My Most Precious Human

Chills ran down my spine as I looked into his eyes, suddenly finding them dangerous. I could barely breathe after realizing that the one who wanted to enslave me stood right before me. I was so focused on Derek and my father that I forgot that Alpha Draven could be at the ball as well.

"Calm down, Lilith. He can't hurt you, and he can't kidnap you while you are in the vampires' territory." My brain needed to prevent the rest of my body from falling into a state of panic.

I took a couple of deep breaths, perhaps a little too deep for Draven not to notice.

"Are you seriously all right?" His deep voice was soothing.

Unknowingly, I locked my eyes on him, bemused by his presence. He chuckled faintly and gave me a kind, warm smile, which caught me off guard completely.

"Do you have a name?" he asked, slightly teasingly.

"L-Lilith." The answer just slipped through my throat.

The warmth in his eyes instantly vanished as his black eyes became even darker.

"Why did you tell him your name, idiot?!" I cursed in my thoughts. "He must have figured out exactly who you are by now!"

A lopsided smirk appeared on his face as he took another step closer. I stepped back and found myself leaning against a balcony railing. I gulped.

"Nice to finally meet you, Lady Lilith." His voice became harsher, but its tone was equally alluring.

"You know that I am King Sariel's concubine, don't you?" I said precautiously.

He chuckled and leaned over me, forcing me to move my head back just to avoid the dangerous closeness of his lips.

"Are you afraid of me, Lilith?" he whispered, his breath brushing my cheek.

"Yes..." I muttered, turning my head to the side to avoid his gaze. "It would be unreasonable not to be afraid of an Alpha."

He placed his hands on the railing on both sides, blocking my escape from him.

"Do you think I'm going to hurt you?" he asked while his eyes roamed down my neckline.

"I don't think you would do something like that. Not in here at least," I said, hardly preventing my voice from trembling.

"I'm not a barbarian, Lilith," he sighed as he took a step away from me.

I stared at him, slightly confused but relieved at the same time. His eyes were locked on me. There was something disturbing in his gaze, some kind of longing and pain. I was unable to understand why he looked at me that way.

We stared at each other in silence for a while until he cleared his throat, as if in the realization that our silence lasted longer than it should.

"I'll find his superior to get him out of here," he said, pointing at the unconscious Derek.

"Thank you..." I mumbled, bemused, and then flinched after understanding his words. "His superior?!" I burst out, my whole body trembling. "Yes," he replied calmly. "I know he came here with Beta Kane as his pack's representative. Alpha Randall refused to come."

I was so relieved that I nearly collapsed.

"Guess, you're glad there won't be any family reunions?" He smirked, understanding what my reaction meant.

"You have no idea..." I muttered, clenching my teeth.

He snorted, but then he looked at me in that confusing way again.

"You are opposing your destiny. You shouldn't be with him," Draven stated, with the tone of his voice more serious than ever.

"What?"

"You don't belong here, Lilith." His eyes didn't leave mine.

I swallowed. "What do you mean?"

"You belong with the wolves."

A sharp pain pierced my chest. It came with a wave of anger flooding my body, and soon the rage burst out in the form of sarcastic laughter.

"I am a human, Alpha Draven, and my father did everything he could to remind me that I wasn't a part of his wolf pack." I gritted my teeth.

"Then become a member of my pack!" he called out, angrily.

"Join your pack?! What for?! To become your slave?! You bought me and you think it's my "destiny"?! Screw you!" I roared.

As soon as I realized that I had just provoked an Alpha, I cringed, yet he didn't move. He just kept staring at me with his strangely longing eyes. A sorrowful smile painted his face as he turned towards the door. "I would never enslave you, Lilith. Especially now when I know..." he stopped and turned his head back to look at me again.

I gazed at him questionably, but he shot me another mysterious smile and opened the door to walk back to the ballroom.

"Now when you know... what?" I repeated his words, hoping that he would finish his sentence.

He chuckled as a reply before leaving me on the balcony with an unconscious Derek lying by my feet. I couldn't believe that a few sentences I shared with him would mess me up this badly. My body shivered, and I felt this awkward mix of emotions. I put my hand on my chest, trying to comprehend what was wrong with me.

"Guilt?" I realized and froze. "I can't feel guilty that I was seeking protection from a vampire! This is ridiculous!" I quickly mocked my undefined state of mind.

I laughed out loud, but the disturbing feeling didn't go away.

"I am not some traitor! I have never belonged to the pack! I am not a werewolf! Besides, there is a truce between wolf and vamps!" I shouted, releasing my frustration. "Wrong." I heard Kanan's voice and instantly turned my head towards its source.

He was standing on the terrace's threshold when he heard me. I was so bemused and occupied with sorting out how I felt that I didn't even notice that Draven had left the door slightly open. I guess I was lucky that it was Kanan who found me there. After heaving a sigh of relief, I processed what he said.

"What do you mean by "wrong"?" I asked, curiously.

He closed the terrace door and walked towards me, taking a big step over Derek's body.

"There might have been peace between the two races centuries ago. Now, it is merely a game of pretense. Recently, relations are so tense that a minor conflict could lead to open war. The only reason why the so-called peace remains is that there is no king in the werewolf world. Unless someone unites the strongest packs, the wolves will prolong this farce to avoid bloodshed," he explained.

"So that was why Derek used the term "enemy's territory" when he was talking about this place. I think that for my father, it has always been a war... only a cold one," I sighed heavily, feeling an incoming headache.

"I guess... Derek?" Kanan pointed at the unconscious body, letting out a soft snort.

"Yup," I smirked.

"You did this?"

"No. I mean... I could, but Alpha Draven was faster," I smiled wryly.

"Wow..." Kanan's lips formed a teasing grin. "Looks like I'm not the only one who liked this dress on you."

"Don't even go there." I glared at him warningly. "You are talking about the guy who bought me from my father so I could bear him an heir."

"But... he didn't see you when he bought you..." Kanan grinned.

"Well... Perhaps I should be glad that Sariel didn't hear our conversation. The war could start immediately," I smiled nervously, recalling Draven's words, still swirling in my head.

"The more I want to see them clash," Kanan chuckled wickedly, "but I don't think Alpha Draven intends to start an open conflict."

"How can you be so sure?" I asked, mocking his smartass expression.

"Because he and a few members of his pack will stay for a few days at the Palace to talk about the long-term renew peace," he stated confidently.

"W-what do you mean they'll stay at the Palace?" I laughed hysterically.

"I meant exactly what I said. Alpha Draven and four other members of his pack are going to stay at the west wing as the King's special guests and negotiate terms of some form of agreement," Kanan confirmed.

"Now I'm seriously pissed off... and hurt." I hit my fist at the balcony's railing. "Sariel knew that members of his pack kidnapped me! He knew that Alpha Draven bought me from my bastard of a father! How could he think of discussing anything with them?! How could he not tell me what he was planning?!" I clenched the poor railing hard with both hands, feeling that I was on the verge of exploding with rage, falling into tears, or both.

"Lilith..." Kanan gently placed his hand on mine. "It's not that I'm trying to justify King Sariel, but this is politics. If he manages to build a serious and strong legal alliance with the wolves, his position as the King would become unquestionable. It could be a revolutionary move."

I knew he was right, but I hated being left out every time he planned something. Maybe I should be grateful that he didn't decide to build an alliance with my father? I was boiling inside, and, at the same time, I felt helpless. I forced myself to smile faintly at Kanan, trying to lie to him and myself that I could cope with that.

"Are you all right, Lilith?" Judging by the tone of Kanan's voice, my lie didn't work.

"Yes," I replied, swallowing a tear that had already rolled down my cheek.

"Lilith..." He smiled and hugged me. "Don't put your mask on in front of me. I might be half-vampire, but I know human emotions all too well."

I found his arms soothing. It was completely unsexual. It was warm, relaxing, and comforting. Unknowingly, I put my arms around him as well. He chuckled.

"You don't need to be strong all the time, Lilith." He pulled me away to look at my teary eyes, and then he brushed the tears off my cheeks. "Whenever you want to cry... or crash something, just remember I wil be there when you need me... as a friend."