“Make contact, find out what they want,” Ael ordered and waved his hand in the direction of the doors. Praxis left the room and closed the doors behind him.
“Ael, may I be excused? I have a hot date with curves I would like to get to,” Luelle said to him, foregoing formalities. She rarely called him by his titles unless others were around. Luelle was one of his oldest friends.
He chucked, the sound low in his Fae form, and waved toward the door again, excusing her. Luelle walked out, her long flaxen hair pulled back into a tight ponytail with curls at the end that swayed with each step.
He watched the ponytail leave.
When the doors finally closed, he anxiously pulled out the stone and looked at it. His heart was racing, and he drew a deep breath to steady himself.
“Seda Arbor,” he said to the stone.
He anxiously watched the clear stone. Nothing happened for a few moments, and Ael was about to curse the old witch for her trickery when it began to shine brightly, lighting up his palm.
He stared at it intently as the image of Seda appeared. She looked exhausted from her journey. He sighed in relief, seeing that she was alive and safe, and his eyes caught on arms wrapped around her body.
Frantically, he looked closer to the stone. The image panned out, and Kalon came into view. He was holding her the same way thathehad her on the trip.
What the fuck?!
Memories of her soft body pressed against him as he carried her through the woods, of their day waking up in his bed together, the countless times they shared laughs as he slowly broke down her walls, showcasing that beautiful, kind, strong woman within.
He struggled to remind himself that Seda was free to make her own decisions, but the fiery dragon of jealousy churned deep inside him. He took a deep breath, and his magic billowed from his nostrils, spreading across the face of the stone and creating a fog around the moving images of Seda and Kalon. He wished he could hear what they were saying. He was determined to watch this fucking stone all night long if he had to.
Even if it meant seeing things he’d regret.
He was watching it intently, unblinking, checking if Kalon moved his hands anywhere that was questionable, when a knock came at the door.
He quickly pocketed the stone. “Come in.”
An elderly Fae woman with gray hair and a stern face entered the room. She bowed.“Your Highness, we welcome you back to Umbrea. I’ve selected five of our top women for your selection.” She rose and waved her hand toward the door.
Five beautiful Fae women, wearing little more than a vibrant array of see-through lace scarves that clung to their naked bodies, walked in and bowed deeply before him.
“You may have as many as you like, Sire,” the woman said.
Chapter 40
Seda
Everyone gradually moved forward through the towering mushrooms that blocked out the sky. As the mushrooms grew larger, the smaller ones became scarce on the ground. Kalon carefully set Seda down once the small mushrooms had disappeared, and Elco, Roya, Ferona, and Feich followed on foot with them. They stepped over glowing moss balls that shone brightly, gently illuminating the darkened area.
Seda gazed at the ghostly white stems that grew into wide-brimmed, velvety, red caps, admiring their wonder.
Benny held up his fist at the front of the line again. Everyone stopped. He slowly turned around to face them, putting his finger over his lips as a sign for silence.
Seda looked around nervously as she felt a tingling at the back of her neck. She kept peering into the dark clearings between themushrooms, hoping to see something, anything. The sensation of being watched weighed heavily on her skin.
“I smell something,” Elco told her.
Seda sniffed and looked at him in confusion, then glanced around their surroundings.She didn’t smell anything except the damp soil and the earthy scent of the mushrooms.
A fleeting shadow blurred past them in the darkness, causing Seda to hold her breath as her heart raced.
“Did anyone else see that?” Askold asked as he drew his sword.
Ojore sniffed the air. “I smell food.”
Seda inhaled deeply through her nose, but still couldn’t smell anything.
