Book 2. Aksel - The dungeons 2

Book 2. Aksel - The dungeons 2
Aksel didn’t slow down, determined to catch Kara before something terrible happened to her. It wasn’t really her fault that she was so unaware of true danger. Her family, especially Caesar, should have taught her that an oxcoa always waited for the right moment to begin the hunt.
But Caesar was gone, replaced by that terrible being who wore his face, and so it had become Aksel’s duty to look after Kara. And what a fantastic job he had done so far. He had lost three females in a single night.
Kara didn’t understand the danger she was putting herself in by doing something as foolish as entering a place swarming with enemies. With the Necromancer and members of the Order turning it into a nest of vipers, the palace was probably the most dangerous place in the entire kingdom. Yet despite the baby growing inside her, she had willingly put herself in such a precarious position.
Aksel couldn’t fault Kara for wanting to help bring Lady Ivy and Essy back. After all, everyone loved Lady Ivy. She was like the sun, brightening every chamber she entered, drawing everyone to her.
Her beauty transcended the mortal realm. Any male would consider himself blessed to have such a mate, but there was only sorrow in Aksel’s soul, for he was not worthy of such a female. He would bring her nothing but sorrow, despair, and tragedy. If he could trade his freedom for hers, his life for hers, he would do so in a heartbeat.
As he too slipped inside the palace, bile rose in his throat. He wasn’t afraid for himself, but for the female who meant everything to him. As long as there was air in his lungs and a steady beat in his chest, he would fight for her, not caring what happened to him once she was safe again.
Despite the foul stench lingering in the air, warning Aksel of the demons’ presence, the palace was eerily quiet, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. Nothing good ever came with silence. At least he didn’t hear any screams, which made him think Kara hadn’t run into any trouble.
Yet.
Picking her scent out from all the others hanging in the air took him a couple of seconds. Then he followed it, his steps as light as a feather, and soon passed the dining room.
Every thought of Kara vanished from his mind the moment he caught a trace of Lady Ivy and Essy’s scents. His heart hammered in his chest as he forced himself to stay calm and focus on following his mate’s trail. He could detect the sharp spike of anger in her scent, but beneath it lingered the unmistakable scent of fear.
Anger rose inside him like molten lava within a volcano, threatening to erupt at any moment.
His precious mate had been brought there against her will, all alone and frightened, with no one to protect her. He had failed her, just as he had failed so many others. But he refused to drown in self-pity. Little by little, he was determined to undo all the harm he had caused, even if it took him the rest of his life.
He tried to follow Lady Ivy’s scent, but unfortunately, he lost the trail when he reached a dark corridor. Every instinct screamed at him to turn back, to leave that place, but Aksel did the exact opposite. No matter what danger awaited him, he would prevail.
The wolf inside Aksel surged to the surface, demanding to be freed, but Aksel forced it back down. He needed to remain in his human form and keep a clear head, for if he allowed the animal to take over, instinct would replace reason, and he couldn’t afford to make a single mistake.
He proceeded with caution, his gaze taking in every detail, no matter how insignificant, searching for any sign of spells or traps. Nothing seemed out of place.
When he reached the end of the corridor and nothing happened, he let out a quiet breath.
But then he felt it—a shift in the air, something materializing behind him.
He spun around, only to find himself face-to-face with Caesar, his features contorted with malice.
“You should have kept my sister away from here,” Caesar snarled, taking Aksel by surprise, as he hadn’t heard his voice since the day the Necromancer had killed him. It sounded more like the growl of a beast than the voice of a man, laced with so much hatred that Aksel’s chest ached. He had loved Caesar like a brother.
If Caesar could speak, if he remembered Kara, did it mean that despite everything, he was still in there somewhere? Not this twisted version of Caesar standing before him, but the real one.
Aksel didn’t get the chance to say anything. Caesar struck him in the neck so fast that he didn’t even have time to react.
Paralyzing pain seized him in a chokehold, numbing his entire body as darkness pulled him under and the world around him faded away.

Someone shook Aksel awake. He recognized the scent before he even opened his eyes.
Essy.
He took in the room around him, and it didn’t take him long to realize they were in a cell. The damp stone walls told him they were in the dungeons beneath the palace.
Cuffs encircled both his wrists, each linked by a chain to the ceiling. Forged from iron and silver, they prevented him from shifting into his wolf form.
“They caught you too,” Essy sighed as Aksel pushed himself into a sitting position, his back resting against the cold stone wall. He winced as every movement sent sharp jolts of pain through his body.
“Where is Lady Ivy?” he asked, not seeing her anywhere.
“Not here,” Essy replied.
Something in her tone made Aksel finally look at her. Bruises and dried blood covered her face. Martin wouldn’t be happy when he was reunited with his mate, but Aksel had more pressing concerns.
“Where?” he demanded, his voice laced with urgency as concern gripped him.
If Essy had been beaten, had Lady Ivy suffered the same fate? Worse? The thought of his mate beaten and bloodied in a cold cell, all alone, made his wolf snarl at the edge of his mind. He had done this. He had put his mate in danger by allowing her to come with him. He should have said no. He should have insisted that she and Essy stay behind. He hadn’t, and that failure would haunt him for the rest of his life.
Essy looked away. “She’s to be wed today.”

The next update should be on Monday or Tuesday.