had their own thoughts. They could think properly.

[Are you sure?] Zade asked again through the mindlink. He sounded a little agitated because he was pretty sure something was wrong with either one of them or both of them.

[Yes. I am sure. So, how do you want me to proceed?] Zephyr then told Zade what had happened just now, about the silly argument between the three of them.

[Invite them for dinner,] Zade said.

***

”Can you leave us alone for a while?” Zade asked Leia and Altair to leave the room. ”I also invited Jeremy’s friend to have dinner with us; can you see into it?”

”Sure.” Leia liked to host meals together, but before she left, she threw a concerned look at Seara, who was still trembling in Zade’s arms. She was in so much distress, but with Zade there, she had significantly calmed down.

On the other hand, Altair followed Leia out of the room. Jazz had mind-linked him too about what happened in Jeremy’s bedroom, and he also said there was no indication that they were under the influence.

So, was Zade wrong with his instinct about Seara?

Even when it was only the two of them in the room, Zade didn’t immediately bombard his mate with questions; he kept holding her until she calmed down enough to have a conversation with him.

”Is this the same feeling that you felt when you saw the man in Leia’s bedroom?” Zade made it easier for her because he knew Seara was having difficulty expressing her feelings.

”Yes.” Seara nodded; she pressed her face against his chest.

”Do you still feel it?” He felt Seara nod again, and she whimpered lightly.

”This feeling is so strong.” Seara then lifted her head and looked at Zade. ”Zade, I am not lying. I don’t seek attention. I don’t lie.”

”I know.” Zade kissed her forehead. ”But can you do something for me? It may be a little bit uncomfortable for you, but I need to confirm something.”

”What is it?” Seara recoiled when she heard it might be uncomfortable for her, because Zade had never put her in any uncomfortable situation intentionally. But then she wouldn’t say ’no’ to him, whatever his request was.

”I want you to walk with me for a while.” Zade helped her to stand up, and they walked away from Ace’s house to the garden.

”Can you feel that dreadful feeling?”

Seara nodded. She didn’t understand why Zade took her to the garden; this was the inner garden among the three main buildings, which were the buildings for the king, the royal beta, and the royal gamma.

Between each two buildings, there was a watchtower; thus, in total, there were three watchtowers that Seara could see from here, and one was still under renovation after the fire incident.

”Can you tell me where the dreadful feeling you feel comes from?” Zade held her hand to make sure she knew he was there.

”From Ace’s house.” She felt it strongly from Ace’s house, but Zade wanted her to try it more.

”Aside from Ace’s house, can you feel it from somewhere else?” Zade covered Seara’s eyes with his palm, closing them to help her concentrate. ”Try, Seara. Do you feel it from anywhere else?”

They were right in the middle of the garden, next to a water fountain of a woman, three children, and three young wolves.

”There.” Seara pointed to her left side; her eyes were still closed. ”It is not as strong...” She hadn’t realized it before because the feeling was so faint. She was not even sure whether she had really felt it.

Zade put down his hand, which had been covering Seara’s eyes, and followed the building his mate had pointed out.

And it was no surprise to him that she had pointed to the watchtower where they had held the devil before he managed to escape.

”What’s wrong?” Seara asked in confusion.