CASSANDRAA manipulation?My head began to ache as I tried to make sense of all that Kaleb had said. Had Emmett’s interference in saving me from the inferno truly been more than just an act of kindness and heroism?As I thought of Emmett, I remembered the unfinished sentence Emmett had said to me in that dream.I left something for you, Cassandra, and you’re the only one who could use it. And the thing…I felt suffocated by all of this. Between the necklace, my revealed identity, being taken to a foreign land, the downplayed marriage proposal, and now this business with Emmett and his sorcery, I felt as if I were about to break into a million pieces. There was simply too much going on at once, and I couldn’t handle any of it.I wanted to tell Kaleb that everything he’d uttered was wrong- deeply, horribly, completely wrong, but I couldn’t let out a word. The lump in my throat felt like a boulder and my heart kept skipping in my chest. As I swam with dizziness, I began to wonder if I wa
CASSANDRATwo days after my discussion with Kaleb, I found myself sitting outside with Ronald’s fiancee, Helene, on a large terrace. We were seated at a table laden with tea and a tray of delicacies. Despite the nice spread and otherwise nice patio, there wasn’t much scenery to observe.The terrace was on the third floor of Ronald’s tower, and all we could see beneath us were the guards that patrolled the area. There was little else to do, and I found myself missing the trees in Wild Crawler. This place was cold and sterile, and the enormous wall that surrounded the fortress did little to add to the atmosphere. The high, grim wall reminded me that I was a prisoner here and made me deeply uncomfortable. Luckily, the sun was bright and provided some much-needed warmth.When I came to visit Ronald, Helene received me and mentioned that Ronald had some business to attend to. I was about to leave, but she suggested that we enjoy some tea while we waited for him to return. While I wasn’t su
CASSANDRAI turned around and sure enough, Ronald was behind us. He stepped onto the terrace with an equally broad smile on his face, and as he approached, Helene rose from her seat. I did the same thing out of politeness and courtesy. Ronald was the king of Yurene’s cousin after all, so he deserved at least a little respect.Helene met him halfway, and Ronald drew her into a kiss. He held her close and ran his hand through her soft hair affectionately. Once their embrace came to an end, Helene turned to face me.“I’ll let you two talk,” she said in a warm, pleasant voice. “It was nice to see you, Cassandra. Let’s do this again soon.”“Thank you,” I replied with a smile. “I would like that very much.”Ronald kissed the top of her head and then Helene left the terrace. Ronald watched her leave, and once she was gone, he ran his hand through his long brown hair and took her seat opposite me. “Hello, Cassandra. So good to see you. What brings you here on this fine day?”“I was wondering
CASSANDRAI knew my statement was blunt and honestly, quite bold to blurt out, but I couldn’t stop myself. I still had no idea if Ronald could be trusted, but I supposed I had no other choice. I needed someone on my side who could curb Kaleb’s power, and Ronald appeared to be my only option. As a sorcerer, the king’s cousin was immensely talented. He could be the key I needed to make it out of this intact.I opted not to tell Ronald what Kaleb had mentioned about the talisman. I didn’t quite believe what the king of Yurene had said because it sounded far crazier than anything I could accept, but on the other hand, something in my gut told me not to bring it up. If Kaleb was correct and the talisman had something to do with me, being utterly frank with Ronald could be dangerousRonald stared at me for a moment with an expression that was both full of awe and concern. He raised a dark eyebrow at me and remained silent for what felt like an eternity, but finally, he cleared his throat an
CASSANDRABile rose up my throat and my eyes nearly fell out of my head at this suggestion.The idea of marrying Kaleb sounded crazy in so many ways, not to mention terrifying. My body stiffened involuntarily at Ronald’s suggestion and I felt as if I were about to lose consciousness. Was this truly the only way he would collaborate with me?Yet, Ronald made a good point when he said that Kaleb wouldn’t let me know anything if I went against him. The more I cooperated, the more privy to information I would be.As it stood right now, Kaleb might not want to mistreat me, but he was unpredictable. The longer I dragged the situation out, the worse things could be later.And now that Kaleb knew my true identity… like it or not, he would make use of it and use my real name and social standing as a way to manipulate me. There was only one option: to take the initiative and use my circumstances to get more information.But as I stared out at the fortress surrounding Vlokwell, my mind drifted t
CASSANDRAAfter we exchanged goodbyes with the kind shop owner, we left the store and began to roam along the streets. I spotted many clothing stores along our walk, but Helene didn’t seem all that interested. Every time we would go inside one, Helene would peruse the displays and try on a few items, but she didn’t seem impressed by any of them.After we left the third shop, I got the feeling that Ronald’s fiancee didn’t actually want to buy anything. She appeared as if she was just acting like she was shopping, though I didn’t understand why. There was some sort of ulterior motive behind this visit, but what was it?I had no idea what was going on, but I remained cautious regardless.We continued walking down the street, and when I glanced around, I realized we were quite far from where the car had dropped us off. I was admittedly exhausted. I hadn’t walked that much in quite some time. Since I’d been confined to my chambers in Vlokwell, the only exercise I’d gotten was the journey t
KALEBI was in the middle of having a meeting with a few lords when Roxy suddenly burst into the meeting room.While part of me was annoyed by this interruption, I was also a little relieved. This meeting hadn’t been going well.Yurene didn’t work like Wegalla. Once a Pack was taken over by our country, they no longer functioned as a true Pack, as they had before. Their former Alpha was stripped of their title immediately and was no longer a true Alpha. Instead, they were made Lords, their new position authorized by myself, the king of Yurene.I was the only leader these new citizens could pay their loyalty to. That was the rule of our country. But true to our nature, wolves had always lived in Packs and served their own Alpha. So, technically, the Lords still had their independence and absolute authority over their Pack members. Therefore, it was important to make sure the Lords were on my side.At my core, I didn’t believe in faith and loyalty. I knew once my power declined that tho
CASSANDRAI was completely stunned. Had Helene really said that sentence aloud, or had I simply imagined it?Leave Yurene? With her?As the shock of her proposal died down, I realized that Ronald’s fiancee didn’t seem to be joking. Her expression was quite serious. The rosiness of her cheeks had faded and her lips were a solemn, thin line.“I don’t understand,” I uttered for what felt like the millionth time, and after I glanced around us, I lowered my voice even further. “Helene, you’re betrothed to Ronald. Your wedding is scheduled in less than a month. Why would you leave?”“Because I don’t want the wedding to happen,” she replied bluntly. “I don’t want to marry Ronald.”My eyes nearly fell out of my skull and my lips turned into a frown. “I don’t get it. You seem like such a nice couple-”“It’s nothing but a performance,” Helene cut me off and then she shook her head. “I suppose I’m a better actress than I thought. It’s the only way I’ve been able to stay alive for so long. My lif