As soon as Maeve left, Lazarus let out a ragged breath. His heart was thundering in his ears. Did she abduct her? Was she trying to play games with him? He couldn't even tell her that Emma was here all the time while she searched for her. His pulse quickened and he thought he would faint if he didn't see Emma this very minute or maybe rip the palace to search for her.
"Emma…" he whispered her name, his heart lurching to his throat, his gaze wildly scanning the room. He clenched his teeth to stop them from chattering. He couldn't protect his mate. He couldn't protect his mother. He had let them get killed. "Emma…" he called her, his voice more like a plea to the gods to listen to him. On the inside he was hoping that she was there somewhere. "Emma…" he called her name like he was worshiping her, like he was asking for a second chance at life before he did something horrible, like killing Maeve before…
A door creaked. He whipped his head in that direction. He began moving in that direction. He had never seen the door over there. The door opened a little bit more. He curled his hands into tight balls as the smell of cobwebs and moss wafted in the air, mixed with that of violets. "Emma!" he rushed over there and pulled it open fully.
Emma was standing there along with Olya, wide eyed and looking scared. "Oh, for the love of god!' He pulled her to him and pressed her against his chest. He peppered kisses all over her face, her neck and her head. He couldn't believe that her absence scared the shit out of his life. She just clung to him and stayed there for the whole time as if reassuring him that she was there for him.
He picked her up in his arms and carried her to his room. "I am so sorry…" he murmured. "I should have traced you somewhere else."
"I am here, Lord Lorza," she said mildly to allay his fears. "I am not going anywhere."
He sat down with her and pressed her face in the crook of his neck. He inhaled the smell of her hair and after a long time, he opened his eyes. When he looked up, he saw Olya watching the two of them with a smile on her lips. He was glad that both the girls were safe. "What happened when I left?" he asked, pulling away from Emma. "How did you find that little tunnel? Even, I never saw it there!"
Emma chuckled. "I discovered it when I was in that room a few weeks back. Though I never thought I would ever use it, it definitely protected us."
Olya added, "We both heard someone shuffling outside our door. I smelled blood and sickness. I knew that it wasn't either you or Magnus and so I went panicky. Emma gestured to me to stay quiet. She grabbed my hand and pulled me into the tunnel. As soon as she closed the door of the tunnel, we heard the door of her room opening. The smell of blood and sickness was overwhelming and I knew that it was Maeve. Both of us froze. We heard her walking around the room, moving things as if trying to find something or probably Emma."
Emma trembled a little at the narration. Lazarus caught her tightly and began stroking her again. She said, "It was then that we heard another door opening and Maeve addressing you. We came out after we were sure that she had left."
"And you did great!" He admired her quick action. "You are very brave, love."
"But what is going on?" she asked, her gaze on the opened door of the tunnel in this room.
"I don't know," he replied. "When I came here, I saw the door opening and a breeze coming through the passageway. The other end of the door was also open. I think someone was way too quick to distract me so that Maeve could enter your room."
"What is going on…" Olya said as she pulled her legs beneath her thighs and picked up a cushion to press it against her chest. There was a sense of anxiety in the room.
Suddenly the door of the room opened and Yul and Magnus entered. There was an expression of dread on their faces. Lazarus's brows furrowed as he tried to interpret their expressions.
"You have to come with us," Yul said.
"Where?" he asked, not wanting to leave Emma this time. "I can't leave Emma and Olya alone." He pointed at the open passageway door. "There is someone out there who knows the way to my room. They are both in danger."
Magnus let out a feral growl. He clenched his teeth hard as his muscles bulged to the point that his veins would have popped. "Then let us take them to my apartment. No one will come to know about them."
"No," Yul interjected. In a very cold voice he said, "Take them to my quarters. I do believe that Maeve has someone employed who is searching the passageways of the palace with her."
Magnus and Lazarus both looked like they could rip his head at this instant, but after contemplating it for a while, they agreed. Yul would have never suggested it casually, knowing what Emma and Olya meant to their men.
ƥαṇdα-ηθνε|·ƈθm The sun was setting and the sky was a shade of periwinkle and orange. It was time for the vampires to wake up. Only a day was left for the ritual. The palace was buzzing with the activity. Lazarus, Magnus and Yul traced to Yul's quarters that were in the palace grounds but far down towards the south. It was a cozy place where Yul ordered his servants to burn the fire hearth immediately.
"Make yourself comfortable," he said to the girls when they were in his personal bedchamber. "Don't open this door for an hour."
"Where are you going?" Emma asked Lazarus, clinging on his shirt.
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