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Chapter 34
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Flight of the cardinal Chapter 35
***Warning: Sensitive subject/trigger ahead*** I trained with Diana and Gideon’s help for days. I had progressed considerably with defensive stances and attacking spells. I was happy with the new techniques Diana had found and translated from one book. It brought me back to when I was studying with Otis. The thought of my old magic teacher cramped my heart. We had set up a training area in the library. We placed all the tables and chairs on the sides and sparred in the middle. No one came in here, so it made for a perfect hiding spot from the rebellion leaders. I had been avoiding them. Lord Heron and Count Robin still agreed I should marry Silas, whereas Lord Junco and another Lord named Swallow seemed to have mixed feelings about it. As for Silas Starling, I had not seen or heard from him since our initial meeting with the leaders. I was beginning to think he was angry at me—or angry about this unforeseen situation between Xander and me. Their pressure to marry fueled my irritat
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 36
Xander POVThe ale served at our table was questionable. It was warm and left a bitter taste in my mouth.“It shouldn’t be too long now,” I said while skimming over the crowd gathered in the tavern.Corbin Hawk was sitting impatiently on the other side of the table, his left leg bobbing up and down. He was making me nervous. The fact that the hunter had been silent during our investigation also was very unnerving. He only grunted and gritted his teeth—this was the extent of his muted vocabulary.I had been running in circles throughout the city, dodging the rebels and misleading Mr. Hawk for over a week. Gideon had sent word of a warehouse that housed some goods I could find and destroy without damaging the rebellion. The plan had been perfect, but the hunter was as relentless as my father, making it hard to stick to what I had planned. I had to tip my hat to him. Hawk was highly dedicated. Once he had a scent, he didn’t back down. This also made me wary of him. He had a keen sense
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 37
Diana POV I had been sitting beside Ida for days. I had lost count of them since I couldn’t see the changes in the sky from our underground room. She just laid there, sleeping off whatever had happened. I kept replaying that day in my head. Trying to figure out what was missing to piece everything together and make sense of things. After Gideon had finished training with Ida and she left for the hot spring, he found me with news about Alexander. We were both worried about the time he took to finish his job in Maple and come here. Each day since we arrived at the rebellion headquarters, Gideon would try to get some intel on Alexander’s status with the warehouse and let me know. I used it to calm Ida when I sensed she became nervous. “It’s happening tonight,” Gideon had said to me. I was glad. If Alexander’s job were to end that day, he would return to Ida. Ida’s concentration had become worse with each passing day. To my understanding, once you had found your mate, it was challe
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 38
I opened my eyes to a sleeping Diana. Her upper half was slumped beside me while her legs seemed to lie on the floor. Had she been praying?I moved around to remove the covers and let my limbs breathe. It had been so warm under there. On the night I collapsed, I felt tremendous heat wafting out from the mate bond, so to shield and help Xander, I took some of the heat from him. However, I wasn’t expecting it to burn this much—I had fainted from it. I did it without even knowing if I would survive. The only thing I kept repeating was that Xander needed to live, whatever it cost. I couldn’t imagine my life without him being in it.Diana stirred from my movements and lifted her head off the mattress. When she saw me staring back at her, she almost threw herself over me, but she quickly recomposed herself and helped me out of bed, mumbling some sort of apology. I chuckled at her, then winced at the stiffness of my body.“Ach, I feel like a runaway boulder hit me. How long was I out?”“Lo
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 39
Xander was finally back in my arms, and we were alone under the beautiful glow of the moon and stars. I kissed him fiercely, letting my hands wander the length of his bare shoulders and chest. I broke away, which made him groan against my mouth. I had wanted to remove the shirt that separated my skin from his. Once it was off and on the ground, he circled his arms and lifted me up, positioning me on top of him.I straddled Xander, grinding my hips on his growing bulge. I needed him, needed to touch him. I wanted to forget and think only of Xander. He brought my breast to his mouth and nipped it, grazing the hardened bud of my nipple. I moaned as he swirled his tongue and kneaded my other breast with his hand. I raked my fingers through his black hair and tugged at it slightly, urging him on. I could feel my muscles contract and pressure building up between my legs.I slid my hand along his stomach and gripped his cock, taking my time stroking him. It swelled even more. A thin shee
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 40
I tried to reason with Xander for the better part of the night. If he attacked Silas, who knew what would happen to us. Clearly, Silas had acted alone. The rebellion leaders would have never sanctioned such an assignment. I thought I was too valuable for them to do something that would put me at odds with their cause. Yes, some still wanted me to renounce my engagement to my fated mate—even going as far as suggesting finding a way of removing my mark. But I knew they would condemn Silas’s action. Still, I thought leaving Starling Castle for a while would be best. We made for the underground tunnel, and I guided Xander through its labyrinth. Although Xander worked for the rebellion, he had never come to Perch, so this was his first time walking on rebellion territory. Once we arrived in my room, I quickly closed the door and gestured to some of the men's clothes I had brought. Xander took a pair of pants and pulled his legs into them. They fit… but barely. Diana arrived moments la
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 41
On the morning we left Starling Castle, we met Gideon and Leo on horseback while we were half a day’s ride from Perch. Xander had been right about us meeting them on our way out. Gideon seemed anxious at seeing us this early in the morning, but when Diana and Xander explained what had happened, Gideon had also fallen into a sour mood. I was happy to see little Leo again, and he was a great distraction from the others’ brooding attitude. He sat in between Gideon’s legs, holding the horse’s mane. His eyes lit up at the sight of me, and I pressed my horse closer to Gideon’s, gesturing Leo to come and sit on my horse for a while. I didn’t know if they had used the forest path to leave the city of Maple, but I knew their horse must have been tired of holding up all that extra weight. They even brought back a tiny chest with some of my nicer clothes. I thought it was a friendly gesture on Gideon’s part, but it was pointless since riding on horseback with a gown was tough. I preferred keep
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 42
We had eaten early that morning and packed enough food to last the rest of our journey. Cardinal City was a little less than a day away. Once there, we would go to the Kestrel’s house they owned and used when they were summoned to court. Our horses were fresh and ready to haul us to our final destination. I dreaded our arrival at my old home. The beautiful childhood I had in Cardinal City was now tainted by the events during the uprising. Cardinal City sat atop a mountain. The steep rocky mountainsides protected it, and the only way in or out was through the thick, dark forest that lined it from the south. It reminded me of a peninsula, except air surrounded it, and the city was high above the clouds. It was technically a stronghold. The northern, eastern, and western sides had fortified and patrolled walls that blended with the jagged rocks of the mountain that descended to the ocean, while the ramparts served as the first line of protection for the castle and its inner city. The
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The whip cracked in the air. I felt the leather strings touch my lower back, and as Shrike pulled, I could feel my skin lift and tear. Once the hooks were out, I was flung back near the post. I stopped breathing and tried to control the pain. I had not expected that. “The show is for my personal amusement, as well as to install fear in your mind. Fear in the body is no fun, but fear in the mind, now that is entertaining. Regarding the reasons why I am doing this… let’s just say it’s simply to pass the time until the king arrives, and then we get down to the nitty-gritty.” I felt the leather touch the inside of my ribs. Again, the skin pulled as the hooks receded. Shrike inflicted four more hits, but those had been higher on my back, where my skin was thicker. It pained me less than the previous ones, but I still had to muffle a cry. I started sweating from the pain and noticed that my feet and knees were slipping in the small pool of blood that was accumulating under me. At this rat
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 48 - End
Xander POV When Ida and Diana left the house, I suddenly wanted to tell them not to attend the meeting. My Lycan and I had a bad feeling about all this, mainly with Ida smelling different. Diana had said she was fine, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that she wasn’t. Something in the past few weeks had definitely changed in her. Even Gideon had mentioned it to me. But we both were at a loss to figure out what it was. I couldn’t believe that two prime shifters couldn’t tell what was wrong with her. Leo came out of the house and looked at me, almost pleading with me to take him with us. I ruffled his hair and smiled. “Keep Nimu in the house and ensure everything is ready when we return. The horses must be fed properly if we are to leave in the morning.” Leo’s face turned bitter as he realized he would not be coming with us. He was still young, and I didn’t know what would happen on our outing. It was safer for him to stay indoors with the old wielder. He begrudgingly returned ins
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 47
I closed my eyes and searched for what could unlock the memory orb. I let my energy wander through the glass sphere, pulling some of the power from it. I slowed my breathing and listened to the vibration passing through my fingers and flowing in me. I imagined it looking like a series of small strings tied taut inside the orb—protecting its content like a package needing to be unwrapped. I didn’t quite know what to do, so I whispered an unlocking incantation and felt my magic tug at the invisible strings that resided within. It didn’t want to open. I tried a different approach; I would force the strings and break them. I gathered as much energy as I could muster. My body heated up, and the memory orb became hot as well. I needed to control my power, or it could shatter the delicate magic that created the small spherical storage. Sweat dripped from my forehead, gliding down my side temples and lining the base of my neck. I needed to create a balance between high force and a gentle
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 46
“You both could walk into a trap,” Xander repeated as I dressed in one of my fancier dresses. If I were to leave the house, I thought it best to look respectable. Diana had also dressed nicely. We had chosen these attires to fit better in the crowd. One look at us, and they wouldn’t spare a second glance since we were just another wealthy family staying in the city. My hands were on the poster from the bed, and Diana was cinching up my corset. Each time she tightened a lacing, it constricted my chest and made me take a laboured breath. Why did they have to make those things so tight? Diana pulled on another set of strings, and I almost fainted from the tightness. “Oh, might have overdone it. Sorry, Ida. Let me loosen this a bit,” Diana mumbled as she saw my face pale. Xander growled and sat on the end of the bed, forcing me to look at him. “Stop pretending you can’t hear me! You shouldn’t be going anywhere, Ida. You still smell funny,” he said exasperatingly. “Diana, have you lo
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 45
After days of not hearing anything from Denis, we assumed he had no intentions of aiding us, so we prepared to leave the city. Diana had been a mess since she found out her brother was still alive and had not answered her note. “Do you think he read the message you gave him?” Diana asked me for what seemed like the hundredth time. We had had this discussion on more than one occasion, and I answered each time in the same manner. “I don’t know. I only know Denis took it and placed it in his front pocket. Will you tell me what was on that piece of paper I gave him?” Diana bit her lip while she continued folding some of our clothes. She kept the message secret, not wanting us to know what she had written. It had caused quite a commotion with Xander, who feared that Diana would betray and sell us out to her brother. I understood his annoyance, but I also understood the secretiveness Diana was keeping. The Chickadees had knowledge that no one else possessed concerning the contents of
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 44
After Diana’s name left Denis’s lips, he rapidly collected himself and cleared his throat. “I’m so sorry. I mistook you for someone I knew long ago. Please forgive my misobservation. Allow me to help you. That was quite a tumble you almost had.” Denis gingerly got up and made his way to help Diana with the mess the fallen tray had left. “Please, let me take care of it, Sir,” I interjected, stepping before Diana. Whatever had happened, Diana still seemed a little shaken by the event. She straightened and mumbled, “It’s fine,” then gathered the broken porcelain. I didn’t think my friend almost fell; her path was clear, and Diana had an extremely sure footing from being a maid for such a long time. I thought she let the tray slip by sheer shock. If this man knew her, and she knew him, and they both acted like they didn’t know each other, I thought it best to separate them before the guards became suspicious. I glanced at Xander, who took the hint and asked the curator questions abou
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 43
No one came to get us for three days. Xander’s patience had thinned to the point where he was becoming irritable. None of us dared to leave the house except Diana, who was human. She went out for food and supplies, then returned and left again if we required something else. Gideon, Nimu, Leo, Xander, and I had preferred staying indoors, peering through the windows. We were now in the city where red was forbidden. Looking at the citizens walking past the house, I saw none with red hair. I dyed mine brown to ensure the redness wouldn’t attract unwanted questions. I thought it more prudent for when we would need to go to the Arcane Library. I wasn’t planning on wearing the enormous hat again. I thought it was over the top for the gowns I had in the small chest we had brought. We were lucky that Lady Lucia had left some of her crinolines and petticoats here from her last visit. We hadn’t had enough space to bring my own, and I wanted to dress according to being engaged to a lord. This
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 42
We had eaten early that morning and packed enough food to last the rest of our journey. Cardinal City was a little less than a day away. Once there, we would go to the Kestrel’s house they owned and used when they were summoned to court. Our horses were fresh and ready to haul us to our final destination. I dreaded our arrival at my old home. The beautiful childhood I had in Cardinal City was now tainted by the events during the uprising. Cardinal City sat atop a mountain. The steep rocky mountainsides protected it, and the only way in or out was through the thick, dark forest that lined it from the south. It reminded me of a peninsula, except air surrounded it, and the city was high above the clouds. It was technically a stronghold. The northern, eastern, and western sides had fortified and patrolled walls that blended with the jagged rocks of the mountain that descended to the ocean, while the ramparts served as the first line of protection for the castle and its inner city. The
Flight of the cardinal Chapter 41
On the morning we left Starling Castle, we met Gideon and Leo on horseback while we were half a day’s ride from Perch. Xander had been right about us meeting them on our way out. Gideon seemed anxious at seeing us this early in the morning, but when Diana and Xander explained what had happened, Gideon had also fallen into a sour mood. I was happy to see little Leo again, and he was a great distraction from the others’ brooding attitude. He sat in between Gideon’s legs, holding the horse’s mane. His eyes lit up at the sight of me, and I pressed my horse closer to Gideon’s, gesturing Leo to come and sit on my horse for a while. I didn’t know if they had used the forest path to leave the city of Maple, but I knew their horse must have been tired of holding up all that extra weight. They even brought back a tiny chest with some of my nicer clothes. I thought it was a friendly gesture on Gideon’s part, but it was pointless since riding on horseback with a gown was tough. I preferred keep
