Chapter 166 - From The Dead
The Meeting Ground was very scanty, only a selected few had been invited to this.
The first thing Delice noticed when she got there was the fact that Zezi had not been invited.
"She is tightly occupied with her assigned duty." Laura had said when Delice had asked why she had been ousted from the meeting. "I find myself lucky. Honestly, to be rid of the presence of that dog gives me the utmost relief. I'm so glad her stench isn't sticking up the place." She had ended with a giggle as she clicked her claws against the bangles around her wrist.
Laura didn't seem offended that they had not been spending a lot of time together as they used to, and neither did she seem like she was grieving her mate, Oliver, like she had seemed to be doing during the few times Delice had ran into her in the Castle.
She must be handling his death really well.
Poor, Laura. She wished to do more for her.
"Also, about the poison, we suspect that the fur creature isn't carrying out her duty to the letter. Probably she is now getting swayed since she has been crowned the Queen. Our plan is time-sensitive and for that, we must devise more than one plan to ensure its success. With the way things are now, we have options besides that disloyal dog."
Laura had smiled at her, her gaze fixed on the empty seats that Riza and Basit would usually occupy.
Delice was agitated and she didn't hide her concern for how things were happening in the Castle, seeing that most of these things were not discussed in any of the meetings prior to the event.
"Riza and Basit had to pave the way for our next solution. You know I would never keep anything from you, Delice. I love you, and remember we are doing this because it is the best thing to be done for the King. With each second, his darkness grows even more, and if we don't do this, he will become an agonizing death for himself. Do not doubt yourself, you are doing what is best. You love him and this is the best way to love him."
Laura had expected Delice to echo her words like she usually would, but this time around, she had merely nodded and followed up with a question.
"What is this "option" that is of more guarantee than the Queen?"
A smirk crossed Laura's face.
"You'll see it soon."
Within the four Pillars, the meeting commenced.
The Princess's mother - whose presence was still being evidenced by a huge ball of smoke, announced to them her gratitude for their dedication, adding encouraging words that they were closer to their aim than ever, before telling them about their second option for which Laura brought forward a small red box.
"We will create our own army that even the King cannot stand against. Before he brings his darkness to us and consumes us all with his soul-seizing powers, we will take him out. We present to you the solution. The Extract."
"An empty box?" Someone tossed the question.
No.
The box wasn't supposed to be empty.
The solution should have been in the box, but it wasn't.
That was when all hell broke loose.
A frantic search occurred, voices overcame one another as questions were thrown around.
"Have we been called here to be made fools of?!"
"You are keeping secrets from us? Are we not in this together anymore?"
"Where is it? Has it been stolen?"
"Stolen? From the Princess? I call foul play!"
"Do we have a betrayer in our midst?"
"Where is it?"
"What is it?"
Angered by what was going on and frustrated that someone had stolen from her and she didn't notice, Laura left the meeting Ground, taking a turn into a secret room, with walls just as bare as the secret door, with only a torch hung on it.
Delice followed.
The four slammed shut eerily behind her but Delice paid that no attention, instead her focus was on Laura who was pacing around.
"Are you alright?"
The answer to that was obvious.
"The Volakys extract was stolen right from underneath my nose! I am sure the King only has the one they got from Oliver's room. Someone else knows about this." She stopped, her eyes widening with slight shock. "Do you think it is the Fur Creature? Could she have suspected that we were dropping her off the plan? Do you think she is that smart?"
The Queen was a smart one, that was what Delice suspected, but right now she didn't feel like Laura was being sincere with her. There just seemed to be something wrong with her Mother's speech, or maybe it was the tone with which she had heard it.
Were those the words they had always said before?
Why did it not sound as convincing as it used to?
Why did it sound different?
"She is just a dog. What would she know about surpassing your plan? You give her too much credit to think she possesses that sort of brilliance."
It took a couple of seconds of blinking before Laura nodded in agreement, although she was surprised at Delice's choice of words. She was usually polite.
It was a good thing she was starting to see the dog for what she really was. Truthfully, Laura was already starting to get worried about her perceived closeness with the dog.
This was reassuring.
"You are right." She walked off to the wall, scratching her claws against it. "I will do everything to find out who the thief is but before then, we might have to steal the one in the possession of the King." She froze again. "You don't think it is my brother, do you?" This time, her voice was a little breathy with fear, distaste around the edges of the word "brother".
"If it were to be the King, we would know."
That was true.
There was no way he wouldn't have thrown them into the dungeon, or led them to the Execution Ground if he had known of the Extract.
On his mere suspicion of her involvement with the Volakys' attack, he had thrown her into the dungeon. No matter, how much he claimed that she had his heart, he would have definitely fed on her soul.
She relaxed when Delice pulled her into an embrace.
"We will find the missing Extract. Don't worry."
"Oh, you are just the thing I need my sweet--"
"The Extract is missing?!" A shocked voice interrupted them from within the room and Delice pulled away immediately, because she knew that voice and the owner of that voice was supposed to be dead. After all, Laura had brought in his dead body and she had buried him, held his funeral!
He has a grave he should be in!
But there he was, standing in his room with his braided beards and those eyes that held dying humour in them.
"Oliver?"
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((Yesterday's Update - Sorry I missed it.))
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