ASHER I stared into my son’s eyes with disdain as I fought to refocus my mind. Out of the corner of my vision, I could see Cassandra leaving the chamber. Though I needed to concentrate on Marco’s words, I was still a little bothered after my encounter with the healer. “Marco, why are you here?” I asked him as my frustration began to rise. When my son began to pout, I decided to soften my tone. The boy was visibly distressed and I didn’t want to usher in another tantrum. “What’s going on?” Though I didn’t want to admit it, part of me knew that I’d been neglecting the boy quite often these days. I’d been so caught up in all of the drama of the snakes and the market, and the other various goings on in Anemond that I’d barely even seen Marco. “Daddy, why haven’t you visited Mommy?” Marco whined, and his lip began to quiver. “She was severely hurt and she’s in pain. She needs you right away, Daddy!” A heavy sigh escaped me before I could stop it. Adalyn. Just the thought of her made
ASHER When Cassandra Keller arrived at my study for the health check the next day, I was still thinking about Adalyn’s accusatory words. I wasn’t stupid enough to fall for the claim that the healer was somehow entangled with the king of Yurene. There was no way she had anything to do with him. I knew Adalyn’s words had come from jealousy. And yet, I couldn’t help but consider Kaleb. The way the king from the North treated Cassandra bothered me greatly. There was something there in the way the tall, foreign man studied her. There was an affection that I didn’t like, one that even now, I couldn’t deny. But a spy? No. There was no way that the beautiful healer I’d plucked all the way from Wild Crawler was an operative. “Is everything okay?” she asked me quietly. “Sure,” I remarked simply. She spread her supplies out on my desk and then got to work. As she poked and prodded me, my mind began to wander until I finally slipped back into reality. Cassandra was engrossed in her work. I
CASSANDRA Even though I wanted to tell Asher everything and reveal what the king of Yurene and I had spoken about after Margaret had left the room, Kaleb had asked me to keep the details of our conversation a secret. I couldn’t betray anything about his father’s illness, not when he’d been kind enough to save me so many times. And besides, there was no way I could even remotely mention Kaleb’s offer to join him in the North. There was no possible way Asher could understand that, not even a little bit. Hell, I couldn’t even understand it myself, not when there was so much going on. The snake pit. Adalyn. The encounter with the Alpha King in his chambers last night… I certainly couldn’t say anything after last night. I could hardly stand to be in the same room as Asher. His proximity to me was far too much already that I could barely handle this health check without losing my mind. Was he still thinking about it as much as I was? Still thinking about me, the way I’d wrapped my
CASSANDRA We left Asher’s study immediately, and the moment we set foot in the hallway, the guards stationed outside both glanced at each other in alarm. “Is everything all right, Your Majesty?” one asked as he studied the Alpha King’s expression. To his credit, Asher was looking slightly exhausted. His dark circles were far more present than they’d been in the past week. As the illness was affecting him more and more, his physical appearance began to look more sickly. He was still as handsome as ever, but it was evident he wasn’t sleeping much these days. “I’m fine,” Asher answered him politely. “I’ll return shortly. I’m going to accompany Healer Cassandra on an errand. Remain here.” “Yes, Your Majesty,” the guard replied obediently, and after he offered Asher a nod, the Alpha King turned to me and gestured forward. “Let’s go,” he said, and then we made our way down the hall. Our walk down to the royal library was silent, and I once again found myself surprised that Asher was
ASHER “Your Majesty, I think the intruder could be the same man from the basement,” Cassandra explained from the far side of the room. After the healer had announced her theory in the library, I’d asked her to speak with me privately back in my study. I didn’t want to further trouble the librarian, who was already completely on edge or give the other guards further reason to panic. If the intruder was amongst the guards as we suspected, I also didn’t see any reason to reveal too much information to the ones present in the library. I wasn’t sure who I could trust these days, apparently, so I assigned the ones who’d investigated the trashed room to clean up for the librarian. So now, it was just Cassandra and I alone together in the study. As she explained her train of thought, I couldn’t help but admire her intelligence. Not only was she incredibly beautiful, but she was very smart, and I liked it. Cora had been highly intelligent too. It was one of the traits I loved the most abo
CASSANDRA“Lancel looks so sullen,” Becky whispered to me quietly.My assistant and I were hard at work in the lab, and Asher’s head guard was perched near the door. The older gentleman had a look of disdain on his face, but I wasn’t sure if that was due to any actual reason or if it was just his appearance.Either way, I stifled a giggle.“Don’t take it personally,” I whispered back. “Maybe he’s just having a bad day or something.”“Or maybe it’s just his face,” Becky joked. I started cracking up immediately. Though we were two different people, we had the exact same sense of humor. Becky always knew how to make me laugh.My assistant was right of course. Lancel was a very serious guard and performed his duties diligently. I’d hardly ever seen him smile. Even when I was younger, I rarely saw the man’s expression change.Then again, Lancel had never really liked Cora. I didn’t know why exactly, but maybe it was because he thought the poor, miserable girl brought his Alpha too many dif
CASSANDRA A lump formed in my throat and my heart began to race as I stood frozen in the doorway. Beyond the table, Erika gave me an apologetic expression and mouthed the word “sorry”. I could tell she felt bad that they were there, but I knew it wasn’t her fault. Erika couldn’t stop the Alpha King’s wife and son from entering even if she wanted to. Adalyn continued to stare at me coldly, and Erika hustled to my side. “Erika, could you please prepare some tea?” I asked her quietly. “In the meantime, I’ll deal with Lady Adalyn.” “Are you sure, Cassandra?” the maid replied, and her eyes widened. “I can stay-” “I can do this,” I insisted. “Please leave us.” Erika nodded and then slipped away to make the tea. Once she was gone, I turned to Lancel. “Could you grant Lady Adalyna and me some privacy?” I requested, but the older man didn’t seem too keen on the idea. “I’ll be right here,” he said curtly, and he crossed his arms against his chest. Frustration swelled within me, and I re
CASSANDRA Adalyn’s eyes widened at the commotion and she sprang into action. She rose from her seat, swept Marco into her arms, and backed away from the table. “What’s going on?” she demanded, and she looked between Erika and me. “Something doesn’t make sense here. Are… are you trying to kill me?”Her tone grew more shrill with every word and her body began to tremble. I didn’t know what to say, but I knew I had to say something quickly. Arguing with Adalyn didn’t matter. All I wanted was for Lancel to catch whoever was eavesdropping on us. “Answer me, healer!” Adalyn shouted when I didn’t reply. “Lady Adalyn, if I wanted you to die, I wouldn’t have stopped you from drinking that tea,” I pointed out to her as I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Adalyn’s face contorted, but she didn’t have any other argument to make She held Marco close and rushed out of the room. I had half a mind to stop her and beg her to stay here in the chamber. It could be dangerous out there if the guards
CASSANDRAIt was a sunny day, the first one in a long time.After the long winter and cold spring, summer eventually came, and it was hotter than it had been in forever.Sunlight streamed in through the clinic window, and I was a little distracted as I stared out at the window at the kids in the yard.Finnick, Lila, Marley’s boys Eric and Adrian, and Dominic were all chasing each other, playing a game of tag with one another. Marco was out there with them too, but he was sitting on a bench alone, meters away from the rest of the kids. He looked lonely and didn’t move as the others played around him.It had been a month since the chaos in Merliscire and Adalyn’s death. I supposed it was still hard for Marco to accept the fact that his mother was gone. She had killed herself right in front of him after holding him hostage and threatening to hurt him. The poor little boy had endured so much trauma in such a short amount of time.He wasn’t a bad kid. He had a mean disposition at times, bu
ASHERIt had been a while since Cassandra entered the building, and with every passing minute, my nervousness and anxiety grew stronger. While I knew she was capable of handling herself, I didn’t like the idea of her being in the House of Moses without me.I began to feel restless. It was a mistake to let her leave with Adalyn alone.I pondered my options for a minute and then decided I couldn’t wait out on the grounds any longer, not when my mate could be in danger. I started to walk toward the building, but before I could get too far, the soldiers guarding us stopped me.At first, they were polite but quickly, they became rude. They shouted and told me to back up. I wasn’t allowed in, not until Lady Adalyn said so.I considered pushing past them but didn’t want to escalate the situation, so I nodded and retreated ever so slightly. All around me, the councilors grew restless. They too, wanted to leave, only they desired to go back to Merliscire. However, when a group of them tried to
BECKYAfter our conversation with Oliver Moses, Dickson and I had been seized by the Moses guards and taken into a room that appeared to be used for interrogation. The door was crafted from iron and there were no windows, so the room was dim and quiet. There were only a pair of chairs, each a little rickety and old-looking. It was a pathetic, desolate sort of place, which was surely on purpose.Time didn’t make much sense in there and I soon couldn’t figure out how long we’d been locked in. My body ached and my mind was spinning out with a million thoughts as I absorbed all of the information I’d heard in the past couple of days.I had thought Oliver Moses would quickly find out the truth or ask me to confront Adalyn again, but Dickson thought the opposite when I presented the idea to him.“Look at this place, Becky,” he said, his voice gloomy and negative. “No one is going to visit us any time soon.”Sadly, he appeared to be correct, and his point was only proven as time went on. Tho
ADALYN Ada. How long had it been since I’d heard that name? My parents had never referred to me as Ada. They had never given me a single nickname or pet name. Mother had always said it was improper to call a child by anything other than their name and Father had never given me enough affection to bother. There were only two people in this world who had ever called me Ada. Asher. And Cora. I tensed as I tried to understand how Cassandra knew this. Had Asher told her about our close friendships when we were young? No, there was no way. Suddenly, I was hit with a realization, one I couldn’t ignore. I stared at Cassandra and studied her carefully. I searched her features, scrutinizing her nose, her mouth, the shape of her eyes. None were familiar, but as I stared at her deep emerald green irises and recognized the hue of them, it all began to make sense. I’d never understood how Asher could fall in love with a common healer. Cassandra wasn’t ugly by any means but to care so deepl
CASSANDRAAdalyn’s golden eyes narrowed and then locked on mine.“Why would that wicked woman come with us?” she demanded as she continued to shoot daggers in my direction.“Those are my terms,” Asher insisted. “You want an audience with me? Those are my requirements.”It was a bold assertation on his behalf. As long as Adalyn had Prince Marco in her grasp, she had the upper hand, but she was far too weak to realize her power. Asher was still the Alpha King, after all, so I supposed that subconsciously, she felt compelled to obey.Silence hung heavily in the air and then finally she sighed.“Fine,” she huffed and then she flashed me a sneer. “Let her come. Perhaps we’ll have some fun with your little plaything once we’re there.”“You won’t harm her,” Asher growled.“We’ll see,” Adalyn said with a shrug. “Come. It’s time we left this musty room.”Her big eyes scanned the room and then she addressed the councilors. “The rest of you shall come as well. Might as well make an event of it.”
CASSANDRAAdalyn’s face twisted again at Karsh’s cold and daring question, only this time, she didn’t recover and lost any sense of calm within her.“How dare you demean the future king’s mother?” she roared, her golden eyes flashing with anger as she bared her teeth.Despite her outrage and fierce expression, the councilor remained as cool as ever and didn’t even flinch. It was an impressive sight to behold and it made me respect Karsh even more. Adalyn had always been a brat but I had the sense that her ferocity wasn’t something to take lightly, at least not today.“I’m just stating the truth, Lady Adalyn,” Karsh said with a slightly raised chin, his eyes locked on hers. “The king is alive, I can assure you-”Before he could finish his statement, Adalyn motioned with her hand and gave a signal to the soldiers behind her.“Seize that traitor!” she ordered, and her men launched into action at once.My heart raced in my chest as I saw the soldiers approach Karsh, but before they could
CASSANDRAThankfully, Adalyn’s proposal wasn’t as convincing to the councilors as she’d expected. It was clear from the glint in her golden eyes and the proud expression on her beautiful face that she assumed all would accept the idea of Marco’s ascension without complaint, but that couldn’t have been further from the truth. The room dissolved into whispers and gasps at once.One of the councilors I didn’t know the name of cleared his throat and all fell quiet.“Pardon me for my bluntness, Lady Adalyn, but it’s absurd to announce a new Alpha King when there is no evidence showing that the king is dead,” he pointed out, his thick dark eyebrows furrowed at her. “We have nothing of the sort before us-”“The forensic report will explain everything-” Adalyn began to say but the councilor waved her off with his hand.“A report means nothing,” he stated boldly, and then he glanced around the room to garner attention from the other councilors. “If the Alpha King is dead, we need to see his co
CASSANDRAOne thing was absolutely certain amongst Asher, the councilors he trusted, and I.Whatever Oliver Moses wanted to do at the council meeting, we needed to stop him. We were in complete agreement but knew we needed others to agree to our cause. We needed the support of other Packs in order to bring him down, and knew we wouldn’t get far without it.“Oliver Moses has quite a number of soldiers stationed in Anemond, especially around Merlisicre,” Karsh revealed solemnly. “If we want to confront the Moseses, we will need a troop of good soldiers of our own.”Though I didn’t want to admit it, the councilor was correct in his assessment. Despite having support from Alpha Gareth, Wild Crawler on its own couldn’t provide enough soldiers. If we wanted to gather real numbers to stand against the Moses soldiers, we needed to contact other Packs and ask for their support.“Your Majesty, it would be best for you to remain in the darkness before the meeting,” Jacoby advised after a moment
ADALYNThis girl was stupid and annoying, to say the least.Yet, despite these facts, I regretted that I had underestimated her. I should have dealt with the tiny redhead girl right after Cassandra Keller had disappeared. Now, she had become a big problem, one I wasn’t sure how to handle.“I was hiding in the room next to yours when you spoke,” Becky chimed in.Father’s face changed when she mentioned the meeting. His complexion paled and his hazel eyes widened, but when he ran his hands through his graying hair, it was clear that he seemed convinced by her words.I had to hand it to her.Placing herself at the scene of the crime was a bold move, one I wasn’t sure how to work around. This was damning to be certain but I had to remain collected if I wanted to make it out of this and continue my plans without interruption.Silas’ little kitten was a true thorn in my side.Father studied the girl’s expression like a fox studying its prey. “I hope you acknowledge that you will be punished