Chapter 15 - Astrid

"I'm Astrid."

I stick out a hand to the Omega as we enter the guest room with peach walls and open windows. She reluctantly takes my hand and shakes it once firmly.

"So I heard," she answers. "Nicole."

I walk into the room and peek around the corner at the attached bathroom. Everything looks crisp and clean. The easy swaying of the palm tree outside, for some reason, sinks in the fact that this place might be my new home and the memories of cherry blossoms will soon be replaced by the tropical foliage.

My eyes immediately dart to the phone charger placed neatly on the bedside table, which I plug into my dead phone. My stomach turns in knots in anticipation of what could possibly warrant a good enough excuse for disappearing abruptly.

"Miss Astrid," Nicole speaks up while still standing at the doorway. "Please, freshen up and change into the dress that has been laid out for you on the bed."

I look over to find a light chiffon flowy gown in blush pink with a pair of golden sandals at the bed post. I glance over to Nicole, who is wearing a plain white shirt and cream trousers. Her sandy brown hair is tied back into a neat bun, while her stern blue eyes frame her tanned face.

"It's so fancy," I remark about the dress.

"It was specifically requested by the Alpha's mother." She walks over to the white dressing table above which hangs an oval mirror. "These drawers have been temporarily stocked with makeup and jewellery you may wish to accessorize with. And the closets," she gestures to the large built-in white closet encompassing an entire wall, "shall be filled in as per Alpha Rio's requests."

"Don't worry, I won't be staying long."

"That shall remain to be seen."

Nicole takes her leave. I strip myself of Rio's clothes and jump into the shower, using the lavish little bottles of floral body wash and hair products. The shampoo smells like eucalyptus and tea tree oil, which remind me of Rio. I enjoy the aromatherapy.

I dry myself and my hair as much as possible before doing a simple braid. I don the blush chiffon dress and the golden sandals, take a step back, then view myself in the mirror. This all feels weirdly ceremonial. The harrowing thought that I have to impress Corinthia Xenakis creeps in.

I look for a suitable pair of dangly earrings, a blush lipstick to wear on my lips and spread on my cheeks and a bit of mascara.

A knock on the door alerts me to the time. I hesitate to walk over to my charging phone, but would rather not be distracted during dinner with my hosts. I open the door to find Rio in a silk white shirt and khaki trousers, his black curls wet and pushed back. He smells very comforting right now.

Rio gives me a once over and nods.

"Did my mother pick that dress?"

"Yes."

"It looks good on you."

I snort. "You say that a lot."

"I can't help it," he shrugs. "It's true."

I close the door behind me, looking over at my phone once again, before he escorts me.

"I feel very dressed up," I tell Rio.

"Dinner with my mother can be quite the event."

"Will Kobe and Leon be joining us?"

"No. It will be an intimate setting. My brothers are having dinner with Kobe's friends and I'm sure they are all corrupting little Leon."

"He's very sweet." I remark.

"He needs to toughen up a little."

I frown at this, but remember I should be focusing on the great matriarch whose name alone intimidates me.

"So, am I walking into an interview?"

"Sort of."

No pressure. I try to think of this as a parent-teacher conference, only this time the parent is an intimidating former Lycan Luna, who's known to be an elite fighter. Well, at least she won't be kicking my ass...yet.

"Have you heard back from Alex and Demi?" I quickly ask.

"They have compiled a list of direct flights at the moment. Nothing from Canada yet. Still going through the Scandinavian countries."

"Good," I sigh in relief. "Well, as much as I respect your mother, I apologize in advance if I say anything too testy or aggressive."

He chuckles at this. "Then you both would be on the same wavelength."

"I'm just so anxious to find Bianca."

"If anybody can find her, it's us. We have the best equipment and the best team here."

"Best team? You mean Lycans?" I roll my eyes.

Rio's laughter echoes through the halls.

"Well, yes," he says, none too humbly.

As we reach the little bridge to cross over to the right corridor from the grand staircase, I take the time to look around more. The walls are a light russet color, and hanging above the tall wooden entrance, which is now closed, is a stained-glass motif depicting a large pale yellow circle in a sea of deep blue that refracts cool blue light inwards.

Ahead is an open room from which the light clanging of cutlery and plates can be heard along with a low, rumbling woman's voice.

The dining room goes quiet as we enter, the only sound being the Omegas setting up the table and the linen curtains flapping against the cool breeze. At the head of the oval dining table sits Corinthia Xenakis, her ashy brown hair in an intricate updo, donning a chiffon dress in royal blue. She stands up and invites Rio in for a hug. After the embrace, Corinthia kisses Rio on either side of his cheeks. He then steps aside to introduce me.

"Mama, this is my destined, Astrid." He beckons me to step closer with his blue-black eyes and a slight head tilt.

I automatically bow as if in the presence of royalty.

"Come now, let me have a closer look at you," she says, her voice deep and cool like the breeze that blows through the skirt of my dress as I walk closer to her.

She examines my face, while I examine hers. I can see now that her updo is ornate with small jewels placed strategically all around. Her skin is dewy and firm for a woman with three children. And her eyes are aqua blue like Rio's left eye.

She brings her hand under my chin and gently raises it.

"Hmm," she hums and smiles, the wrinkles around her eyes finally giving her age away.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, uh, Mrs Xenakis." I almost blank out on what to call her. 'Ma'am' would have been too formal. And 'Luna' would not be correct anymore and a reminder of what everybody here expects me to be.

"Likewise, Astrid," she says as she sits back down. "Please, sit."

Rio strides over to my seat and pushes the chair in for me, while he takes the bigger seat at the other end of the table, opposite his mother. I bite my lip at the space around me—to my left and to my right—as I sit here like an island. Rio is too far to reach for comfort. I shake my head at the thought. You're a big girl. You don't need him. I remind myself that I came here of my own volition and to strap myself in for Corinthia's intimidating blue glare.

The Omegas start laying down several dishes on the table: grilled meats and fish, breads, salads, and a curry-like dish that makes my belly grumble. I widen my eyes at the sound and nervously look at Rio, who takes the liberty to serve up some food onto my plate, a doting gesture on his part.

"Have you not fed her?" Corinthia asks Rio.

"We were in a bit of a hurry, mama," he replies as he sets a plate full of food down before me.

"Poor girl, look at the way her collar bones jut out, Rio. You must take better care of your destined." She fusses and tsks, which I find oddly nice and reminds me of my mom. "Her arms are straight like noodles. No definition. We'll have to do something about getting some lean muscle on her body." She's also blunt like my mom.

"She's fine, mama," Rio waves his arms in dismissal. "Not everybody's like you."

Corinthia shakes her head and rests her elbows on the dining table. That's when I notice the curvature of her delts and biceps even at her age. I gulp at the thought of facing her in a fight.

"I do hope your tiger form is not as scrawny as you appear," Corinthia remarks and I start to get a clue of where Kobe's unabashed candor comes from.

"I assure you I am not," I reply politely.

"Perhaps we shall assess you later when we go for a midnight family run."

I want to scoff at this, but would rather not leave that unruly of a first impression. I look back at Rio to judge if she's joking or not. He grins and nods knowingly. I'm a little annoyed to say the least.

"Mrs Xenakis, as much as I look forward to that, I feel I should state that I haven't agreed to be anything to your son yet. Only that he has promised to help me find my friend, Bianca Greywood."

She frowns.

"Rio, have you not explained to Astrid what a destined is?"

"Mama, she grew up in Silver Bow. She's well aware of the implications."

"Then, I don't understand the confusion." She looks at me resolutely. "The Moon Goddess has chosen you for this high honor, my dear. An honor that would have gone to your friend, Bianca. There's nothing more to do but accept it."

"Even if I were to accept it, my purpose here, first and foremost, is to find Bianca's location."

"All right," she nods as if I were asking for her permission. "But do so quickly. I don't like all this dilly-dallying."

I open my mouth to retort, but realize the futility of arguing now when we are nowhere near finding Bianca yet. So, I scowl into my plate and resign, for the time being, to refuel my stomach, though I'm not too happy at her dismissal of my missing best friend and her son's former fiancée.

"So, Astrid, did you take your combat training seriously in Silver Bow?" Corinthia asks.

"Not in recent years. I was Bianca's combat partner growing up and we have to undergo compulsory training all throughout school."

"So, what happened in recent years to deter you from your training?"

"Well, I became the music teacher at the school."

"You teach music?" she repeats.

"Yes."

"Did you know that the Ancient Greeks laid the foundation for western music and, in effect, all modern music today?"

"I did know that. I'm quite well-versed in music and its theory." I look over to Rio who smiles reassuringly as if I'm doing a good job so far with this interview. "And," I add, "I am also aware of the far reaches of Ancient Greece, its civilization and cultural influences."

"Very good!" she exclaims. "That's one less thing we need to worry about. However, something must be done about your training."

"Are we expecting an invasion?" I ask half-joking

"We must always be expecting something," she replies ominously. "We are a warrior and protector race and that is our duty."

"Then I'm glad to be in the right place to search for the missing daughter of Silver Bow." I remark rather bluntly.

Corinthia merely nods.

"I understand that tigers have been in Silver Bow for a few generations. So, are you a half-blood?" she asks.

I'm taken aback a little bit by her tone. First, she grills me about combat training. Now it's my blood purity. What could possibly be next? My sexual morals?

"My father is a, what you call, half-blood. But my mother is a tiger through and through."

"A strong-blooded woman, is she? I like the sound of that," she remarks, pleased with my answer that I'm not a complete mongrel. "And how many boys have you dated?"

I nearly choke on a bite of dry bread. Rio's fork and knife scrape against his plate.

"Mama, please. Not while we're eating," Rio urges.

"Fine." Corinthia casually shrugs.

I don't even dare look at Rio. Now that his mother has uttered the question, his mind must be rummaging through the numbers and probabilities. Besides, this is a conversation to be had later in private with the man who has kissed me twice.

The rest of the meal feels a little awkward on my end, though the mother and son duo catch up on business and occasionally ask for my input as if I have any real say in the matter. I keep reminding myself that when Bianca is found, I take the first flight back to Silver Bow. But the thoughts and ideas they're subconsciously putting in my head—including me in their business and asking me join in their 'family run'—keeps me second guessing quite a bit.

Annoyingly, a familiar guitar riff starts playing at the back of my head.

Should I stay or should I go?