Page 15 of A Mysterious Slave for the Lycan Prince

As usual, my two problem children aren’t interested in anything. Elodie, however, seems to do her own research and types something on her phone. “I want to get one message to Prince Eric,” she tells me. “As long as we still can. Would that be okay, Finn?”

“Of course.” I nod. “Go ahead. Once you’re done, switch your phone off again, though.”

She nods, a frown on her face as she swiftly types something. Once done, she switches it off and puts it back into her pocket. Then she continues to sip at her coffee. “Not a morning person,” she mutters to me.

I snort. “I can sympathize.”

“Me too.” Anthony yawns. “I just hate getting up.”

Elodie frowns a bit. It seems like it annoys her that they share something, but to my relief, she doesn’t provoke him. It’s the first somewhat normal conversation one of the twins had with the others. Maybe there is hope.

Once we wrap up our breakfast, I make sure to get them all going. “We have a long way ahead of us,” I tell them once we step outside and everyone climbs into the car. The air is fresh and much colder already. The climate here is obviously different to the one at home.

For the first time, the severity of my mission feels real. I’m truly going to do this. So many people are relying on me and trusting me with this. I grab the necklace my friends gifted me with and take a deep breath. It’s not a matter of can or want anymore. Max and I need to do this right. Failure is not an option.

“Are you ready?” Marcel peeks out of the car.

“Sure.” I smile and sit down behind the wheel. “Just enjoying the fresh air.”

“Do you enjoy the freezing temperatures?” Henry asks in disbelief.

I shrug. “I don’t mind. I’m training a lot; it helps to keep me warm.” I couldn’t help the little jab at the twins, well aware that they are quite lazy about their training.

Nice one,Marcel links me with a grin.

Once I drive off and we are back on the road, I link Marcel again, asking him to talk with the others to loosen the slightly strained atmosphere. Soon he, Elise, and Steve talk about their favorite movies.

“I like action movies,” Steve tells us. “I know, I know, cliché.” He grins.

“I like them too,” Marcel agrees, turning a bit to eye the boys. “And you?”

To my surprise Anthony answers. “I like SciFi,” he admits. “Oh, and fantasy movies, but action is fine too.”

“Have you seen the last MCU movie?” Steve asks him.

Anthony grins. “Of course! I’ve seen them all.”

“Who’s your favorite?” Steve wants to know.

“Tony Stark,” he says. “Oh, and I love the guardians.”

“Great choice.” Steve grins. “Deadpool is pretty cool too.”

I listen to them, feeling relieved that they share a common interest. Henry, however, remains awfully quiet and glares at his brother. Eventually, Steve’s and Anthony’s talk dies down, and Marcel skilfully shifts the topic to something else.

When I look into my rearview mirror, I notice Henry’s and Anthony’s eyes glossing over, and soon Anthony’s stance gets tensed up more. He stops participating in the conversation of the others and instead keeps staring out of the window again.

Awesome. He was starting to warm up. What the heck did Henry tell him now?

At least we pass the next few hours without any arguments.

“At the next junction, we need to drive left,” Marcel tells me while opening the map fully. Steve helps him by spreading it further across his body and holding it up.

I frown when I check the road in front of us. If we turn left, we need to drive over the tiniest road I’ve ever seen, directly towards a mountain. “You sure?”

“Absolutely.” Marcel nods. “There is no other path. If we don’t drive this way, we need to drive to the harbor and take a boat instead.”

I nod. “Alright. We’ll stop at that small diner further down the road, eat something, and gather our strengths; then we’ll continue.”

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