25 Uncertainty

ETHAN'S P.O.V.

"What?! What do you mean all the evidence is gone?!" Veronica's voice had gone from normal to a screeching banshee. The entire station was hearing her tantrum and seeing the extent of her anger. The only one brave enough to speak on the situation. It's no surprise to everyone, but this might be the worse I've seen her. I understand her frustration. A difficult case that's been worked on has been put on hold. Or perhaps it's going to be closed. It's hard to say with the head captain informing all of us to not speak a word of the case to the public. At first, everyone had something to say, but once he mentioned the Alpha's order, anyone who tried to open their mouth would have been an idiot. For a good 10 seconds, that lasted, until Veronica decided otherwise.

"Captain you can't just let that girl go! She committed a crime and she has to be punished! You let that monster back into society?!"

The captain let out a frustrated sigh as the woman bickered on. I don't know what the alpha said to him, but whatever the case, it looked like it took some more years off his life. I knew from the moment he entered the room during the interrogation and put an end to it, that he was the real deal. I can still feel the goosebumps over me and the hairs on my arms sand straight. That's the effect an alpha has over people. They truly are powerful beings.

Head captain doesn't say a word; his eyes remain closed as he stands in the middle of the room. Perhaps contemplating on what to say to the enraged detective. Everyone knows that Veronica takes her job seriously, she's been praised for the good work she's done in previous cases against criminals. However, working with her, I always felt that although she fights for justice, she's not 100% there for good. It's just my personal opinion towards her. Although a job like this should be taken seriously, she takes it a bit too far. Head captain realized that, and so, I was made her partner. Well, a partner in training. It's my job to keep her in line. I figured it would do me some good to get practice in and all the knowledge professionally by taking on the request. If only I had known that the challenge wouldn't be the job itself, but Veronica.

I don't have an answer for it yet, but there's something about Veronica. Something bad. "Captain! Hello?! Why are you saying anything?!"

Opening his eyes, he looked Veronica in the face, "Detective. You need to calm down."

That comment alone seemed to set her off even more and I hated the outcome of that, "You're telling me that now we just let criminals walk out the door and don't pay for their crimes?! Is that how this works?! You should not have let that boy-"

"THAT BOY IS THE ALPHA!" Eyes widened and mouths closed shut immediately. I had never seen the head captain's face turn so red from anger. Veronica quickly shut her mouth from the shock. "In case you need a history lesson detective, alphas in this pack are people you respect no matter how much you disagree with them! Not only is he the alpha, but he's also of the royal bloodline. He could take away everything from us if he wanted! So if you truly want to keep opening that stubborn mouth of yours, you'll be the only one here dumb enough to throw yourself into the fire!"

Speaking of faces that had never been seen before, I almost spoke out of turn from how Veronica was so shocked that for a moment, I thought her eyes were going to pop out from the socket. "Royal bloodline? What do you mean?"

"Are you that full of yourself?! The Royal Knight family! They've run this pack for centuries! Anyone out of their God damn mind would be stupid enough to go against them." A deep growl found its way from the captain as he forced himself to calm down. "Let me make this clear Detective Stabler. Since you're the only one here that doesn't know of the pack's history I'll be lenient towards you this once since you've done good work in the past. For the safety of everyone and more importantly yourself, you best quell your anger and let it go…" His eyes turned a dark color showing his inner wolf and a few people in the room even held their breath. I looked to see Veronica shaking a bit. Another sight to see that caught me off guard.

I haven't been working here that long. Strangely enough, I knew she was quite the hothead, but she's nothing more than a puppy with all bark. What I expected of course. What I didn't expect was finding out then and there that she didn't belong in this pack. She didn't grow up here. Otherwise, she wouldn't have caused such a ruckus when everyone knew to keep their heads low and mouths shut. Two facts flow through my mind. She didn't know Alpha Lia, and she didn't know the royal family.

Captain continued with his lecture, "And one more thing. If after this, it turns out that anyone is brave enough to pull a stunt. You will be stripped of your badge, title, and you can get the hell out of my station. I would hate for anyone to end up on the streets for losing their job." His eyes focused deeply on Veronica and she quickly looked distraught for a second. She looked down and clenched her fists tightly before storming out of the station. Once she was out of the room, the captain fixed his tie that became loose and only then had he completely calmed down. "Case is closed. Get back to work." Without another second to spare, he turned on his heels and exited the room leaving the rest of us stunned. Whispers and looks were passed around before people returned to their positions.

What a hell of a day at the job.

~

ROSALIA'S P.O.V.

Warmth. A comforting feeling that encases me completely. This feels good. A whole lot better than how I felt previously. Slowly opening my eyes, I look to see that I'm in a different surrounding from before. The room is much more different compared to mine. For starters, it's 3x the size of my room and it's decorated beautifully. Taking a look around, I'm amazed to see how amazing it looks. Am I more impressed by how spacious it is or how beautiful it's decorated? Maybe both. I get off the bed and start to walk around. I notice a giant screen TV on the wall that can be seen from the bed as well as a dining table to the left. I can easily see that as a perk to eating in your room.

As spectacular as this all is, who's room is this? Why am I here? I think back to the last memory I had. I was with Edward and we were talking. Right. Edward found out what I did, and so did Liam. They brought me here. Wherever this place is. Just because it looks nice doesn't mean it's safe to stay. I notice in the corner of my eye a piece of paper on the table. It's labeled with my name on it. I don't want to open it, but out of curiosity, I end up doing so. It's from Edward!

Let's see here, it reads. " Please don't be alarmed when you wake up. Liam and I have brought you somewhere where you'll be safe. You can stay here until we figure things out. I don't want you to worry. Your safe, Rosalia." After reading the note, oddly enough I found peace with the note. My eyes began to water. Even after all I said to him in the car, he still wants to help me. Even more so, he assures my safety. Even though I don't deserve it. Why? I gently fold the paper backward and hold it close to me. The day I met Edward, he was always open to me. I don't know why he shows such kindness towards me when I haven't proved any worth to him, but I appreciate it more than he'll ever know.

I tuck the note in my pocket and look to see another piece of paper on the table. Did Edward write another note? I carefully pick up the note and flip it over to read the words written in bold.

Don't leave this room.

What? Who said this? There's no name, but my mind creates a vivid image of who. How could I be safe here? How could I even think that just because Edward guaranteed my safety, that would save me from Liam? The moment I saw his face when he entered the room at the station, I think I blacked out from reality. I can't remember all that I did. I panicked. The last thing I remember seeing is the grim expression on his face. He was shocked just like anyone would be in that situation but his expression was different and held more meaning than the average person.

"Dammit…" I crushed the paper in my hands feeling the paper become small and tight. Why did you look at me like that Liam? Why would you do that? Someone like you doesn't get the right. You've already done that enough previously.

"This place…" I look around the elegant room that moments ago I found fascinating. Now, this room fears me for one reason only. It's a facade. A beautiful paradise that is keeping me from reality. This is my new prison cell. How could I have been so blind and dumb enough to think it was over? Just because I got away from the police, doesn't mean anyone is on my side. I don't even know if I can trust Edward anymore. Tears begin to swell in my eyes as that thought pains me deeply. Edward has been nothing but kind since I met him. He comforted me again when I didn't know what to do, and now, I'm losing my judgment.

I'm in the lion's mouth. I can't stay here. I don't want to be here. Quickly rushing to the door, I pull the knob but it doesn't work. I twist to the left and the right and still, it won't budge. My heart begins to beat so fast that I can hear it echo throughout the room. No. Not again. I can't take it. Slowly backing away from the door, I scope the room once more. How long have I been here? Has it been minutes? Hours? I look down to see I'm still wearing the same clothes. Staying here is not an option. Not when I don't know what to expect, but I can't leave when I'm locked inside.

My eyes scan over until I spot the window. Going to the window, my eyes almost fall out from the view. On the outside, I see everything from an enormous height. The ground seems so far from up here. Well, I'm not in someone's fancy mansion. Even more reason to leave. I can't get caught off guard like last time. But there's no way I can escape from here. What do I fear most? This height or the unknown? Liam heard what I said back at the station. Even if I said that in the heat of the moment, I know how this will end. Liam always stuck by Brittany's side. That's the sad truth. Trembling hands pull the lock that keeps it shut and the windows open. A gust of wind enters and flows into the room. This is the only freedom I'm able to obtain. I crawl out and crouch onto the edge. My focus on the sight below. It's a long fall from here.

I don't even realize my vision is getting blurry until it happens. Closing my eyes quickly, I shake my head. If I psych myself out, I won't be able to do this successfully. I can't be afraid anymore. Doing so only leads to problems. If that's my only choice, so be it. Suddenly the door to the room opens and I jump a bit. The wind blows harshly making my hair cover my face to where I can't see who's there.

"Hey, wait!"

I close my eyes and take the jump.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Okay. So. I didn't post last Sunday. I want to deeply apologize for that. I've been studying for a big test that I'll take on the 16th of April. It's basically to help me get one step closer to nursing clinical. I've been trying to balance my studying and writing, but I guess I've been so caught up in not wanting to fail that I've been studying day after day for hours. Another reason that I'm so late is because as much as I hate to admit this, I've been losing motivation to continue the story. When I first started, I had so many ideas and things I wanted to do with this story. It's my first wolf romance book, and I wanted to make it a good one. Recently, I've been coming up with new ideas for other stories I want to write. But I'm not sure how you all that read this story would feel. So I wanted to ask your opinion on this story so far, and what you would think about other stories being written by me to put on Web Novel. I hate doing this because I want to get better at writing and make good stories for people to read. However, I'll try my best to get back on track, so the next chapter posting might take a minute. But I'll try to be as quick as I can. I want to truly thank all of you who have read my story and the few who even added my story to their collections. That makes me so happy! Thank you for reading!)