Chapter 103

Sasha
She picked up the venue list again and began to flip through the book again. Kalani groaned and let herself fall back on the couch.
“Aja, can we take a break? I don’t want to be queen if this is what I have to do. This is so boring,” Kalani whined.
Casey nervously eyed Sasha as Lily giggled. Sasha leaned back in her chair. “And do tell me, little sister, what should we do?”
Kalani sat up eagerly. “I think we should page Javier and see if the potion is ready. It’s been a little over-”
She was cut off by the door opening. Lukas walked in followed by Aiden, Gregory, Slonsky and Javier.
“Speak of the devil,” Sasha said under her breath.
Aiden chuckled. “Were you talking about me, my queen?”
“No. You’re not the only thing I think about. I’m queen and have to plan this stupid- what did you call it- ‘introduction party’.”
The men laughed and Sasha balled up a piece of paper to launch it at Aiden's face. He caught it and unballed it. His face paled.
“The White Room. That’s exclusive. I’ve never been there,” he said.
Lukas patted him on his shoulder. “I dare them to try to keep you out now.”
He rolled his eyes. “Keep it up and I’m gonna have Sasha make you bow to me.”
Lukas laughed. “Whatever.”
He walked over to Lily and touched her face. “Hey, Lily. How are you doing?”
She smiled up at him. “I’m okay. We are all a little bored.”
He knelt in front of her with his hand on her knee. “Do you want to see something really cool?”
She nodded eagerly. “What is it?”
He picked up her hand and linked their fingers together. “Patience is a virtue, little one.”
He sat on the couch next to her and motioned to Javier who set a small caldron on the coffee table next to three bowls. He dished out some of the thick clear liquid in the cauldron into all of them.
“Sasha, if you would.”
Sasha went over and held her hand out. He pricked her finger and put three drops of her blood into each bowl. He stirred each bowl with a flat metal stick and the blood mixed with the potion and became clear.
“Now. Kalani, if you would.” She leaned forward and let him prick her finger, before adding her blood to the first bowl. It absorbed it and Kalani’s blood disappeared, too. “This is what happens when two people are related. This potion specifically tests for siblings.” He turned to Lily. “Do you want to see what happens to your blood when we try to mix it with Sasha’s?”
Lukas growled and Javier lowered his head. Lily held out her hand.
“Yes, please.”
Javier gently took her hand and added a few drops of her blood to the second one. The potion bubbled when mixed and separated, leaving Lily’s blood in the middle. Lily’s eyes widened and she looked at Lukas.
“What does that mean?”
“That means that you are not their sister,” Javier answered.
Lily’s face fell. “Oh, yeah.”
Lukas looked at her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Lily…”
“It’s just that you guys are so nice to me, that I forget that we aren’t family and that I will have to leave soon.”
“I’m glad we’re not family,” Lukas told her.
Lily looked away as she tugged her hand out of his. “I’m sorry, please, continue.”
Lukas reached up to pull her down into his lap. “One day, Lily, I will explain everything to you and you will be happy we are not family, too.”
“Do you promise?”
He nodded. “I do.”
“I now pronounce you husband and wife,” Casey shouted, jokingly.
The whole room stilled and Casey’s laughter was cut off when she saw nobody else thought it was funny.
“Sorry,” she mumbled. “It’s just what my friends and I would say.”
Lily looked at the ground as she got up off of Lukas’s lap to sit back on the couch.
“I am really sorry,” Casey repeated.
Sasha went over to squeeze her shoulder. “It’s okay, Casey. It was an innocent joke. Pretty funny, too, if I might say,” she said, forcing laughter into her voice.
Javier held his hand out to Casey. “Your turn.”
Casey clasped her hands together. Slonsky went over to her and knelt beside her. He put his hand on her knee.
“It’s okay, Casey. You can do this,” he told her.
“I don’t want to die,” she whispered.
“What do you mean that you don’t want to die?”
“I heard someone say that if I was not their sister, that they would kill me.”
Sasha groaned. “I was just angry, Case. Please, give Javier your hand.”
She reached for her dad. “I don’t want to.”
Slonsky took her hand and kissed her palm. “Sweetheart, trust me.”
He held her wrist while Javier pricked her finger and squeezed some drops into the last bowl and then the first. He mixed the bowls and within seconds, her blood had disappeared into the potion. She trembled.
“Does this mean I’m their sister?”
Kalani hurried over to hug her. “This does mean you are our sister. I’m not the baby anymore,” she squealed.
Lukas got up off the floor and put his arms around the three of them. “I’m going to have to tell dad he needs to produce more boys. I’m totally outranked now. This isn’t fair,” he teased.
Kalani elbowed him in the gut. “This is just one more girl you have to take care of.”
Sasha pulled away from the embrace to approach Slonsky. “I know my father spared you, but that does not mean that we have.”
He gulped, before bowing. “I understand, Your Majesty. Whatever you wish to do with me, I will submit to.”
Casey whimpered. “Sasha, please, don’t hurt him,” she begged.
“Donald Slonsky, in order to live you will have a set of rules that you must obey or I will hunt you down and kill you myself. Do you agree?”
“I do.”
“First, you will go around to all of the clans and let them know by my wishes, that there will be no more human usage for survival. Secondly, you will make yourself available to anything me or my siblings need. Thirdly, you will take all of Tursum’s children and you will find homes for them. Good homes. These are your tasks, not your rules.” She paused to take a breath. “Your rules are as follows: One, you will not interfere with mates ever again.
Fated or chosen. Better yet, if they are a couple, don’t interfere. Two, you are to stay out of my father’s way. I can not guarantee that if he didn’t kill you the other day, that he won’t kill you in the future. Three, you can not leave your assigned area without permission from all three of us. I want to know where you are at all times. If you do not comply, I will terminate you. Do you understand?”
He bowed his head lower. “Yes, Queen Sasha.”
“And one more thing,” Kalani started. “I would like to do daily healing sessions with you for a week. I think it will help you heal. When you get back, that is.”
He nodded. “As you wish, Queen Kalani.”
Sasha knelt in front of him and lifted his chin. “I understand why you did what you did.” She linked her fingers through Aiden’s when he put them on her shoulder. “I couldn’t even begin to tell you what I would do if someone tried to take Aiden away from me. I would burn this world down.”
He closed his eyes. “It would have been better if I had instead of doing what I did.”
Aiden pulled her up to wrap his arms around her waist. He moved her hair to the side and kissed her neck. Sadness crossed over Slonsky’s face.
“One more thing,” Aiden said apologetically, “I think that you should pledge your loyalty to King Sterling. He should be who your allegiance is to above anybody else.”
“As you wish, King Aiden.”
“When do you want me to go to the other clans?,” Slonsky asked.
Sasha looked at Lukas. “How soon can you have a list of clans ready?”
“I can have it by the end of the day.”
“Okay, so then you will go tomorrow.”
He bowed. “As you wish.”
“But Casey stays here,” Sasha informed him.
“But, Sire-”
“We would like to get to know her and it will be good for Lily to have someone her age here until she goes home.”
“Okay.”
Lily got up and walked over to him. She hugged him.
“I’m glad you didn’t die. I didn’t think you were a bad person.”
He hugged her back. “Thank you.”
She let him go and hurried back to where Lukas stood poised to lunge at him. She looked up at him shyly.
“When do I go home?”
Lukas looked at his sisters helplessly. Sasha stepped closer to take Lily’s hand.
“It would be our honor if you chose to stay until after the two ceremonies. Also, my egg will be hatching soon, if you wanted to meet my baby.”
Her eyes lit up. “I would love to.”
She hugged Lily and met her brother’s eyes.
‘Are you going to talk to her school or are you going to let Aiden handle it?’
‘If I go, I won’t give them a chance to stay alive. It’s better if you and Aiden handle it,’ he linked back.
She nodded. “Anyways, boys, shoo. Us ladies need to get back to planning this stupid ceremony.”
They laughed as they filed out and Kalani threw herself back on the couch. “I’m already so bored. Save me.”