Chapter 50

Chapter 50 King of Yurene

CA SSANDRA

As much as I wanted to return to the palace on my own, I couldn’t deny Kaleb’s offer to escort Finnick and me. The tall man was kind and besides, he was flanked by a group of muscular men who could defend us against any further threats. I couldn’t allow myself to risk Finnick’s safety again.

As we walked, I couldn’t help but wonder who Kaleb was. The foreign man had to be someone important if he had all of those guards to attend and protect him. Everything about him was poised and proper, and I admired the strong way he held himself as he strode. Normally, those with a stature that tall tended to slouch to make themselves smaller. But Kaleb held himself regally and proud.

Kaleb chattered on as we moved through the thrall of the market. He was making many observations about our surroundings and about Anemond in general, which told me he was new to our lands. Every person we pa*sed by stared at him with curiosity. I couldn’t blame them. Their height, hair, and attire made them stick out like a sore thumb even in a crowd like this.

to ic

I wanted in on the conversation, but I didn’t feel quite up to talking. I was still so overwhelmed by everything that had happened today in the alley.

However, I couldn’t remain silent forever. It was impolite to keep

quiet to

Kaleb mused on about Wegalla, especially after he’d gone through all of the effort to

save me.

So, I answered the questions he had as well as I could.

As we chatted politely, I set Finnick down and let him walk beside me. I gripped his hand tighter than usual, but my son didn’t seem to mind. His pallor was paler than usual, not that I could blame him. I was ready to get him back to the palace as quickly as possible and in the safety of our chambers.

Merliscire was full of terrors and dangers of its own, but at least I didn’t have to

worry about back alley a*sa*sins and potential kidnappers.

It took us nearly twenty minutes, but we finally arrived at the gates of the palace. The moment we approached, a se rvant appeared from the shadows. Though I didn’t know his name, I’d seen his young face around the palace quite often.

“Healer Ca ssandra,” he greeted me with a warm smile. “Welcome back.”

Suddenly, his expression shifted when he noticed Kaleb and his group of guards. The young man studied them for a second and then frowned.

Kaleb didn’t seem to notice the strangeness in his gaze.

“Where is the Alpha King?” he asked the se rvant bluntly, and we were all a little taken aback by his question.

“I beg your pardon, sir?” the se rvant asked, and then he cleared his throat. “Who are you?”

Kaleb held his chin up ever so slightly. “My name is Kaleb Adams.”

The se rvant’s skin paled and his eyes grew wide. He began to shake a little and then bowed in respect.

“M-my apologies, my Lord,” he stammered. “I didn’t mean to be so rude.”

Lord?

Kaleb was a lord?

I turned to look at him with confusion, but Kaleb merely smiled and shrugged. This day was proving to be a strange one indeed and I was ready to return to my chambers and breathe.

“Please follow me,” the se rvant waved us on.

Our group crossed through the gate, and the moment they closed behind us, I

breathed a sigh of relief, and Finnick did the same.

“I’m glad we’re back, Mommy,” he whispered.

“Me too, honey,” I said quietly, and I squeezed his hand.

The moment we stepped foot into the entryway of the palace, I felt myself growing antsy. I lingered there with the group for a moment and then I turned to Kaleb.

“Thank you so much again for saving us,” I said kindly but firmly, and then I gave him a small, apologetic smile. “If you’ll please excuse me, I need to be going.”

“Of course,” Kaleb replied. He reached out and took my free hand in his, raised it to his l*ps, and k*ssed it. Heat spread to my cheeks as his deep blue eyes stared into mine.

look forward to meeting you again, Ca ssandra Keller.”

“Y-you as well,” I stammered. When he dropped my hand, I gave a small bow of respect and then looked down at Finnick. “Let’s go.”

Finnick nodded in relief, and then the pair of us ascended the staircase.

When we returned to our chambers, we were surprised to see Erika waiting for us. We’d originally invited the maid to join us in the market, but she’d told us that she wasn’t a fan of being in crowds, so she politely declined.

“Erika?” I remarked as my eyebrows creased together. “What are you doing

here?”

“Hello,” she said cheerily, and her warm smile grew wider. “I just wanted to come in and do a little something while you were gone.”

It was then I realized that our chambers were practically sparkling. I looked around the room in awe. Lately, with how many hours I spent in the lab, I didn’t get much of a chance to tidy up our room. But Erika had taken care of it completely. The shelves were dusted, the floors were polished, our belongings were put away in their proper places, and there were vases of fresh, fragrant flowers everywhere.

“Oh, Erika,” I gushed. “Oh, you didn’t have to do all of this.”

I was a little embarra*sed. I’d meant to do all of this myself when we’d returned

from the market.

“I wanted to surprise you,” Erika a*sured me. “It was really no trouble at all.”

“Thank you,” I said, and I gave her a genuine smile. She was one of the most thoughtful people I knew. It was nice to know that there was at least one good. person here in Anemond. I began to tear up as the day’s events ran through my

mind.

side.

“Ca ssandra, what’s wrong?” Erika asked immediately, and she rushed to my

“Something happened in the market,” I said quietly, and then I turned to Finnick. “Go wash your hands and change your clothes, then you can go play with

your toys.”

“Okay, Mommy,” Finnick said obediently, and after he gave me a hug, he disappeared into the bathroom. Once I heard the sink running, I turned back to

Erika.

“What happened?” she asked softly.

I told her everything, minus the part where the two kidnappers mentioned knowing my true identity. As the story went on, Erika’s skin paled and her eyes

widened.

“Oh, Ca ssandra,” she breathed. “Oh, how horrible! I’m so grateful you’re alright.”

“I

“Thank you,” I said. “It was all thanks to Kaleb.”

“Kaleb?” she repeated back.

I told her all about the tall foreign man who’d saved us, and once I was finished, her expression shifted.

“What does this man look like?” she wondered as her eyebrows creased

together.

“Tall, dark blue eyes, very long light-brown hair,” I answered. “He and his men were wearing leather garments lined in fur with a strange green symbol.”

Erika gasped. “Ca ssandra… that must be the new king of Yurene!”

I frowned. “Yurene?”

“The werewolf country that borders us to the north,” Erika explained.

For a moment, I was a little taken aback, but then again, I’d never had much reason to know about any place other than Wegalla, especially considering all I’d been through over the past five years. Besides, there had never been much to report about the north..

Yurene.

“It began as a small country, but in recent years, it’s gained power and expanded across the continent,” Erika explained. “They’ve annexed quite a few other packs and have become quite powerful.”

“What are they doing here?” I wondered as I tried to wrap my head around the fact that I’d been rescued by a foreign king from a land I’d never heard of.

Erika shrugged. “I don’t know anything more than that. The Alpha King mentioned they’d be arriving, that’s all.”

I thought about Kaleb and his smile, and then about his bluntness and strange.

nature.

Asher was certainly in for an interesting time.