Episode 6

Esmeralda slammed the door behind her as she entered her room. Frustrated, she had searched every nook, cranny, and cupboard in her father's office but couldn't find her mother's necklace. She was growing increasingly desperate. Soon, there was a knock on her door, and she hurriedly jumped onto her bed and lay down.

"Who is it?" she called out.

"It's me," came the reply.

"Come in, Dad."

The door opened, and her father walked in, holding a tiny box.

"Hi, my love," he greeted her.

"Hi, Dad," Esmeralda responded.

"I have something for you."

Esmeralda sat up, and her father joined her on the bed, opening the box. Inside was her mother's beloved necklace—the very one she had been searching for.

"Mom's favorite necklace," Esmeralda exclaimed.

"Yes, and she always wanted you to have it when it was time for your initiation ritual," her father explained.

He unhooked the necklace and carefully placed it around Esmeralda's neck. The pendant featured a green emerald gem.

"Thank you," Esmeralda said, hugging her father tightly.

"How are you feeling? Your initiation ritual is in two weeks," he asked with concern.

"Nervous, to be honest," Esmeralda admitted.

"Don't worry. You are strong and have the Lackmere blood flowing in your veins. You will be okay. Your mother would be so proud to see the beautiful, strong woman you have become," her father reassured her.

He held her hand and smiled warmly at her. Esmeralda returned the smile and nodded.

"Tomorrow, I am throwing a ball in your honor. All twelve clans will gather to celebrate you as our future queen. It is also an opportunity to mingle and get acquainted with our subjects. You will one day be queen," he announced.

"A party, Father? Isn't it a bit too much?" Esmeralda questioned.

"You are the princess. You better get used to it. You will have to attend several of these as wolf royalty. It is a tradition ever since the twelve wolf clans united under the Effiong Empire," he explained.

Esmeralda sighed. She disliked parties and socializing, as her social anxiety often made her feel awkward in such settings.

Her father rose from the bed and left her room.

***

*LATER THAT EVENING*

"Oh, there you are," Esmeralda said as she spotted Ezra sitting on a bench in front of the pond, feeding her swans.

Ezra immediately got up. "Do you need something, Esmeralda?" he asked.

"Esmeralda? Is that how you address your future queen?" she teased.

"Uhm, I'm sorry, Your Highness," Ezra quickly corrected himself, bowing.

"Oh, come on, the Ezra I remembered had a sense of humor," Esmeralda laughed, finding his formal behavior amusing. She took a seat on the bench.

Ezra chuckled. "You always did enjoy messing with me."

"I see you still feed my swans," she remarked.

"If I don't, they would starve. Plus, it's the only way I feel connected to you while you were in boarding school," Ezra explained, looking at her.

Esmeralda swallowed, feeling a sudden warmth in her body. Her skin grew feverish as she met Ezra's gaze. His eyes were incredibly expressive, and she couldn't quite decipher the mix of emotions swirling within his hazel eyes.

Ezra smiled at her and then shifted his attention to the swans gracefully swimming in the pond. They sat in comfortable silence for a while, and then Esmeralda broke it.

"How did your parents die?" she asked, curious about his past.

Ezra grew quiet, and Esmeralda noticed his shoulders tensing up. He bit his lips, struggling to find the words. "I... I can't," he finally managed to say.

"You can't?" she probed gently.

"I don't want to talk about it, Esmeralda. It's too painful," Ezra replied, his voice breaking, and tears welling up in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry," Esmeralda said, realizing she had touched a sensitive topic. "I won't ask again. You can tell me whenever you're ready."

Just then, Bruce appeared, interrupting their conversation. "There you are, I've been looking everywhere for you, Ezra. His Highness requests your presence," he informed Ezra, bowing to Esmeralda, who returned the gesture with a smile.

Ezra got up, bowed to Esmeralda, and left immediately to attend to her father's request.

"Tell me, Bruce, what sort of job does Ezra do for my father?" Esmeralda asked curiously.

"Your Highness?" Bruce looked a bit confused.

"My father seems to require Ezra to run a lot of 'errands' for him, so what kind of job does Ezra do for my father?" she inquired further.

"Well, aside from being his chauffeur and assistant, I don't know what else, Princess," Bruce replied honestly.

"Hmm, okay. Goodnight, Bruce," Esmeralda said, giving him a gentle kiss on the cheek before heading inside the house.

Silently, she made her way to her father's office, taking care not to make a sound. Pressing her ear against the door, she eavesdropped on a heated argument between Ezra and her father. She couldn't quite comprehend the reason for her father's anger towards Ezra.

"Make sure this mission goes smoothly. I am holding you responsible if there is another failure. Get out," Aaron's voice resonated from within the office.

"Yes, Your Highness," replied Ezra.

Esmeralda swiftly moved down the hallways as she saw Ezra opening the door to leave. She hid in the adjacent corridor and observed Ezra as he exited the house.

Returning to her father's office, she knocked on the door.

"Yes? Come in," Aaron responded.

Esmeralda opened the door and entered the room.

"Father, may I speak to you?" she asked, concern evident in her voice.

"Daughter, of course. Come in, sit," Aaron welcomed her.

Esmeralda took a seat in a chair.

"Father, are you okay?" she asked, worriedly.

"Yes, I am. Why wouldn't I be?" he replied, seemingly unaffected.

"You just seem a little stressed. I'm worried. I think you need to take a break," Esmeralda suggested, expressing her concern.

"My Esmeralda, I am well. Running this empire is a lot of work," Aaron assured her.

"I see. I will let you get back to what you were doing, Father," she said, getting up from her chair and making her way to the door.

"Goodnight," Aaron bid her farewell.

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