Page 94 of Dark Witch: Entangled Fates

"That's affinity?"

Amanda nodded. "Like recognizes like. Dormants and immortals are drawn to each other, and so are Dormants and other Dormants."

"I'll be damned." Jasmine slumped against the couch cushions. "I can turn immortal? How, though? Is there a blood transfusion involved, gene therapy?"

"Venom and seed," Amanda said. "And Edgar can supply both, but he needs your permission to do so first. We try not to induce anyone without getting their informed consent. Sometimes it happens by chance, but we try to do it the right way when we can."

Jasmine shifted her gaze to Edgar. "You have my consent. Whatever it takes, I'm game. I want to be immortal, and I want to be part of this world." She shook her head again. "This is so much bigger than getting a job at Perfect Match."

Kian chuckled. "I would say. But we are not there yet. We need to talk to you about the prince."

Jasmine once again glanced at Edgar before shifting her gaze back to Kian. "What about it?"

"We are looking for a lost prince," Amanda said. "We think that you can help us find him." She turned to Syssi. "Do you want to take over from here?"

Syssi nodded, and as Jasmine turned to look at her, she smiled. "I get visions sometimes. They are mostly vague and often unpleasant, but in one way or another, they always come true. I had a vision about you helping us find the prince or, rather, the royal twins. A brother and sister landed on Earth in an escape pod when their ship exploded. The pod is lost somewhere, but the people inside might still be alive. They have a type of life support that we call stasis, and they can stay in that state for a very long time."

"How long ago did the escape pod land?" Jasmine asked.

"More than a hundred years ago," Kian said. "But the life support can go on indefinitely, or as long as the pod is not too damaged."

"Poor people." Jasmine swallowed. "Naturally, I'm willing to assist in any way I can to locate them, but I'm not sure how."

"I'm not sure either," Syssi said. "But you have a connection to the prince, and in my vision, I saw you standing over a crater and looking down at a pod, and you were not alone. You were with Negal, Dagor, and Aru. Did Margo tell you about her plans after the cruise?"

Jasmine shook her head. "How is she connected to this? And what have I to do with her and Frankie's boyfriends?"

Amanda was once again impressed with Jasmine's levelheaded response. "Margo is mated to Negal, who along with Dagor and Aru are on a quest to find the royal twins and other escape pods from the destroyed ship."

Edgar emitted a low growl. "The hell Jasmine is going after some Kra-ell prince," he snarled, his eyes glowing. "Those twins are rumored to be extremely powerful, and no one knows anything about them. They might be evil, twisted beings."

Kian shot him a warning glare. "Let Jasmine absorb what she's learned so far and come to terms with the truth of who she is and what she's capable of. We will discuss safety precautions later."

Syssi leaned over and put a hand on Jasmine's knee. "Your prince is not necessarily your romantic partner. Sometimes, the most important relationships in our lives are the ones we least expect. The prince could be your mentor or your spiritual leader. It could also be that you need to find him not for your personal benefit but for altruistic reasons. The universe works in mysterious ways and uses different methods of delivering its messages. The same way I'm used as a conduit for some things, you might be used as a conduit for others."

Across from them, Edgar relaxed, his aggressive energy subsiding.

Jasmine let out a breath. "I'm ashamed to admit that I've never considered the possibility that I was shown the prince for altruistic reasons. At first, I was focused on finding my dream guy, and when the cards kept showing me the prince, I was convinced that I was destined to meet one." She looked at Edgar. "But then I met you, and I tried to give it a different spin. I reasoned that the prince was a metaphor for a good man and that you might be the one I was supposed to find. My prince."

Ed chuckled. "I'm afraid that I will always remain a frog, but I don't mind if you keep kissing me in the hopes of turning me into a prince."

69

ARU

"Good morning, Master Aru," Kian's servant bowed. "Please, come in."

Aru forced a smile, not for the Odu's sake but for its owner. Kian was very fond of his servant, and so was the princess of hers, so Aru was doing his best to get over his aversion to them, but it wasn't easy.

Being wary of them had been hardwired into his psyche.

"Thank you for coming." Kian motioned for him to sit down on the armchair next to his.

Aru glanced at Jasmine and Edgar, who were huddled together on the couch. The woman looked pale but not as shell-shocked as he had expected to find her. Perhaps it was the pilot's reassuring arm around her shoulders and the way he looked at her that was easing her into her new reality.

She must feel like the ground had been yanked out from under her, and everything she thought she knew about the world had been turned on its head. Edgar's presence was probably the only solid thing she could tether herself to.

Given how Jasmine was clinging to the guy, Aru had a feeling that they would need to include the pilot in their expedition, and he hoped that Kian would be willing to spare him. Perhaps they could even use Edgar's services on the trail. Renting a helicopter or buying one in Tibet would eat up a large chunk of the team's remaining budget, but it might shorten the duration of the search.

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