And then, there it was.
The victorious roar that shot out of my throat startled Eleni. She cast a confused look my way only to see me dive towards the location.
“Nine Hells!” Eleni exclaimed when she finally realized the reason for my reaction. She directed her Galadia to follow me and landed by my side a few moments later while I shifted back into my human form.
“We found it! I can’t believe we fucking found it!” she exclaimed while hopping off her mount.
“I knew we would,” I said smugly. “But I wouldn’t have minded us finding it sooner.”
She chuckled as she circled around the small clearing surrounded by thick bushes and trees on three sides, and a swamp on the remaining one. That amusement quickly faded, and an air of unease settled on her face as she took in our environment.
“What is it?” I asked with a sliver of concern.
She raised her index finger to indicate for me to wait a second before casting a spell. My eyes widened when a hidden portal pentagram appeared woven directly in the ground.
“No,” Eleni whispered with a horrified expression.
She stumbled back out of the circle, her face going pale as if a terrifying beast had suddenly lunged at her from the shadows.
“What’s wrong?” I demanded, invoking my lightning powers, ready to blast any threat or mystify anyone foolish enough to endanger my mate.
“I know this place,” she whispered, still visibly rattled.
“Youknowthis place?” I repeated, confused. “How?”
“This cannot be a coincidence,” Eleni whispered to herself while looking around us as if in search of something or someone.
“You’re not making sense,” I said, starting to feel irritated. “What’s going on?”
“I’m sorry,” she said in an apologetic tone while shaking her head as if snapping out of the shock whatever was happening had given her. “I’ll tell you everything, but not here. Later.”
“Should we leave then?” I asked, hating to be left in the dark.
My mate forcefully shook her head. “No, it’s fine. I was just reeling from shock.” She then pointed at the pentagram. “This pentagram works only one way. It is merely an exit waypoint. Unfortunately, it cannot tell us from whence the people who appear here came.”
“Could you set up detection runes to do that?”
“Good Gods, no! They would more than likely feel our magic,” Eleni exclaimed.
She waved her hand while casting another reveal incantation. When nothing happened, she looked utterly baffled.
“This is the place! They should be here!” she whispered again to herself.
“What’s missing?” surprised by the patience I was displaying.
“There were outgoing portals,” she said absentmindedly while examining the ground and our surroundings. “This place was a travel hub for the Cult.”
“Which cult?”
“Let’s go home. I’ll explain everything then,” she said before marching towards Pasha.
Despite my burning curiosity and impatience, I complied. The fact that she called my place home undoubtedly played a part in further pacifying me. As soon as we landed, Morrech proceeded to serve our meal on the terrace. I almost felt guilty as we took our place at the table. The poor male was going out of his way to prepare fancy dishes to impress Eleni. Sadly, most of the time, we would start eating and then get frisky, forgetting about food to indulge in something far different.
“All cooked food today?” Eleni asked teasingly when she failed to spot the usual plate of raw meat Morrech often included in the menu.
I chuckled. “While I do like certain meats raw, unless it is a fresh kill or something still alive, then there is no benefit to me. So for everything else, I prefer to eat it cooked with nice spices.”
“I’m sure Morrech would have gladly hunted something for you, or you could have caught something along the way,” she countered with a mischievous glimmer in her eyes.
