Sugar Mommy

Chapter 22

Sugar Mommy

Chapter Twenty-Two

Steven Johnson

"Under no circumstances is any mistake allowed," Denver warned the handful of our pack's most trusted men.

The men nodded before we dismissed them to put the plan into action.

"What exactly are we doing?" Ally raised an eyebrow from her place seated on the sofas.

"We're going to give Haru's body a proper funeral, so in return, he can pass over Acheron and Styx." Denver sighed when he realized she wasn't understanding anything. "It's a ritual that must be obeyed for a soul to pass on to the afterlife."

"Why are we even taking such useless precautions into consideration?" She huffed.

"Why in the name of the Moon Goddess is she even here, Steven?" Denver turned to me. "I thought her part in this disaster was over with Haru's death?"

I shrugged. "She's kind of a vibe to have around."

There was a pause.

"That vibe being her strikingly similar looks to Sophia?" He raised an eyebrow, before sighing and leaning into his chair.

"Say," I began. "When did you-- How did you find out that Nicolas Lanzo was Dolores' mate?"

Denver paused before taking hold of and lighting a cigarette.

"About a week after my father and mother's funeral, when we came to attend Sophia's funeral, Dolores left the table during supper to get some fresh air." His eyes trained on Ally, who was slightly far from us, completely oblivious to our conversation. "When she took a bit too long to return, Duke figured Diana had taken control and so we went to look her."

"As it turns out, instead of transforming morally, she seemed to have transformed in a hurry. Around the edge of the garden, the arch that led to the servant's corner had a trail of her clothes, completely torn. I followed the trail to another funeral, Nicolas' funeral."

"The casket to his body was open, and above it towered Diana. I will never forget how her eyes were glassed over with unshed tears as she gazed at the corpse of him." He put out his cigarette. "When he came home, that night, Dolores' cried for hours. It wasn't until she calmed down that she admitted it, Nicolas was her mate."

"So, Dolores knows?"

Denver nodded.

"Well, in that case," I fumbled with what to say. "How do we know she won't bring back Nicolas' soul instead of Haru's?"

"She can't- she won't." Denver sighed. "She rejected him on the spot, not that she had an option otherwise. He was dead."

"That's it?" I scrunched his eyebrows. "She rejected him just like that?"

"Not just like that," He bit his lower lip. "She blamed me for his death too, and in return, when I found my mate, she had me reject and kill her."

I raised my hand to cover my mouth, sitting up and staring at him with wide eyes.

"Denver," I breathed. "If you killed your mate,"

"Maestro Steven," The man spoke. "You've been invited to attend the wedding of Sir Denver from the pack of the Moon Goddess."

"Who was that woman you married?"

Before Denver could respond, however, there was a knock on the door.

"Sir, we've brought the body." A voice spoke from the other side of the door. "You're requested to attend the funeral ceremony."

"We're coming," Denver answered back, standing up and turning to Ally. "Do you have any black dress?"

"What's wrong with this dress?" She counter-questioned.

"You can't attend a funeral wearing a red crop top." Denver gritted his teeth in frustration and took hold of his phone, dialing a number. "Bring a funeral-appropriate black dress to the head office, quickly.

~~~

We attended Haru's funeral ceremony, although we didn't care that much.

Ally hardly looked up from her phone and Denver was more concerned about his wine not being the right temperature.

I wasn't an angel either, though.

My mind was as absent as it could be.

How could I focus on anything after the revelation just made?

I hadn't bothered to attend Denver's wedding, or his wife's funeral three years after his wedding either.

But now, I wish I could reattend them.

Maybe if I could, I'd see truly whoever was his bride. (Keeping in mind that he, himself, rejected and killed his mate.)

Marriage with someone who is not your mate is not uncommon between werewolves.

But usually, marriage with a non-mate is frowned upon, and thus discouraged in royal lineage as it can taint a family's reputation.

Denver, with all his mighty pride and respect for tradition, definitely did not seem like someone who would marry someone who was not his mate, let alone murder his mate.

"Maestro Steven," A voice spoke from behind me, startling me rather unexpectedly. "May we proceed with the cremation?"

"Yes," I nodded, lowering my head so I didn't meet anyone's eyes by accident. I was sure they could see how I was shaking simply by my eyes. Don't let them see you as vulnerable. "Proceed with it,"

Denver stood up, alongside Ally, turning to glance at me. "We're gonna head inside, join us when you feel like it."

Nodding my head, I continued staring at the ground as if it were the most fascinating aspect of existence the universe has come together to comprehend.

Not that it interested me.

"Forget me, mi amor."

My eyes snapped up at the casket, being carried toward the cremation vault.

"Wait, hold on." I stood up, voicing, forcing the movement to halt. "Open the casket."

The casket was gently placed down and opened, revealing a much cleaner Haru, wearing a much tidier formal suit, changed out of his hospital robe.

My hand hovered over his eyes before slowly lowering down to his nose, which was no longer taking in air.

My hand slowly lowered, hovering above his neck, then his shoulder, and eventually, his chest.

It stayed there for a few moments, subconsciously anticipating a miracle too impossible to be true, but just as it was about to continue wandering lower,

Thump,

Saul's ears perked up.

My hands returned to hovering over his chest, right above his heart, waiting for the movement to reoccur so I could conclude that I was not crazy.

And sure enough,

Thump,

Thump,

Haru was not breathing and was called 'dead' by doctors for almost a week.

But here I was, with my hand hovering over his chest, feeling his heart beat.

"Maestro, we must proceed with the cremation process."

"No," I breathed out, taking my hand back. "Call the doctors and take the body towards the guest room of the mansion."

The men stared at me for a moment, confusion clear in their eyes, but decided against questioning me and once again, picked up the casket and started walking inside the mansion.

"One more thing," I stopped them once more. "If he asks, Haru's body has been cremated and his ashes have been poured into the sea."

"Under no circumstance should this be known to Denver."