Chapter 48: Chapter 48

REYNA

I was very much aware of every glance Casvan cast my way. I was so attuned to him on a visceral level that I could hear his heartbeat, which matched perfectly with my own.

That part of me that was new kept urging me to go to him, be with him, forgive him—that my anger was hurting him. In truth, my anger toward him abated the instant I saw the women.

I was just sad now. There was a feeling that told me something had happened to Cassandra, even before Marlenia fell.

I have a complicated relationship with my mother. She was strict with me and rarely showed me any kind of affection, but she’s still my mother.

And despite her many faults, Cassandra wouldn’t have allowed Elizabeth to torture and conduct experiments on me while she was alive. This told me Elizabeth might have killed her to ensure her smooth takeover.

I just prayed that both Cassandra and my nana were okay. Cas told me he’d send his people to search for them.

I was happy to find the women weren’t mistreated in any way, and I was surprised that they weren’t angry or sad. The children were excited about the unexpected move and kept chattering.

Some of the women also joined in, retelling their experiences from when they were first brought here. I’d always thought that the people in Marlenia were content just living there, with no dreams or ambition to change their lives.

But the way these women lit up when speaking about Dakhur—the endless possibilities they could envision, and what they’d already seen of their new home—

I realized they were forced into accepting their reality not because they wanted to, but because they had no better alternatives. I didn’t blame them for being happy here.

I suppose, as people who had lived in hunger and seclusion all their lives with very little to their name, it was understandable for them to be curious and excited when they were in a different world than they knew.

A world that promised everything they’d ever wanted. I was also happy that the little boys were finally free and with the girls.

I had never understood the reason why boys and men had to be segregated from the girls. Though Cassandra and Dr. Elizabeth had always tried to make it seem as though it were to protect both genders.

It just didn’t make sense to me. Why seclude the boys from their families at such a tender age, when they needed them the most?

What use was the vaccine we were given every few months if it couldn’t protect us against the blue mist? There were lots of things that didn’t add up to me, but I knew my nana would help answer some of my questions.

Now there was no reason for her to hide things from me. I was talking to Jenna, whom I was very happy to see was alive.

She and Emma were with the rest of their family unit.

When the large double front doors of the main hall swung open, the large man who strode in was familiar. I knew he was Casvan’s brother.

Kayak—massive and gorgeous, just like his brother. He looked rattled, which was kind of alarming; for a dangerous creature like him to look that way, something bad must have happened.

Without leaving my place, seated right there with the kids, my ears twitched. My new ability brought Casvan and Kayak’s voices to me as though I were by their sides.

It still freaked me out and amazed me that I was a Lycan. A hybrid, as Cas called me when I woke up from my near-death slumber.

“Casvan, we have a situation,” Kayak growled, striding toward Casvan.

“What’s wrong?” Cas growled, his face hard.

“We just found two sentinels dead. One of them was Vok,” Kayak said.

“Fuck, how?” Casvan asked.

“It’s the women—the two with the red dresses. They’ve escaped,” Kayak spat. His face was scrunched like he still didn’t understand how that had happened.

The women weren’t locked up per se. Casvan’s orders were to keep them separated from the rest of the women due to the fact they were the only ones making trouble.

He didn’t want them to aggravate the others. I’d visited them earlier—it was the Roses, Allison and Janet.

Only two years older than me.

“They killed them? How?” Casvan asked.

Then he glanced at me. Our eyes connected, sparking with the hunger gnawing on both ends of our bond.

I looked away and felt the instant Cas returned his gaze to his brother.

“I find it hard to believe that strong, smart Vok had fallen because of these little women,” Kayak muttered.

“Don’t underestimate them, Kayak. Vok was undoubtedly one of my strongest and smartest sentinels. It’s not that the women weren’t capable of killing him—I’d expected him to be able to handle them without any violence to either party.”

“I guess he underestimated the women. I’d never seen anything like it, Cas. Fuck, their bodies looked grotesque—it was like every bone in their bodies had broken. You need to see this. You’ll understand when you see them.”

“Take me there,” Casvan ordered, his face grim.

I stood up fast. I would like to see these men, too.

“I’m also coming,” I said, catching up with both males, who turned to stare at me. I stared at them both blankly, shoulders straight to show them I wasn’t asking.

“I heard everything. The Roses are my people, and I would like to know what happened.”

“Roses?” Kayak asked, a bewildered look on his face.

“Yes, now take me to them,” I ordered, Kayak’s brows slightly arched, probably not used to getting orders from a little human like myself.

He glanced at his brother, who nodded with a twitch of his lips.

“Of course, my queen. Please follow me,” Kayak said, grinning.

I smiled. “I knew I was going to like my Sebek very much.”

“Sebek?” I asked curiously.

“Sister, or sister-in-law as you humans call it.” Instantly, my face flamed.

“Oh, you can just call me Reyna.”

“Okay, Reyna,” Kayak replied with a chuckle as he led us out of the mansion to where the women had been kept in a separate safe house near the dark forest.

Cas opened the door to a big vehicle for me and helped me inside. Kayak was already in the driver’s seat.

When Cas got inside the back seat with me, Kayak started to drive.

My heart thundered in my chest when Cas suddenly leaned in and stole a kiss before relaxing in his seat as though he hadn’t done anything. My lips still tingled with leftover sensations from his lips touching mine.

I glared at him as though I was still angry, despite the burning on my face. The drive lasted for a few minutes.

Before the car arrived at the medium-sized house, most of the houses here were built in triangular or circular shapes, with gleaming gray stones. I tried not to ogle the houses or the two beasts who instantly bowed their heads and started greeting us.

I smiled and nodded to them as Cas talked to them. He guided me inside the room where the two Roses were held, right behind Kayak.

The smell of blood was so strong that I instantly took a step away from where Cas was guiding me. I needed a minute to prepare myself for what I already suspected I was about to see.

My eyes took in the lavishly furnished room curiously. Here in Dakhur, I always felt like I was seeing the world for the first time.

Everything was so beautiful—there were riches everywhere, on the ceiling, in the living room. Men and the few women I’d seen so far all wore gold and gleaming stones, which I knew to be different colors of diamonds.

I shook my head and concentrated on why we were here. My eyes landed on a pair of red dresses, same as the one I had before I was caught butt naked frolicking with the beast.

There was no doubt the Roses were here. I walked toward Casvan; my first glance at the bodies on the ground froze the breath in my chest.

Two huge beasts lay dead, agony lined in their unrecognizable faces, their bodies contorted, bones broken out of shape, so much blood everywhere. Same as the body of the man I’d seen weeks ago, same as the man Olivia had slept with, same as ten years ago.

My face drained of all color, my stomach churned, bile rose up my throat, my legs gave out under me. Casvan was suddenly there, catching me before I crumbled on the floor.

He carried me to the chairs in front of the fireplace. “Take it easy, Kitten, breathe,” he ordered after he’d sat me down.

I was still in shock, my body flush against Casvan’s, breathing his unique scent deeply inside me. He was so hard, strong, and so warm—really the only reason I felt grounded.

His large hand ran through my hair, calming my fraying nerves while the other held me tight. Kayak thoughtfully yanked out the bed sheets and covered the bodies.

“Cas, I’ve seen this before. Back in Marlenia just before the attack, and I think I saw something similar ten years ago,” I whispered. “I think they were poisoned.”

“That’s my thought as well,” he replied. “Reyna, we need to find these females. I need to know what type of poison it was.”

I nodded, knowing it was the right thing to do. No one should suffer or die in this kind of agony.

“Are you going to kill them?” I asked, my voice filled with pain.

Casvan kissed my head but didn’t answer.

I understood what that meant. Though I didn’t condone what the Roses had done, I understood why they did it.

I hadn’t been trained as much as the other girls. And I hadn’t been a Rose for very long—if I could even call myself that now that everything had gone to hell.

But one thing I knew was that the Roses were the highest defense of Marlenia. They were trained to protect their queendom and their people.

By giving away their lives, a part of me hoped they’d escape, while another part wanted them to be found. That made me feel like I’d betrayed them.

I just prayed Casvan would show leniency toward them when they were found, because I knew he would find them. And despite what they did, I was going to convince him to forgive them.

I knew this was his world and he knew it best, but he’d made me a part of his world. And as a Rose, I was going to keep fighting for the rights of my people, even if I was no longer their princess.

I was also Casvan’s mate. His other half. I might have been a Rose, but I was also a Lycan.

I didn’t think I could go back to Marlenia even if I wanted to, which, to be honest, I didn’t. For better or worse, Casvan was mine and we were stuck with each other.

I might have been angry with him, but nothing he did could ever make me hate him.