Call Of The Dark

Frustrated at his silence, Anton got up. He bowed to the king and left to gather more forces. He was going to search every damn quarter of the lords, officers and the servants in the palace.

"I would also like to take a leave," Lazarus said. The king had called him to know about Emma. Viktor was looking extremely agitated when he arrived and was still agitated when he was about to leave.

"What are you going to do if Emma is not found, Lazarus?" Viktor asked through his clenched teeth. That one mortal was giving him jitters.

Lazarus shrugged. "I don't know," he said. The answer didn't burn his throat because he really didn't know what to do if Emma got lost.

"Well then know about it!" Viktor hissed. "If she is not there for the ritual in the evening, make sure you find someone else who is as powerful as her or even stronger than her. This time I want Maeve's body to get in the strongest woman so that she can survive her magic!"

Lazarus tilted his head as he studied his father. "Why are you so concerned, father?" he asked casually. His gaze went to the necklace he was wearing. "Aren't you afraid that Maeve might steal that necklace?"

Viktor gritted his teeth. He was already so pissed by his son and the human girl that he snapped, "You don't know anything about Maeve. She has promised me that she would never steal the necklace, instead she would assist me in ruling Wilyra!" And suddenly, Viktor realized that he had spoken what he wasn't supposed to. It was a secret between him and Maeve. But he was the king and a master at disguising his emotions. He held his tongue for a fraction of a second and then straightened his back. He added, "Of course, that is after marrying you. Eventually, it is you who would take the throne."

Lazarus too masked his surprise very nicely. With a poker face he said, "I see. In that case, I am going to find someone strong or stronger than Emma. Someone who can sustain Maeve's magic."

"And produce her by the evening. The Shaman has arrived and he wants to start the ritual an hour before the full moon rises," Viktor said as if warning him.

"I will do that," Lazarus replied and got up. He bowed to the king and hurried out. On the inside he was nervous that Anton would start searching the quarters and if he reached Yul's quarters then it would be disastrous. Emma and Olya were still lodged there. He traced to Yul's home and as soon as he was in the bedroom, he said, "Emma, Anton is coming to find you. Both you and Olya need to leave this place as soon as possible!"

Magnus, who was sitting there with the girls, rose to his feet with tension. "What do we do?" he said. "Every fucking place in this palace will be searched!"

"But what about outside the palace?" Emma asked innocently. She was sitting and playing a board game with Olya on the bed.

Lazarus and Magnus jerked their heads back. "I don't think that they would search outside the capital."

All of them were silent for a moment.

Emma chuckled, cutting the tense silence with her chirpiness.

"What?" Lazarus asked as he walked towards her and knelt on the ground before her. "I am very tense here Emma. Don't make it look like it is nothing."

She took her fingers to his hair and tangled them in his pale blond silky hair. "Why don't you trace me out of the palace?" she said.

"How can I? Maeve has cast her magic around the premises of the palace. You won't be able to get past it!"

"Then ask her to remove it."

"As if she will simply remove it," Magnus said, irritation rising in his chest. "What if we take both of them to my quarters?" he suggested.

"No!' Emma cut him off. "This is a great opportunity. Make some story about me running away from the palace and ask Maeve to lift the spell by using her magic."

Lazarus looked at his mate, amused. "You are cruel. She will die if she lifts the spell. Moreover, don't you know vampires can't tell lies?"

Yul entered the bedchamber and saw the four of them in deep conversation. He announced, "King Viktor is looking for Emma everywhere in the palace. This place is not safe!"

"We know!" Lazarus shook his head. Then he faced Emma. "I think the best would be to hide her in a tunnel."

"No," Emma again negated him. "I have an idea. If that doesn't work, you can take me to the Shaman directly."

---

Lazarus walked into Maeve's bedchamber along with Magnus and Yul. Maeve was lying down on the bed. She shuddered when she saw the trio. They looked so intimidating that goosebumps lined her skin. The three were too fearsome.

Lazarus gestured to the maid to leave the room. She scurried away from there, shivering in fear. He turned his attention to Maeve as Yul and Magnus stood behind him. "A guard is here to say something about Emma," he growled.

Maeve blinked her eyes. She was so frail that she couldn't speak a word, but she managed to ask, "About what?"

A human guard came in the door and bowed to Maeve. "My Lady, it seems that Lady Emma isn't in the palace. We found her belongings near the wall of the palace. We do believe that she has run out of the palace."

"What the hell!" Maeve shrieked but that came out as a whisper. "How could she go past my spell?"

"The spell is weak, m'lady," the guard said. "When you had cast the spell earlier, we used to feel something slithery down our skin, but now it's like small pinpricks of electricity on our skin. It is very uncomfortable."

Lazarus chuckled. He said in a challenging tone, "It seems your magic has really weakened." That wasn't a lie. Her magic had become less powerful.