Chapter 57

[ 1,042 words ]

Jasmine pov:

When someone grabbed my shoulder and shook me from my sleep, my eyes snapped open. Out of habit, I reached under my pillow for my dagger when I recognized the woman.

“Helena?” I frowned, lowering the blade, “You scared me.”

She looked pale, “My lady…” She was breathless and scared, “I can’t find Ma’am Arabella.”

I rubbed a hand sleepily over my face and let out an annoyed sigh, “And you woke me up? Just for that?” I asked her coldly, “I’m not her governess, Helena.”

Helena swallowed, “My lady. I got a direct order from His Highness to stay with her while he was away. I couldn’t find her and made a mistake in not sending him a mindlink. I thought she must be around… but now…” she was wringing her hands in panic.

I leaned back against the headboard and yawned loudly, “Then keep looking…”

“I already have. Please ma’am. I don’t know who to talk to.”

Urgh. Her trembling voice was irritating as hell.

I tried to come up with an excuse when she spoke again, “There is one more thing that you might find odd.”

Odd? I almost laughed. As the head warrior of Lunaris Kingdom, I had witnessed enough rogue attacks and massacres.

Nothing could surprise me anymore.

“Go on,” I said impatiently, pressing my temples.

She swallowed and pointed towards the window, “It’s five in the morning, My Lady… but the sun hasn’t risen. The stars are still there.”

I followed her gaze, and that was when the sleep vanished from my body. I could see stars glittering outside exactly as they had during the night.

The moon hadn’t moved.

“What?” I jumped out of the bed and strode to the window. She was right. It should’ve been dawn by now. A strange chill crawled up my spine.

Either I was dreaming, or something was terribly wrong here.

***

Lucien Volkov:

The meeting had already dragged on for hours, and it was supposed to continue until sunrise. I ran my gaze over the long oak table while elders argued over border routes and rogue movements.

Zorro suddenly stirred inside my head and started pacing.

Mate !

A sharp pain ripped through my chest. It felt as though someone was clawing my ribs. I tried to control my uneven breathing when another wave hit me, stronger this time.

Our mate seems to be in danger!

Zorro snarled so loudly that it rattled my skull. I gripped the edge of the table and sent a mindlink to Helena, “WHERE IS ARABELLA?”

Her panicked voice came to me, “We are searching for her.”

Searching for her? What the fuck was going on?

“YOU BETTER DO, OR YOU DIE!” I hissed through the mindlink.

“Your Majesty?” One of the generals asked cautiously, but I couldn’t answer him. The pain was growing worse.

Zorro was throwing himself against the walls of my mind like a caged beast.

The doors burst open, and a guard rushed inside, breathing heavily with a pale face.

“Something is terribly wrong outside,” Everyone turned towards him, “The sun… it never rose.”

What the fuck was he saying? I gritted my teeth to control the pain.

The guard tried to catch his breath, “Our pack is gathered outside the packhouse. They think we have been cursed by the Moon Goddess.”

“Mate!” Zorro roared, “Remember how a star guided us to her once…”

I shot to my feet, “I’m leaving!” I announced and didn’t wait for anyone’s response.

Bradley followed me outside, and we looked up. The guard was right. We could still see the moon and the stars. Not a single trace of dawn.

“I need to go back!” My beast growled, and I transformed midsentence.

“We can take the car…” Bradley suggested through the mindlink before taking his Lycan form.

“We don’t have time!”

Zorro growled and then let out a deafening roar inside my head.

***

The moment we reached the palace, Mother and Aliya were already outside their quarters with Jasmine.

Helena stood behind them, and the instant she saw me, her face turned deathly pale.

“Lucien! You are here!” My mother rushed towards me the moment I shifted back into my human form, “Look at the sky. What’s going on?”

Bradley tossed me a pair of shorts. I pulled them on without sparing my mother a glance. My eyes were already searching for only one person.

“Lucien. Where are you going?” My mother called after me.

“Arabella!” I said without turning around and broke into a run, leaving all of them standing behind me.

I followed the faint scent of butter croissants and fresh limes that took me to the western training grounds where it only grew stronger.

What the fuck was she doing there? She was supposed to stay in my quarters. What was her problem?

“Lucien!” Bradley shouted behind me, but I was already running. My heart lurched when I saw a motionless figure lying on the cold ground.

“Arabella!” I reached her and dropped to one knee. Her heartbeat was weak, and her dress was drenched in blood.

What happened to her? Who did this to her? There were so many wounds on her arms, face, and legs.

And then I sensed another smell on her. Jasmine’s.

Without wasting a second, I gathered her into my arms and ran to the hospital.

***

The old doctor rushed inside, followed by two assistants. I remained at Arabella’s side, my gaze never leaving her face.

How many times had my mate ended up in this infirmary? That too in such a short span of time.

The doctor who was examining her wounds suddenly knitted his brows.

“What is it?” I demanded.

He looked up at me briefly, “These are silver wounds, My King!”

I got closer for a better look. He examined another mark before speaking again, “These wounds… they were inflicted so they would heal by sunrise.”

Something inside me snapped. Zorro had gone completely silent.

Heal by sunrise?

The moment those words left the doctor’s lips, we heard cheers erupting from outside. Startled, the doctor walked to the door and pulled it open. Someone from the corridor screamed at the top of his lungs.

“Congratulations! The sun is out at last!”

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