A few years ago, when his father was still in power, there were rumours going around about Jorgen being a ladies man. Apparently, he dated several female shifters at the same time, but the press never confirmed it. He clearly doesn’t think I’m worth his attention. Or does he? He keeps staring at me. I’m so inexperienced, I wouldn’t have a clue if it jumped up and bit me in the arse.
In the past, I’ve read several books about unicorns. I’ve killed many wild animals, but never for fun. Emilia preps the wild meat and sells it in her shop. Shifters believe if they consume the animals from the Black Forest they’ll live longer.
After a few quick training sessions on the grounds, I decide to see Emilia, then head over to the Black Forest. She’ll be busy with clients; I should have enough time to grab one of her spell books and look for the Verum potion. It’s the middle of the week and Emilia will have a few of her customers around who are desperate enough to try some of her love potions; she won’t even notice I’m there. Most female shifters around my age are already settled down. It’s tradition; every female shifter who turns twenty-one is expected to be married or engaged, and I’m one of many who isn’t following that particular rule. No one wants to go out with a scarred girl—or that’s what my aunt made me believe. Evil woman.
When I arrive back at my chamber, I feel like I had a good workout but I’ve yet to clear my head.
“I’m taking a shower, then we’re heading out,” I say to Lenin and Jetli.
“All right, sister. We can’t wait to see a real unicorn. I hear they’re rare,” Lenin points out.
“One was seen in the Black Forest recently, so we have to hurry,” I say, then vanish into the bathroom. The Pixies enjoy going to the forest with me; even after so many years of being with me they still don’t remember anything about their previous lives. Every so often, it bothers me they’re stuck in a limbo of not knowing who they were before they met me.
I get into the shower, thinking about what to do in order to obtain the answers I need. The idea of being the duke’s assistant was appealing in the beginning, but now I don’t think I want to be part of his life. And even if my aunt and uncle were the last people in the Eastern World I wouldn’t go back to live with them. I’d rather be homeless.
I put my clothes on and grab my favourite hunting knife. Jetli stares at me with her bright, purple eyes. She’s never said a word, but sometimes I think she knows exactly what’s going through my head.
We leave the castle just after the sun goes down and a few guards nod to me when I pass them in the corridors. Emilia’s words remind me I have to move on and stop thinking my damn mark is holding me back. This morning Elijah proved to me he doesn’t care about my appearance, and he still wants to hang around. Maybe this whole thing is only in my head.
I’ve never seen a real unicorn in the Black Forest. Those creatures travel through the entire Eastern World and a lot of them have been killed over the years. Their horns and hair are worth a fortune on the black market. I have to find the animal before anyone else decides to hunt it down. I only need to touch its horn then speak to Jorgen. The unicorn’s magic will allow me to see his old memories. Since I moved to the castle, I haven’t been able to remember my dreams. I want to believe he isn’t the person I’m looking for—that he isn’t my parents’ real killer.
“Emilia has another shifter who works in the shop. She’ll be suspicious if you tell her you’re going into the forest hunting,” Lenin says, flying above my head.
“She won’t even notice I’m there. I need to make sure Jorgen is the evil man from my nightmare,” I say, squeezing my bow and arrows in my hand. “He cares about me, and he healed me when I was injured. His involvement in my parents’ death is questionable.”
Lenin is silent and when I glance at Jetli she’s avoiding eye contact. There’s something the pixies aren’t telling me. Maybe they don’t believe the duke can be evil after he’s done so many good things.
“I don’t know, Astri. If he killed your parents, what motive did he have? He was really worried when they brought you in, you know, after Sebastian attacked you above the castle. He nearly ripped Sebastian’s bollocks’s off,” Lenin claims and I stop and look at him.
“You never said anything about Sebastian,” I say. “What exactly did Jorgen say to him?”
“He shouted at him in front of everyone and then stormed off,” he explains. I frown, wondering why no one mentioned this before. Jorgen had no reason to be furious with Sebastian.
Any injury was unavoidable.
“That’s why we need the unicorn, something doesn’t feel right about this,” I mutter, more to myself than to them.
I sneak into the back of Emilia’s shop and borrow a bit of her Verum potion. I feel guilty when I see her serving customers, but right now I can’t explain anything to her. She would talk me out of going to Jorgen. When the time comes, I’m planning on telling her everything.
Night falls and as soon as I’m out of town, I jog all the way to Emilia’s store. She won’t mind if I let myself in and take some of her serum. I only need a little bit in order to get the truth out of Jorgen. It’s late and I know the magical combination to the shed at the back. The precious serum is situated in the storage cupboard behind the freezer, so I scoop only a tiny bit into the black bag then head over to the forest. Lenin and Jetli are sitting behind my collar, resting while I use my inner dragon to locate the unicorn in the wilderness. My senses are much sharper when I use my magical abilities, and when I glance up at the sky, the moon looks beautiful tonight, shining brightly and showing me hidden paths between the trees. I love breathing in the fresh air, and being able to run around free from all worries and problems. I start circling around the trees, using my hunter’s knife to get through the bushes. Unicorns are on the move all the time, especially during their mating season. The males are willing to travel thousands of miles in order to locate a female. The butcher’s son had sworn he saw a male on the outskirts of Lubijania a few days ago, which means the animal should be passing the bottom of the The Decaying Mountains tonight or possibly tomorrow.
I use my dragon senses to see if I can locate the animal anywhere nearby. I move quietly at this point, stepping on dry leaves, hearing the whoop, wu hu hoo, the calling of an owl. Rivenna has a mostly humid climate; however it hasn’t rained in a really long time. Tonight a heavy storm is approaching. The wind is picking up and my skin is static with electricity. I smell the moist conditions in the air.
“Astri, you’ve been here for ages. There’s no sign of a unicorn, and my wings are aching,” Lenin complains, throwing me off focus slightly.
“You can go back to the castle with your sister. I’m planning to stay out a bit longer,” I tell them.
He complains again that he doesn’t want to fly back on his own. I manage to convince Jetli to go back with her brother. She makes a little fuss, but in the end she agrees. Ten minutes later, they leave and I’m relieved to be on my own for a bit.
Heavy clouds appear in the sky, shading the moon–not a good sign. Unicorns respond to the light, and if it’s dark the male might disappear into the mountains. I keep walking, moving closer and closer to the restricted area of the mountains, smelling a fire nearby. The wild shifters aren’t friendly around here. I have to be careful.
I wander around for another hour, sensing the approaching storm, ready to call it a day. A unicorn won’t appear tonight; there’s too much moisture in the air and dark clouds shading the moon. I turn around, ready to jog back to the castle when I spot a unicorn between the trees and stop dead in my tracks.
The animal is beautiful. The length of its white body shimmers like tiny diamonds scattered underneath its skin. I begin to approach him slowly, trying not to breathe at the same time. The animal notices me when I’m only a meter away and lifts his head, meeting my eyes.
I send a flow of energy, silently telling the animal I need to see someone else’s memories. I move slowly, trying not to scare it with sudden
movements. The unicorn is stunning, elegant and mesmerising to look at. He has a golden horn shining beneath the moonlight, suddenly reappearing behind the clouds. I lift my hand, knowing it will let me touch it, because we already made a connection. My dragon wraps its energy around the unicorn’s magic.
I run my fingers over his shiny back, and my hands shine with pure, white light. A calm, peaceful feeling embraces my soul and I feel like everything I’ve been worrying about lately fades into oblivion.
I close my eyes and smile until small dots of rain begin falling on my face. The unicorn moves abruptly, then off he goes galloping through the forest, finally disappearing from my sight. The connection is lost, but it doesn’t matter. The animal gifted me with his white magic. The temperature starts dropping and I don’t wait around and jog back to the castle, hoping to escape the storm.
It takes me over an hour and a half to get back to the grounds. The thunder and lightning breaks over the black sky, and the castle looks even more magnificent in the gloom. The rain starts pouring down heavily while I’m speeding across field, thinking about my parents again.
“Astri, hey, Astri!” someone shouts, so I stop and turn around. Jorgen’s jogging towards me. Bow and arrows hang over his shoulder. I’m shocked seeing him out here so late, without his guards following his every move.
“My lord, what are you doing out here?” I ask.
“Let us find some shelter; it’s pouring down,” he tells me and gently grabs my elbow to follow him.
I didn’t expect to see him tonight, but I quickly realise this is a perfect opportunity to finally learn the truth. We both run towards an outbuilding. By the time we get inside, my clothes are completely soaked through and water drips down my face.
“Wow, that storm caught me off guard. The weather’s been great lately,” Jorgen says, dragging his hand through his wet hair. “I’ve been out looking for a unicorn. One of my advisors told me a male is passing through the forest in a search for a mate.”
We watch as the rain pours down in the darkness and admire the landscape right in front of us. I’m shocked he knows about the unicorn. Not many people in town are interested in that sort of thing.
The duke is here with me now, and I only have to be within close proximity to view his memories. I shouldn’t want him in any way, but I can’t help it—I find him attractive. This is so sick and twisted. How am I going to react once my vision turns out to be true?
“Well, I actually went out for the same thing, and I got lucky,” I say. We didn’t really get a chance to talk last night after we left my aunt and uncle’s. Then we got to the castle and the duke had to deal with his whole family.
“What? Have you seen the unicorn?” he asks, surprised.
“Yes, it was beautiful, but the storm frightened him, so it escaped,” I say.
Jorgen doesn’t know about the Verum spell or the fact that the unicorn gifted me with its white magic in order to get into his head. Only a very skilled witch can brew such complicated potions; I need to be careful what I say next.
“I have been meaning to thank you. I’m sorry, but yesterday was so hectic and we didn’t have chance to talk,” he says, and his eyes wander off to my face. As soon as he looks at me, instant heat snuggles my cheeks and my heart shudders in my chest. “The cup…if it wasn’t for you...my father would be dead already.”
“Your father is a great man and my parents respected him. I thought it was the least I could do,” I explain, looking down. I most likely look terrible, with my clothes hanging off me and my hair plastered all over my face.
“Tell me, Astri, why did you put up with your aunt and uncle for so long? Thayer mentioned you lived with them until you moved to the castle,” he asks, staring down at me with the same intensity. I didn’t even realise when he managed to get so close to me. The hatred that’s been rooted inside me for so long is no longer there. The heat circulating around us is distracting. I need to focus on his memory.
“I had to work in order to pay for my hospital treatment. I couldn’t afford to find another place, and I stayed,” I explain as my voice vibrates. The duke takes a step towards me and slowly his eyes move down to my scar.
In that split second I know he’s going to kiss me, leaning closer and closer. His eyes are filled with heat, and my heart’s pounding in my chest. I know I have to remain still, concentrate on the magic flowing around us. I begin to feel dizzy and I can’t keep my eyes open. Then everything goes dark.
Chapter 20
Kissing the prince.
I’m standing in the darkness, breathing hard and looking around not knowing where the hell I am. Blood rushes to my ears and I see a light flickering in a corner of the room. Energy rushes down my spine and I realise I’m back in the chamber, the one from my nightmare. I flinch when someone’s suddenly squeezing my neck. Panic sweeps through me, sinking its poisonous venom into my veins. I’m trying to pull away, hearing someone’s heavy breath on my cheek.
“Finally. I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time.”
I want to scream, but I have no voice; I’m staring into the same crystal blue eyes of a man who’s been chasing after me since my parents’ death. Duke Jorgen has returned to finish what he started eleven years ago.
I grab his strong fingers, trying to stop him, but my vision goes blurry. I have no strength left to fight him. My legs aren’t touching the floor any longer. It’s over—I have lost. My destiny cannot be altered; Jorgen was always going to track me down.
“The last Wyvern creature from the prophecy won’t stop me from dominating the Eastern World,” he shouts and tightens his grip as I take my last, tiny breath.
Suddenly I’m back to reality, still standing in the outbuilding, staring at Jorgen whose lips are only inches away from mine. A strong wind whizzes outside, and the rain continuously hits the rooftop above our heads. Jorgen has his hand on my cheek and the healing warmth in his eyes slowly shifts into repulsion. I part my lips, wanting to ask him what’s wrong, but no sound comes out of my mouth.
His presence is swiftly suffocating me. My mind is in chaos because I realise I’ve been right about him all this time.
“You’re beautiful, Astri, smart and brave, but the scar … there’s so—”
My lips are trembling with fear, and I block his voice. Seconds drag by and I force myself to back away from him. The look of disgust on his face confirms what he truly thinks about me. Jorgen doesn’t even have to say anything; I can see it in his eyes. My aunt was right—he’s just like the rest of the people of Rivenna.
I’ve been foolish trying to believe he might be different, but after everything that’s happened he’s still the same mage who murdered my parents. Years went by, but nothing has changed.
Jorgen’s saying something to me; his lips are moving, but I’m blocking his voice.
The vision was all the confirmation I needed and I should’ve stuck to my plan, but I allowed my emotions to get in the way.
“I have to go. I need to get back to my chamber,” I say, turning around as I storm out of the building. He’s shouting after me, but I’m running as fast I can. Tears stream down my face, as the rain continues to pour down.
Jorgen was just about to kiss me, but then he hesitated. Maybe he doesn’t remember me, but he changed his mind.
The strong wind and cold rain feel harsh on my skin. There’s nothing stopping me anymore. The unicorn in the forest helped me confirm Jorgen’s the one; fighting his attempt to murder me is how I got scarred. Now, I just have to win the final task and become his assistant. Then I’ll figure out my new revenge plan.
I return to my chamber, soaked from head to toe. Lenin and Jetli are fast asleep and I’m glad I don’t need to talk or explain anything. Despite the revelation about my past, the thing that hurts the most is knowing Jorgen would never want me as a man wants a woman because of this hideous scar on my face.
Three days before the final task. I try to relax, but my thoughts are racing. Elij
ah keeps asking me to do stuff with him, but I keep avoiding him. For some reason, after last night I can’t bring myself to pretend I can be like the other girls in Rivenna.
Around midday, I sneak away from the castle and head over to the shop, hoping to speak to Emilia. Her Verum potion was exceedingly useful, but it doesn’t change anything. Even if Jorgen isn’t the mage from my nightmare, he’ll never see a real woman in me. I shouldn’t have even considered seducing him; it was a bad idea.
“Astri, maybe I should give you a shoulder massage. You look a bit tense,” Lenin says, flying over me. Everyone else is relaxing, whereas I’m the only one who still trains. I keep telling myself I can go through with the next task, but inside I feel broken. Elijah can’t be interested in me. He must have made some kind of agreement with Sebastian, maybe to distract me. I see the looks on guards’ faces when I pass by. They all think I’m ugly, not worth anyone’s attention.
“I appreciate the offer, Lenin, but I’m all right. We’re going to the shop. I need to speak to Emilia.”
The old witch has always treated me like her own daughter. Maybe it’s time to be honest with her. She needs to know the reason why I want to become the duke’s assistant. I’ve been hiding everything from her for far too long.
“Good, at least you’ll stay away from that pretty boy. I don’t like the way he’s looking at you,” Lenin says and Jetli giggles to herself. It’s sweet that Lenin’s jealous. At least I have someone who truly cares about me.
I wait around the corner until Jorgen and Diana disappear into their chambers. I try to avoid seeing him and I was lucky he didn’t show up at breakfast today. The tension’s creeping up my shoulders and I don’t know what to do with myself.
Finally, the Pixies and I manage to sneak outside undetected. Lenin keeps asking me why I’m acting so weird. He continues interrogating me during the entire journey through town. My Pixies don’t need to know what’s going on with me. I don’t want to worry them. I’ll continue to dodge questions until they give up.
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