Page 34 of Amethyst Queen
Chapter 30
She could barely keep her eyes open. Once the call had been made, the other Queens and their Commanders decided an in-person pow-wow was necessary. Amalee had barely gotten two hours of sleep before they all arrived.
Dante sat at the head of the table beside her. Commander Gentry and Captain Howard sat on her opposite side. Everyone was with their entire upper command staff. Rory brought both spouses with her. Christine had agreed to keep the kids entertained as Sarifena and Amalee didn’t want them to get freaked out, seeing all the people in the Castle.
“All right,” Dante got everyone’s attention, “as you know, Amalee found the journal. It held information we need help to decipher.”
Amalee tried to explain everything as she passed around the journal for the others to see. Her head was killing her from the lack of sleep and stress.
“Wait… it seems like my dad knew his life was endangered, but he told no one. Did you know about this, Constable Baxter?” Emersyn looked to the man who’d been her parents trusted advisor.
“None, Your Majesty. If I had, I wouldn’t have let them leave the kingdom.”
“Do you know who this mystery woman was?”
“I’m afraid not. I didn’t really know your father that well before they married – and he didn’t share much of his past even after they were married.”
Drake placed his hand on his wife’s back, “We need to search records of deaths in the last year – then see if the victim had a grown son. It’s the only way to narrow down who this might be.”
Each Captain walked out, eager to look for something that would lead them to Dax’s son. The sooner they found something, the quicker they could end this nightmare.
“I still can’t believe we may have a half-brother out there…” Sarifena looked to Onika, “Why do you think he’s so angry?”
“He thinks he should be the ruler of all kingdoms. Perhaps he is under some delusion that he is the rightful heir. We won’t know until we find him. Let’s talk about the rock garden Dax mentioned in the journal.” Luca Holsten, the former Ruby Commander who was now engaged to Onika, tossed some maps into the center of the table. “Here is what we know.” He began marking the paper with lines, showing where they’d already searched.
“What we know is she is not anywhere in this section. We’ve searched the entire western side of the deadlands, believing it was somewhere along the coast. We didn’t consider it could be near one of the landlocked lakes. There is one here,” he pointed to an area between Sarifena’s land and Rory’s land. “The backside of this lake butts up to the deadlands. Perhaps…” he sat down in his chair, “we missed what was right under our noses.”
“Don’t,” Onika placed her hand on his shoulder, “This is no one's fault except this man. He has been led to believe he deserves something he doesn’t. I fear when we finally find him, it will end in death. We need to be ready for that possibility.”
“You think we will have to kill him?” Amalee whispered, her head reeling from the past twenty-four hours.
“I think we need to mentally prepare for it. If it comes down to him or one of us… I won’t hold back to protect those I love.” Onika spoke point-blank. Her fury was bursting beneath her skin.
“You're right,” Emersyn sighed, “If he isn’t willing to talk… the safety of the kingdoms must come first.”
Rory groaned, causing all eyes to turn to her, “Rory?” Sarifena tilted her head, “are you OK?”
“Yes… sorry. These babies have been playing soccer on my insides.” Anthony reached over and rubbed Rory’s expanding tummy. She was huge even though she had two months left to go.
“Perhaps I should check you,” Heath stood. “Is there somewhere I can go with her that’s a little more private?” He asked Amalee, who nodded.
“Yes. Commander, can you escort them to the study, please?”
Anthony helped her up, slipping his arm beneath her shoulder, “We’ll be back. Triplets are a lot on the insides,” Rory grinned, but Anthony wore a mask of concern.
“Will she be ok?” Sarifena asked Heath after he kissed her lips to leave.
“She’ll be fine. It’s not unusual for moms to deliver multiple births early.”
“Oh shit,” Onika gasped, “She could have them now?” Everyone laughed as Heath shook his head at her and followed the couple out. “Why is that funny to everyone? Having those babies right now would create a safety issue we don’t need. Plus… her power could be useful when the time comes.”
“I didn’t think about that,” Emersyn bit her lip, “Let’s hope she’s not in labor.”
Glancing toward Amalee, “Amalee, you look like you're about to fall over. Why don’t you two go get some rest? Drake and I will stay with the kids.”
“No… I’ll be fine,” she yawned as she spoke.
“Actually,” Dante stood, pulling her chair out, “We will take you up on that offer. Commander Gentry,” he turned to him, “Wake me at once if you find something.” Scanning over Amalee, he chuckled when he saw that she’d laid her head on the table. Slipping his hand beneath her legs and cradling her against him, he lifted her, “We will catch a couple hours of rest. Thank you, Emersyn.”
