De Cene Family Manor
Alpujarras region
Spain
A cool breeze touched the warmth of Alejandro’s face. But he welcomed it just like how the dawn welcomed the sunshine. He smiled.
"I’m surprised you’re awake, Lucio," he said. His brother and he had been assigned the guard of the de Cene family estate for years now and every time he and Lucio is assigned at night, his brother would sleep. Leaving Alejandro alone at the guard house.
"Scared that they are going to come by tonight?" he asked his brother who was playing some games on his phone.
"I’ve heard rumors, Alejandro... Senior de Cene is going to send us to Scotland soon."
"Don’t believe rumors. Senior de Cene would never do that." Being sent to Scotland was akin to a death sentence. Those noble Lycan families had been fighting silently. The war and politics never stopped. It was just chaos.
Staying in this manor was still the best.
Here, everyone in the town respects them. They recognized them as the de Cene brothers who owned the large winery. It was peaceful and they can have all the women they want.
"Senior de Cene would never do that," Alejandro assured himself. The senior trusted him to work in this place. And this isn’t just any place.
This is the largest winery that the de Cene family has.
It only means that the Senior thought highly of them.
"What? You want to go to Scotland?" he asked his younger brother.
"Of course, I am. That’s where the Royals... " Lucio gulped and looked away. "We are a part of the de Cene family too. Why are we rotting in this place? We are nobles."
"Nobles... with weaker bloodlines." Their kids aren’t even considered Lycans anymore. They are just weak shifters who are slightly stronger than common people. Their senses aren’t as sharp and they aren’t as fast. In front of the senior Alejandro and Lucio would cower in fear.
Even if the man was their grandfather, he never really actually treated them as one.
"Lucio..." Alejandro’s tone was tinged with danger. "Please stop blaming our father."
"If father married another noble..."
"Then there is no us, Lucio." Alejandro leaned against the twelve feet iron fence that surrounded this large property. "Can you just be thankful that Senior— "
Lucio stopped playing his mobile game. He looked up from his phone and said, "Ale... he is our grandfather. And yet he doesn’t even let us call him that."
A sigh escaped Alejandro’s lips. Of course, this was because Senior de Cene never considered them as grandchildren. Their blood was just too unpure. In the senior’s words... they were dirty. Of course, Alejandro isn’t planning to tell his younger brother that.
"Almeru and you... have the same age. But look at how they treat him. They treat him like Royalty just because of his blood. Ale, we are all families. We have the de Cene blood running in our veins. We are Lycans. Why can’t they treat us as one."
"Letting us stay here is actually— "
"Oh shut up!" Lucio rolled his eyes. He fixed his white uniform and sighed. "Stop convincing yourself that we are important. That old man is treating us as security guards. We aren’t even allowed to see the finances of the whole estate! We work nights with a little more salaries and you keep on convincing yourself that he is treating us well! Ale, our salaries are just five hundred dollars more than the others! And we are his grandchildren!"
Alejandro shook his head. "You’re drunk. You should go back home to your wife. "
"No, I won’t."
"Lucio. Go back. I will guard the place alone."
"I just want to go to Scotland."
"I told you. It is safer here. You haven’t seen Scotland. Out there... Lycans like us with lesser bloodlines are... treated lowly!"
"We are Lycans! How could they treat us lowly?"
"You— "
"You know what? I’m done talking to you."
"Lucio."
"Tomorrow, I will call them. I will volunteer. I’ve heard that a war is coming. I am going to volunteer and— "
"Are you out of your damn mind?"
"What?" Lucio snorted.
"A war? How could you— "Alejandro looked to his left and right. Relieve that no one else was there, he sighed. "Don’t mention that again! Do you hear me?"
"What? The de Cene Family is the strongest among the nobles. We should— "
"Shut up! Lucio!"
Lucio glared at his elder brother. "Alright. I’m sleeping. You do the rounds alone and live here on your own with your meager salary. You know what?" he got up and pointed at Alejandro. "You can die here alone. But you cannot control me. I am going to leave this place. Go to Scotland and create a name for myself! As for you? You and your family will rot here... Alone!"
With that, Lucio walked away from the outpost.
However, it didn’t take him too long to stop walking.
"W— What is that?" his voice shook. "Ale? Is that... fire?"
Alejandro turned around and almost immediately, his pupils shook.
"Call the others. Put out the fire!" he immediately pressed the alarm button on the outpost.
The sound of alarm woke everyone up in the manor.
Soon, footsteps and yelling voices echoed.
A few minutes since the bell started and half of the plantation was already devoured by the fire.
Thirty minutes later and hundreds of millions worth of grapes and wines were eaten by fire so large, that it almost looked like hell.
Seeing the panic from afar, Ava poured herself a glass of wine. Then he poured wine into Matthew’s empty glass.
"The wine’s not bad," she beamed at him just as the reflection of the large fire glinted against her eyes. "Don’t you think so too?"
"Nothing’s bad when I am with you."
"Stop saying that," despite her words, Ava was chuckling. "You sound like a teenager."
Matthew snorted but he didn’t say anything. He too was watching the fire.
"Do you think they will know?" he asked.
"Who cares?" Ava smirked. "But we already covered our bases. You just finished talking to someone from Trillium and no one saw me since that night. We are innocents, aren’t we?"
Matthew’s lips lifted into a smirk. "Of course. We are innocents."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
