Shadows of Destiny

130 Dealing With The Moment

~Tamia~

The news of Jake’s predicament got to me. When Stephanie told me what had happened, I was afraid.

I was afraid that she might lose him too. I know how Sylvester described Stephanie when her husband

passed away. Even though they had a lot of issues between them, she mourned him for a long time in

her own way. Jake was going to be worse because she was in love with him.

His status did not matter neither did his pocket.

They were just perfect for each other.

To have a love like that ripped away from her would be cruel. I, too, wanted a piece of Yuri. He had

done too much for nothing. Sylvester had corrected the wrong, and the Stepanovs had yet to celebrate

their liberation.

I did not know why he would attack Brighton. It was either based on malice, or he was planning

something. I just hoped we would be ready for what was to come.

I went to Stephanie's room, and Claudia was already there. I wondered how she got there before me.

I sighed and walked in. Stephanie was too broken to acknowledge my presence.

"He will make it. You have to be hopeful," I said to her and went to sit beside her at the foot of her bed

to calm her down. She leaned against me a bit, and I held her while she wept.

Just then, Nicole and Katya walked in. Katya rushed to hold her, and I shifted to create space forthem.

"I told him to come to the north, but he wanted to be there when they attacked Brighton. He did not

want his son and nephew to face that alone. He had already lost his daughter. He did not want to lose

his son. I tried to plead with him," Stephanie said, speaking to all of us, and none of us had anything to

tell her. We were as worried as she was.

"Vino requested that I come here to sedate her, but I am waiting for you or the King to approve it,"

Claudia linked me.

I could understand why Vino would want her sedated. There was no way we could guess what she

might do in the meantime.

"Wait for Sylvester," I linked her back, and she nodded.

It was great to see how Claudia fitted in easily. I hoped she would be able to cope with the triplets.

Sylvester walked in later, and everyone stood to greet him, including myself. Not that it was required,

but his mother was the one in need of attention. It was just a reflex.

"Mother," Sylvester said, and Stephanie looked at him with swollen eyes. Honestly, informing her about

Jake wasn't a bright idea. I was mad at Donald for calling her directly. They should have called Leo

instead. He would have told Sylvester, and Sylvester would have found a way to break it to her.

"I want to go to Brighton. I want to be there," She said, and Sylvester nodded and stroked her back.

"Let's give in an hour or two. Leo is on it." He said, and without warning, Claudia gently injected

Stephanie with something.

Sylvester led her to lie on the bed.

I guess he must have told Claudia to go ahead.

The disadvantage of mind links was that the conversation wasn't always general, so we could only

guess from the action.

Everyone was silent, and we waited for the effects of the med to kick in. Dominic entered, but by then,

Stephanie was shutting her eyes.

"How is she?" He asked Sylvester.

"Asleep for now," Sylvester said and stood up. Katya moved towards her husband, and he held her.

These were stressful times, and we needed a break.

"Let's wait at the lounge. Kataya and Claudia can keep an eye on her for now," Sylvester ordered, and

Nicole and I got up to leave.

"Tamia, both of you should be there," Sylvester told me gently, and I nodded. Things were happening,

and we needed to move fast.

I had nothing to do, so I just followed him to the common lounge.

While I walked beside Sylvester, he held my hand.

"Thank you for being strong in there," He whispered, and I squeezed his palm.

I wanted this to be over with.

I was tired.

I missed my children and the peace we were enjoying.

I remember when Linda complained about boredom and not having anything to do. I wish I could get

back that time. I wished we were bored with nothing to do.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't afraid.

There was a pending war. Even though we had some things in our favour, I could not shake off the fact

that we would have to fight those people, and whether I liked it or not, I knew some people would die.

That was just how war worked. I wanted peace badly and hoped for a situation where there would be

no death. But could it be possible?

Could we really end this with the death of one man? The questions swam in my head, and soon we

arrived at the lounge.

Everyone except Leo and Amelia was there.

Susan was sitting close to Devin and holding on for dear life. We could all relate.

I knew we would not be invited to join the battle. However hard we tried to push, our men would not

allow it, which was for a good reason. Someone had to be here for the sake of our children. Who better

to protect our children than us, the mothers.

Susan was holding on tightly.

The day of the event was fast approaching, and soon it will be upon us. I was relieved by the

information from Ighor but also sad because of the time given.

"How is she?" David asked Sylvester.

"Sleeping," He said and made me sit on his lap. Sylvester wrapped his arms around my waist and

kissed my back. I felt him breathe me in. He needed comfort, and this was the best way he could get it.

I wanted to hold him too, but this would have to do for now.

Nicole joined David on the couch and sat close to him. She rested her head on his shoulder, and he

stroked her hair gently. The news about Jake had shaken everyone.

Avery was in tears, while Linda was glum.

Theodore and Marcel held their mates.

Avery and I would feel fear because we knew Jake. He accommodated us and protected us in the

West. He was a kind man. Awesome and fair. He was easygoing, never bothering anyone, and always

did what was expected.

We did not have to watch our backs with him; his loyalty was absolute, and he brought colour into

Stephanie's world. What Yuri did was cruel, and I hoped Jake would survive it. As much as I tried to be

optimistic, it seemed we were already saying goodbye to him. I prayed it would not be so and there

would be good news.

Leo soon walked in with Amelia, who was looking confused. She had no personal relationship with

Jake and was already on a rollercoaster because of the arrival of her mother. But I respected her

sensitivity to respect our grief. She sat beside Leo, and Leo squeezed her hand.

"They have administered Agk32 into his system and are on their way to Lucland," Leo announced, and

I frowned. What does Agk32 have to do with this?

"Why?" I asked, and he sighed before responding.

I knew he had a theory. He always did that when he had a theory about something.

"According to Kyle, they did not come with force to raze Brighton to the ground. In fact, they were

surprised by the force they met in Brighton. My warriors had overwhelmed them. They shot a poisoned

dart at Jake. They did not shoot Donald or Kyle with the dart, just Jake and once they had succeeded,

they gave up and ran," He explained, and I could see his point.

"It means they came there specifically to poison Jake, and I think it has to do with his relationship with

you, Sylvester. I think it has to do with your mother. Maybe they have an antidote and want to blackmail

you with it? I only asked they administer the Agk32 to eliminate the possibility of the poison being the

same as the one Ighor used on Devin,’ he explained, and I could not relax.

"What if it isn't that poison?" I asked.

"Erik is on standby for that. Whatever the case is, we will figure it out," Leo said, and I wasn't optimistic.

A problem known is half solved, but this was an unknown substance, and I doubted Jake had the

luxury of time for tests and experiments. I was worried and unsure.

"If what you say is true, then Yuri is bound to reach out and make some demands," Amelia said, which

should be the natural cause of action if what Yuri did was deliberate.

"We must be prepared if that should happen," I said.

"I also think we should drill Melvin," Leo said.

"If he was Erik's assistant, then he must know what is in the dart," Leo added, and he was right. There

was no guarantee that what they shot into Jake's system was from Erik's lab. It might be Melvin's

experiment since he was the next best thing to Erik and worked for Yuri.

"Very well, Leo, Devin, David, we should head to the dungeons to question Melvin. Also, ask Erik to

come along. Theo, Marcel, Dominic and Vino handle what needs to be done while we deal with that

bastard.

Alexei, Clay and Andrew are already handling the recruitment for the battle, " He said and looked at

me.

"See how you and the ladies can come up with ideas to help swing this in our favour. Also, ensure my

mother does not leave her room when she wakes up. Do not give her bad news even if there is any,"

he told me, and I nodded.

The blue moon was around the corner. Hopefully, it all ends in our favour so that all those that plan on

tying the knot on that day will do so happily with relief.

We dispersed, and everyone went to carry out the work allocated to them.