"Father! I know he will come. They will figure out that we are the ones who took her," Kanyon said while pacing his father’s study.
"And when he does, I want our army to be ready. He shouldn’t leave here alive." Monarch Drudius firmly told his son.
"Don’t worry, father. I have arranged everything. He will regret ever crossing paths with us. What I have planned for his precious mate will make him lose his mind. Mates can feel each other’s pain; they are emotionally connected, and that’s what I am counting on."
A subtle smile crept onto his blood-hued lips as memories of the tortures he had vetted onto Cassandra passed through him. However, it shocked him how gentle he was with her.
He should have been more brutal with her, but by his standards, he wasn’t.
"Make her suffer; Thalorian won’t come for us; he doesn’t care about his shamed daughter. Firstly, she was born without magic, claiming her mother’s life in the process, and then she was mated to a shifter."
His father’s words should have brought him twisted pleasures yet he felt slightly annoyed at the thought she wasn’t considered important enough by her father.
Even the thought of Siroos being her mate irritated Kanyon, he wished to be the only one to own her, flesh and blood, to be the only one to give her pleasure and pain in equal measures.
"That shifter will not be part of her life for much longer." Kanyon’s eyes flashed with venom and malice which his father appreciated with a cynical smile of his own.
***
Siroos and Faris decided to head out after Razial and Lotus arranged the papers and the potions for them.
"You find my sister and you bring her back. We will plan what needs to be done after that," Lotus instructed. She had heeded Siroos’s advice for now but she had no plan of staying behind for too long.
"I will," Siroos answered, placing the potion bottles in the satchel along with the waterskin.
"Remember, the kind of strength you dragon possessed, it makes me wonder if he can burn through the boundary and cloaking spells. It’s just a theory but we never know. Try it out."
Lotus’s words gave Siroos a new kind of hope.
’I will love trying that,’ the dragon agreed with what Lotus had said.
"Time will tell but it’s a good suggestion."
Lotus then turned to Faris and extended a pendant towards him too, very similar to the one she had previously given to Cassandra.
"I know you are strong, but you are venturing into vampire territory; they are vicious creatures with malicious intent. This will protect you. Stay safe, Faris and I am sorry about Ara." Lotus gave him a tiny wounded smile.
Faris accepted the pendant with a courteous nod.
"I appreciate it. I am not sure if I had found my mate or if I was tricked, but it’s certain that she was colluding with the enemy, and I am screwed either way. My blunder let him take SIL," Faris told her with a saddened heart, all those boyish charms of his had vanished after these heartwrenching events.
"Hey! No gloominess and no self-blame. You are the most optimistic, charming and lovely young man I have ever met. Don’t let anyone snuff that light out. I am sure there is an explanation for whatever transpired or at least a chance for you to find what you are looking for. I know you will bring my sister back," she assured him with her captivating smile and Faris couldn’t help but return it.
Siroos and Razial let them have this moment. Now that Razial knew Lotus didn’t feel anything for the young man and was only trying to vex him during their visit to Dusartine, he felt less threatened by his presence.
Besides, Faris still seemed to be in the mourning and self-deprecation stage.
Both brothers mounted their horses, they had on large woollen cloaks which Razial had arranged for them. Siroos had a head cloth to keep his head and face covered, too; he didn’t want anyone to recognise him, even on the way.
Saying their goodbyes, they set off on a journey to rescue Cassandra. The hawk shifter stayed with Lotus, in case they needed to deliver a message.
Lotus sent a silent prayer after them, hoping they would be able to locate and rescue Cassandra. The locator spell they had tried earlier had failed due to the cloaking spell on the palace where Kanyon was holding her sister.
They watched them gallop away, the dust flying behind them as the ground shook from the hooves, until silence prevailed again.
In the distance, an owl hooted.
"Should we head back, before our absence is noticed?" Razial asked, stepping closer to Lotus.
"Yes! Our work here is done for now." She turned around and found herself staring at his well-built chest. Although it was hidden under a pile of clothes, it was still quite broad and Lotus found herself staring.
From the moment he started helping her and had appeared in that prophecy, a fair amount of animosity Lotus felt for him had evaporated.
"Or we can sit and talk for a while if you wish," he suggested, watching her closely.
A ringlet of light blonde shade was peeking out the brown hood she wore. She detested the bland brown colour of her cloak, but it was mandatory not to attract attention.
The curled string of hair touched Lotus’s pink cheek, and jealousy embroiled inside Razial; his fingers would be a more desirable replacement.
"About what?" Lotus’s pink tongue rolled out and she licked her drying lips. Harsh weather was taking a toll on her skin and she was too occupied with her sister’s disappearance to take care of it. .
"Whatever you like?" His tone dropped to suggestiveness as his blue eyes sparkled like the sea on a sunny day, full of vigour and love.
An unease rose inside Lotus’s heart. Not the one who wished to push him away but the one who wanted to keep staring into those sucking blue pools of his.
"Umm... I guess, thank you, you were quite helpful. I appreciate it..." she trailed off, not sure what to say anymore. Getting tongue-tied was not one of Lotus’s attributes.
Razial’s hand landed under her delicate chin and subtly lifted it so she would stare into his eyes again. They were such a dreamy shade and he could never get enough of them.
"You are welcome; I told you I will always be there for you," he spoke slowly and surely, and Lotus didn’t like how his voice nudged her heartbeat to rise.
"Ahm, yes. We should head back." She freed her chin from his hold and he let her go with a sigh, helping her climb her mare.
Off they went back to the castle. To their surprise, Stephanie was waiting for them in the stables with a wicked smile when they entered.