Chapter 355
Chapter 355
Kael
The private jet was quiet, aside from the low, steady hum of the engines and the occasional murmur coming from my men seated farther toward the back of the cabin, while I remained near the window with one arm resting against the leather armrest and my phone loosely held in my other hand.
I had checked it several times since we’d taken off, even though I already knew there was nothing new waiting for me, and every time I unlocked the screen, I found myself staring at the same empty notifications before locking it again and telling myself I was being ridiculous.
A few minutes would pass.
Then I would check it again.
No messages.
No missed calls.
Nothing.
Eventually, I locked the phone and placed it facedown on the small table beside me, forcing myself to leave it there rather than reaching for it again, although I already knew it would only be a matter of time before I gave in.
Across from me, Cecilia had been watching the entire thing.
I didn’t even have to look at her to know that.
She had that particular expression she always wore whenever she thought she had figured something out before I had any intention of admitting it, and judging by the faint amusement in her eyes whenever I happened to glance in her direction, she was clearly enjoying my discomfort far more than she should have been.
Eventually, she sighed.
“Anastasia?”
My eyes immediately lifted toward her.
“No.”
Her lips curved into a knowing smile.
“You’re checking your phone every few minutes.”
“I’m aware.”
“So it is Anastasia.”
“No.”
“Then who is it?”
I picked up my phone again almost purely out of spite, unlocking the screen even though I already knew there wouldn’t be anything there.
“Shut up.”
She laughed quietly.
“You care about her.”
“Of course I do.”
I frowned at her.
“What kind of question is that?”
Cecilia shrugged.
“I don’t know. You look like you’re waiting for her to call.”
“I just want to know she’s okay.”
The teasing expression disappeared from her face almost immediately, replaced by something much more understanding as she looked at me for a moment before nodding.
“I know.”
I looked back toward the window, where the clouds stretched endlessly beneath us, their white surfaces glowing beneath the sunlight so brightly that I had to narrow my eyes.
Six months ago, when Aurora disappeared, I had become paranoid in a way I hadn’t thought possible.
It wasn’t something I could simply switch off whenever I left the house or whenever a few quiet days passed without anything happening, because once you had watched someone disappear right in front of you and had been completely powerless to stop it, every person around you suddenly became another possible weakness, every familiar place another potential target, and every person you cared about another name that could eventually be used against you.
Anastasia had been one of those people.
That was why I couldn’t let her stay close to me anymore.
It had nothing to do with wanting her gone, and everything to do with knowing that keeping her anywhere near me would make it far too easy for someone to use her as leverage, especially after everything that had happened with Aurora.
So I bought her a house outside the city, far enough away that she could live there without being constantly surrounded by people connected to me, and I made sure the property wasn’t tied to my name in any obvious way.
She had been living there ever since.
We still talked every day, sometimes for hours, and whenever I had the time, I visited her myself, which meant that distance had never really changed the relationship between us.
Today, however, she hadn’t called.
That alone shouldn’t have meant anything.
She could have been asleep, busy, outside, or simply away from her phone for a few hours, and there was no logical reason for me to assume the worst simply because she hadn’t contacted me.
Logic, unfortunately, had never been particularly useful when someone you cared about had disappeared without a trace.
I hadn’t told Cecilia any of that, and I didn’t need to, because she had known me long enough to understand exactly what was going through my head without me explaining every thought.
For several minutes, neither of us spoke, and the only sound between us was the quiet vibration of the engines and the occasional murmur coming from the men behind us.
Then Cecilia broke the silence again.
“You know, you could simply admit that you’re worried.”
“I am worried.”
She smiled.
“There.”
I looked at her.
“There what?”
“You admitted it.”
“I’ve been worried for hours.”
“I noticed.”
“Then why are you smiling?”
“Because you’re terrible at pretending you don’t care.”
“I’m not pretending I don’t care.”
“No, you’re pretending you’re not worried, which is somehow even worse.”
I gave her an unimpressed look.
“I’m trying to concentrate.”
“On what?”
“Getting to Velmoria.”
“You’ve checked your phone seven times.”
“Eight.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“You counted?”
“I noticed.”
“That’s somehow worse.”
I sighed and leaned back against the seat.
“I just don’t like the silence.”
“Especially from her.”
“Especially from her.”
Cecilia studied me for a moment before speaking again.
“You could call her.”
“I already did.”
“And?”
“No answer.”
“Call again when we land.”
“I will.”
“And if she still doesn’t answer?”
I turned my gaze toward her.
“I’ll go there.”
“I figured.”
“I’m serious.”
“So am I.”
She leaned back, her expression becoming more thoughtful.
“She’s probably fine.”
“I hope so.”
“She knows where you are.”
“I know.”
“She knows you’re traveling.”
“I know.”
“She probably just decided she didn’t want to spend the morning attached to her phone.”
I looked down at the screen again.
“Maybe.”
Cecilia watched me for another second before giving me a small smile.
“You’re going to check it again, aren’t you?”
I put the phone back into my pocket.
“No.”
She smiled wider.
“Good.”
“I hate you.”
“No, you don’t.”
I looked out the window again.
“No, I don’t.”
A few hours later, the announcement came that we were beginning our descent, and I shifted toward the window as the landscape beneath us gradually came into view.
Mountains stretched across the horizon, their peaks disappearing into low clouds while dense forests covered nearly everything below, creating long stretches of dark green that seemed to continue endlessly between the mountain ranges.
The private airfield appeared between them a few minutes later, tucked away from the larger roads and surrounded by enough forest that anyone unfamiliar with the region would have had difficulty even realizing there was an airstrip there.
The jet touched down smoothly, and the moment the engines began slowing, I was already unfastening my seatbelt.
My men stood as soon as the aircraft came to a complete stop, collecting their belongings and preparing to follow us while Cecilia gathered her coat and moved toward the stairs behind me.
The moment I stepped outside, the colder air hit me.
Cecilia pulled her coat tighter around herself as she followed, while I took another quick glance at my phone before slipping it back into my pocket.
Still nothing.
I tried not to think about it.
My driver was already waiting beside a black vehicle parked a short distance from the aircraft, and he stepped forward as soon as he saw us approaching.
“Everything is ready.”
“Good.”
Cecilia climbed into the vehicle beside me, while my men followed into another vehicle that pulled onto the road behind us moments later.
The drive toward Velmoria was quiet at first, with the scenery passing steadily beyond the tinted windows while the roads gradually became narrower and the populated areas disappeared behind us.
The farther we traveled, the more isolated everything became.
Eventually, even the paved road disappeared, replaced by a narrow route winding between thick trees whose branches stretched over the road and blocked out much of the daylight.
My driver slowed.
“We can’t go any farther without getting too close to the outer patrols.”
I looked ahead through the windshield.
“How close?”
“Close enough that they’ll notice the vehicles.”
I considered that for a moment before nodding.
“Stop here.”
The vehicle pulled over.
I opened the door and stepped outside, immediately feeling the difference in the air as the colder forest wind moved through the trees and carried the sharp scent of pine and damp earth with it.
Cecilia climbed out behind me, followed by my men, who gathered quietly beside the vehicle while the driver remained where he was.
I turned toward him.
“Wait here.”
He nodded.
We started through the trees.
I kept my senses open as we moved deeper into the forest, listening for movement and feeling for nearby supernatural presences while the sounds of the vehicle disappeared behind us.
Nobody spoke.
There was no reason to.
We all knew what we were doing, and the closer we came to the kingdom, the more important it became that we remained quiet.
The enormous stone walls of Velmoria soon appeared through the trees, rising above the forest and stretching farther than I could see from where we stood.
The outer gates were still some distance away, but I could already see several guards stationed around them, their attention focused on the roads leading toward the entrance rather than the forest behind them.
I raised one hand.
Everyone stopped immediately.
The guards still hadn’t noticed us.
I looked toward Cecilia.
“Can you handle them quietly?”
A faint smile touched her lips.
“Easily.”
She stepped forward.
The moment she raised her hand, the ground beneath the guards shifted.
Roots burst through the soil and wrapped themselves around their legs before they could react, catching several of them completely off guard and pinning them in place.
One guard reached for his weapon, but Cecilia moved her hand sharply, and a sudden blast of air struck him before he could draw it, sending him crashing backward into the stone wall.
Another guard opened his mouth, clearly preparing to shout, but a wall of water formed around his head before the sound could escape, muffling his cry until his body went still and the water collapsed harmlessly onto the ground.
The remaining guards fought against the roots and earth holding them in place, but Cecilia tightened her fingers, causing the ground around their legs to rise and lock them down completely.
One by one, they went limp.
Silence returned almost immediately.
My men moved forward to check the area, making sure there were no other guards nearby before one of them turned toward me.
“Clear.”
I nodded.
Cecilia lowered her hand and stepped back beside me, brushing a loose strand of hair away from her face as though she hadn’t just taken down an entire patrol without allowing any of them to raise an alarm.
I looked toward the enormous gates of Velmoria.
They stood ahead of us, dark and imposing against the stone walls, separating the forest from everything hidden beyond them.
I stared at them for several seconds before finally speaking.
“Let’s go.”