“Alright,” he finally said, turning around and walking away.
Jazz stood there a minute, surprised at the answer. She hadn’t expected Jake to trust her so easily. She allowed herself a smile before following him out, her heart feeling lighter than it had in days.
∞∞∞
Jake ran as fast as he could, his powerful legs allowing him to run faster than his soldiers. He looked back and saw that Jazz was almost at his tail, following him towards the cliff.
“Sir.” He heard his soldier’s voice in his head. “We found the trail of the thief. Someone very recently passed through the cliff.”
“Whoever it is, is almost to the temple,” Lawrance said when Jake told him. "I can make out a silhouette in front."
"We will never be able to reach him in time." Bane snarled. “We can assume that the temple is also protected by the enchantment, just like the tower.”
Jake had already realized all this, and he turned around to look at Jazz. He had to admit, she had one of the most beautiful bear forms that he had ever seen. Her beautiful silver coat shined in the light.
“Jazz. You said you could run faster than anyone else,” Jake said to her. “Stop him.”
“Oh, with pleasure,” Jazz said, grinning. Within a second, she shot forwards, outrunning them all easily. Within a minute she was so far away that she was out of his sight.
Jake picked up the pace and his soldiers did the same. Even though Jazz might catch up to the thief, there was a good chance that she wouldn’t be able to fight him. Especially if the thief was anything like the one before.
He started to hear growling and roaring and he realized that Jazz must be fighting the thief. He tried to run even faster, as the air filled with howls of pain.
“Sir!” Bane gasped out, as Jazz came flying in the air. She landed on the ground near Jake’s feet, who stopped running. She was injured and bleeding.
Jake looked up and froze in shock. There in front of him stood the thief who had stolen the ruby. It was Zao…
Chapter 11
Jake
Jake stared at the tattoo on her smooth stomach. The rare Celtic symbol spiraled around her belly button, before trailing upwards. Jake traced his finger on it as if trying to make sure that it’s real.
“So, that’s why you can’t tell me the name,” he said, looking up at her.
She didn’t reply, just stared at him. He let go of her and got up, pacing the room to clear his head.
“You took the oath of death?” Jake asked, his back towards her.
“Yes,” she whispered.
“You can’t tell me anything about that man because if you do, you will die?” Jake asked.
“Yes,” she whispered once again.
“Right,” said Jake, starting to pace the room again.
“Is that really so bad?” Jazz asked, her voice soft.
“Is it really so bad?” Jake repeated. “Is it really so bad to take an oath that has its very basis in black magic?”
He whipped around to look at her and said, his voice dangerously calm, “Is it really that bad to tie yourself with the evilest and darkest form of magic known to the world?”
“It was his condition,” Jazz said, looking at him defiantly. "The only way he would give me the job was if I took the oath. It was the reason he was paying so high for it.”
“How desperate does one have to be to make an oath like this?” Jake hissed. “How pathetic can you be to take an oath like this just for money?”
“You don’t know-” Jazz started to say, but Jake cut her off.
