In the dim light of Darius's room at the Inn that afternoon, shadows danced ominously along the walls as he grappled with a moral dilemma. The promise he had made to Seraphina's mute slave weighed heavily on his conscience, yet the stakes were too high to honor it.
With a heavy heart, Darius considered the consequences of letting the slave live. Marcus's safety hung precariously in the balance, especially after intercepting and reading the latest command from Seraphina. Without hesitation, he tore the letter from Vadaloz, which was more like a kill order before the slave could lay eyes upon it. "She cannot kill Marcus," he muttered to himself, the words a desperate mantra. "I won't let it happen."
A gnawing sense of helplessness gnawed at Darius as he contemplated the extent of Seraphina's magical hold over her slaves. All the witches Seraphina had enslaved over the decades have made her more powerful. Her slaves subservience ran deep, shackling them to her will with an invisible chain that rendered escape impossible. His gaze fell upon the slumbering figure of the slave, lying motionless on the bed, a silent testament to Seraphina's tyranny.
"I wish there was a witch in Blackwood," Darius murmured, his voice tinged with longing. "Someone who could free this poor soul from her grasp."
After much agonizing deliberation, Darius reached a grim conclusion. With resolve hardening in his heart, he decided to take matters into his own hands. Swiftly and methodically, he administered a potent sedative to the slave, ensuring he remained incapacitated until dawn. Chains secured the slave to the bed, giving Darius head start out of Blackwood, but first he has to secure Marcus and then Ethan.
As he descended the stairs of the inn, Darius's keen ears caught snippets of conversation from the corner where the Innkeeper handles the day to day management of the inn.
Male voices murmured, their inquiries about him hanging heavy in the air. "They must have found that pretty boy's body. Well, that was fast," Darius mused to himself, a flicker of concern dancing in his mind. "They must have found that pretty boy's body. Well, that was fast," he mused, his mind racing with possibilities.
Approaching the Innkeeper, Darius maintained an air of nonchalance, masking the urgency that pulsed beneath his composed exterior. "Darius is in his room," the Innkeeper informed the men, offering a glimpse into Darius's identity. "He's a cool guy, you know. Doesn't touch a morsel of food, just sniffs it, drinks the wine, and retreats to his room. Only interacts with me and Bertha."
A quizzical expression crossed one of the men's faces as he questioned the Innkeeper's nonchalant acceptance of Darius's peculiar habits. "Didn't it strike you as odd? Someone who only sniffs food and drinks wine, and you didn't think there was something wrong?"
Before the Innkeeper could respond, a commanding voice cut through the air, demanding Darius's room number. The gravity of the situation dawned on Darius, and he knew he had to act swiftly to evade the inevitable confrontation.
With practiced stealth, Darius slipped away unnoticed, making his way to the inn's rooftop. From there, he descended to the back of the building, where the façade of bushes concealed him from prying eyes. With a sense of urgency propelling him forward, he ventured into the unknown, his mind racing for a solution. Pressing forward, he walked for what seemed like an eternity, as his mind kept racing.
It was then that he remembered Seraphina's mute slave, and thought to himself "the poor guy is going to be in a world of hurt whenever he wakes up."
—-------------------
After inadvertently overhearing her mother and Taran's secret conversation, Celeste found herself grappling with a truth that sent shockwaves through her world: her brother Ethan was a werewolf. The weight of this revelation bore down on her, leaving her speechless and uncertain of what to do next. Despite her shock, she resolved to keep this newfound knowledge from her father, fearing the repercussions of such a revelation, she knew exactly what her father would do to Ethan if he finds out the truth.
That afternoon, Celeste retreated to the solitude of her room, seeking refuge from the prying questions of her father regarding Taran, he would ask her if Taran said anything about his accomplices coming to rescue him. She sat in silence, lost in her thoughts, pondering the implications of Ethan's true identity.
As minutes stretched into an eternity, Celeste's solitude was abruptly interrupted by the sound of the door creaking open. Ethan, her brother who lacked the knowledge and discipline of respecting boundaries, entered her room without the courtesy of a knock, a habit that, though familiar, still managed to startle her. His concerned gaze met hers as he inquired about her whereabouts since breakfast.
Attempting to mask her inner turmoil, Celeste conjured a lie. "I was just in the woods," she replied, her voice wavering slightly under the weight of her deception.
Ethan's brow furrowed in confusion. "Really? Because I looked everywhere and couldn't find you," he remarked, his tone tinged with genuine concern.
Unwilling to delve further into her fabricated excuse, Celeste redirected the conversation, eager to divert attention away from herself. "Well, you clearly weren't looking hard enough. But why were you searching for me?" she deflected, her mind still reeling from the revelation she carried.
Ethan settled onto the edge of her bed, his expression somber as he began to recount his encounter with Marcus. He tells her "Marcus kept asking weird questions in front of Taran. As Celeste listened to her brother's words, a bittersweet realization dawned upon her. Despite the monstrous nature hidden within him, Ethan remained inherently innocent—a gentle soul ensnared in the complexities of his dual existence as both man and beast. And in that moment, Celeste couldn't help but wonder what fate awaited her beloved brother in a world fraught with prejudice and fear.
A few minutes later, Viktor's knock echoed through Celeste's door, prompting her to rise from her bed. Ethan trailed closely behind as she goes to face her father after avoiding him for most of that afternoon, but Celeste wasn't the only one avoiding Viktor that day, Ethan was also on the same boat. Ethan greeted his father before departing, leaving Viktor to step into Celeste's room and imposing on her. Standing before her, he inquired, "So, what were you able to find out today? Don't tell me you've got nothing for me."