The Street Rat And The Alpha

43

Nothing absolutely nothing. Everything was an absolute mess. It had been an entire week since her disappearance and no clues had been found.

He did not think his Maddy would run away. They had spent a wonderful afternoon and evening together. They had returned to their previous dynamic, watching movies and playfully teasing each other.

Maddy could not have faked it. Around him she was an open book and very open about her feelings. If she did not like something she would make it known. She did not though. She had been laughing with him and having fun. Their first dose of fun since her coronation.

He wondered if maybe she had panicked and run from fear. She was still young, being a queen had to frighten her. Maybe she suddenly realised all the responsibility and ran.

He felt so horrible for not being there in time to soothe her worries.

"Damian have you found any clues yet?"

The king sighed in relief. Finally she was there to get the situation under control.

"No Ivera, but if you could track down any with your men that would be great," he said.

He was utterly exhausted. He had been trying to find leads but his wolf was getting to him. He was going mad with concern and plagued with sense of guilt. It was so distracting that it had severely limited his progress.

"You should go back to the castle and get some rest," she advised with a heavy sigh.

"I guess so. Thank you so much for your assistance. Lily has been taking her disappearance really badly so I do not want to call on her and upset her even more," Xavier said.

Lily had kept on denying his claims. She was absolutely certain that she had been kidnapped but he did not believe that was the case. It was the castle. It was the most secure place in the kingdom. Maddy had to have run away.

Lily was just blinded.

He walked back inside the castle to his room where he found his cousin crying and hugging a pillow. The princess was oddly sensitive when she wanted to be.

"Lily?"

"She did not run Xavier. She would not. She was really happy with you," Lily whispered.

"Lily you know we had a big fight-"

"You made up! She would have ran during your fight if anything! I know her. She is like a sister to me Xavier. She wants your attention but she would not run away to get it. That is not how she is. She'll say she will run away but she will not. She would rather get someone annoyed to get their attention than start a whole search party. She is young and likes having mischievous fun to get your attention through cutting her skirts and frolicking in the forest."

"I know but we cannot deny the facts. There was a fight between us. She could have felt unhappy and have left," he reasoned.

"Maddy is not like that. She does not run unless she feels threatened. She was not threatened just annoyed by you. She was not even fighting with you she just wanted respect and then your attention. She really loves you. Please you have to realise that Maddy was taken against her will," Lily pleaded.

"I'll investigate it but we are searching as well as we can for her."

"You are not following the right lead though. It had to be an inside job. A guard or someone took her. That was how she got into the Arena. It was people we trusted. Who says that could not happen again. We should have all estates searched-"

"Lily you are being irrational. You have too much faith. I hurt her Lily. I made her suffer here. I forced her into this life with no way out. She did not choose any of this. I dragged her away and made her stay here like a prisoner. She must think I am a monster," Xavier said.

"No she does not-"

"She was happy there. She told me that. She had a life that was filled with a degree of adventure and a lot of freedom. No one judged her. She could do what she wanted. What did I give her? Rules and more rules. I broke her spirit by forcing her to stay here. I was so selfish and cruel towards her. I kept her in a cage because I was afraid. She was so independent and it scared me a bit. I did not want to see anyone else hurt her or her leave," he said.

"She stayed here because she wanted to Xavier! She actually loved you. She would never run away from you because of a silly argument. She would have ran away earlier then. She would not have stayed with you to be crowned queen. She is honest and speaks her mind-"

"Lily would you just stop."

"Why Xavier? So you can stop hurting yourself by blaming yourself when you are wrong?" Lily asked angry.

"No because if I start thinking she was taken when she truly ran away I know it will hurt more. Do you think I like thinking that my mate ran away from me? No! But right now that is what makes the most sense."

"And if she did run away are you going to drag her back here?"

"No. If I don't find her soon I'll have to conclude that she does not want to be found or was kidnapped."

"So you are only following any trails later? What if she was kidnapped? What if when we find her it is too late?! Xavier we cannot just sit around and hope she gets found out," Lily said.

"Ivera is here and will do whatever it takes to find her," Xavier said.

"I know," Lily whispered.

"You miss her as much as I do," Xavier said.

"No. You're her mate-"

"Lily I know you care for her a lot. Before her you really struggled to make friends. You need her too," he said messing up his cousin's hair.

"No! Don't mess up my hair!" Lily exclaimed.

"It was already a birds nest to begin with."

A/N

I know it has been a while but I am still struggling to write new chapters so updates will be slow for the time being.

Thank you for all yours support.