Page 139 of The Vampire's Bride

“You are too kind, Lady Greyvale,” Thulrak says. “But we cannot stay. We are traveling to the Orc lands to pledge ourselves to the king.”

“The Orcs have no king,” Lysander says.

“He has returned,” Thulrak says. “And he has called upon every Orc to join him in the fight against the Mages.” He dips his head in a subtle bow. “It was an honor to meet you.”

“And you as well,” I reply.

“Goodbye, Lady Greyvale.” His golden eyes meet mine evenly as he thumps his fist to his chest. “May the shape of your fate be carved by your blade.”

Before I can reply, he leaves, disappearing into the woods with the others.

I turn back to the castle. The tension in my chest tightens as we draw closer, wondering what we will find here. Sending a silent prayer to the gods, I pray that my husband will appear.

Lysander pushes the doors open, and we step inside. Elsie comes around the corner, her eyes widening in surprise. “Juliet?” she calls out. “Reyla? Lysander?” She gives us a bewildered look, and my hope turns to despair when she asks, “Where are the others?”

“We don’t know,” I reply, trying to keep my voice even despite my worry.

“Come in from the cold, my dear,” she says, looping her arm around my shoulders and guiding me toward the fireplace in the study. “We’ll get you all warmed up by the fire while you tell us what happened.”

Kaely rushes up to us. “Where’s Uncle Eben and Uncle Val?” She blinks up at me. “They promised to bring me some seashells.”

Tears sting my eyes as I reach into my cloak pocket and curl my fingers around some of the shells I’d gathered when Valaric and I walked along the beach. I lower myself to one knee and hold them out to her with a watery smile. “They’re not here yet,” I tell her. “But they sent these ahead with me for you.”

“Thank you, Aunt Juju.” I swallow against the sudden lump in my throat as she hugs me tight. A bright smile lights herface as she takes the shells from my hand. “They’re so pretty,” she whispers. “Will you help me?” she asks. “I want to make a bracelet. One for Uncle Eben and one for Uncle Val.”

“Of course.” I bite my bottom lip to keep it from quivering.

She holds the shells up to her mom as Ava walks to her side. “Look, Mommy.”

Wolf-Shifters have excellent hearing, and I’m sure Ava and her mate, Cole, heard what I said about not knowing where the others are. Their eyes shine with worry as they look at me, but they remain silent, not wanting to upset Kaely.

Kaely sees Reyla and Lysander and rushes over to them. Reyla gives her a warm hug and when she turns to Lysander, she raises her hands, jumping up and down in excitement. “Pick me up, Uncle Lys! Pick me up!”

Reyla leans close. “The little one is so precious. They came with Lord Valaric the last time he came to the manor.”

Lysander scoops Kaely up, and she wraps her little arms around his neck. “I’ve missed you, Uncle Lys.” She presses a kiss to his cheek.

He smiles. “I have missed you too, little one.”

When he sets her back down, she grabs his hand and pulls him toward the kitchen. “Come on. We can have tea with Rupert.”

“Who’s Rupert?” he asks, looking around in confusion.

Cole laughs. “Her new stuffed bear.”

A smile quirks his lips as he follows after her. “All right.”

Lysander sits at a small table near the back of the kitchen, having tea with Kaely and her stuffed animals. He has such a kind heart. It surely cannot be comfortable to sit in those small chairs, but he doesn’t complain.

The rest of us sit around the bigger table, speaking quietly so as not to alert Kaely about our concerns, while I tell them everything that has happened.

Elsie looks at me. “At least we know the prince is not behind this.” She gestures to the document Alayna gave me validating our marriage. “I doubt he would have bothered to give you this if he was the one who had them.”

I swallow hard. “The prince’s blood wife warned me that House Greyvale has many enemies within the royal court.”

Cole leans forward in his seat. “If Stryker is the one who sent someone to assassinate you, that begs the question: How did he know you and Reyla were alone?”

I’ve thought about this. And there are only two reasons I can come up with. “Either he had one of his Day Guardians spying on the manor and they saw us leave, or he has Valaric and the others.”

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