Chapter 142 The Other Path
Adrian’s POV
The cabin was dim, lit only by the soft blue glow of the overhead reading lights and the faint pulse of cabin lights through the window shades.
Kira stirred in my arms with a sharp, sudden gasp…like she’d been yanked out of deep water.
Her body jerked once, hard, and she mumbled something incoherent, words tumbling over each other in a half-dream slur.
“…no… don’t… have to find… she’s waiting…”
I tightened my hold instantly, one hand cradling the back of her head, the other splayed protectively across her bare back.
“Hey. Hey, princess. You’re safe. I’ve got you.”
Her eyes fluttered open…wide, unfocused, pupils still blown from sleep and whatever nightmare had clawed its way in.
She blinked at me like she was trying to remember where the dream ended and reality began, then sagged against my chest with a shaky exhale.
I kissed her temple, tasting salt and the faint sweetness of her skin. “Bad dream?”
She didn’t answer. Just pressed her face into the crook of my neck and breathed me in like I was the only thing anchoring her.
I’d already taken care of the rest while she slept.
Wiped her down gently with a warm towel, fed her small bites of fruit and cheese from the tray I’d had brought in earlier…watching her lips close around each piece with a hunger that had nothing to do with food.
Thirty minutes ago I’d mind-linked Victoria for a fresh dress…she’d slipped it through the door without a word, smirking like she knew exactly what we’d been doing.
Now I helped Kira into it…soft midnight-blue silk that clung to every curve like liquid shadow.
The neckline dipped low enough to show the fresh bruises I’d left along her collarbone, the hem brushing mid-thigh.
Watching her smooth the fabric over her hips nearly undid me again. My cock twitched, already half-hard just from the sight of her marked and wrapped in something that looked like it was made just for her.
But I swallowed the growl, forcing myself to breathe. Not now. She needed rest. She needed me to be steady and not pounce on her like a starved animal.
Which I am. Sadly.
I pulled her back into my lap instead, rocking her slowly, arms banded around her like I could shield her from whatever ghost was still haunting her eyes.
“You okay?” I murmured against her hair. “Did I hurt you? Need anything…water, more food, painkillers?”
She shook her head, voice small and sleepy. “I’m fine.” Then softer, almost to herself… “Just… have to find someone.”
My chest tightened. Who the hell was she looking for this time?
She drifted off again almost immediately, cheek pillowed on my shoulder, breathing slow and even.
I waited until her heartbeat evened out completely, then eased her down onto the bed, tucking the thin blanket around her shoulders. She curled instinctively toward the warmth I’d left behind.
I dressed quickly…shirt buttoned halfway, sleeves rolled, shorts straightened…and slipped out of the cabin.
James was waiting in the main aisle, posture relaxed but eyes sharp.
“Take me to her,” I said quietly.
He nodded once. We moved down the narrow corridor in silence, past the curtained sections where the rest of the detail and Victoria’s little company were settled.
Everyone looked up and greeted me with, “Your majesty.” I just nodded in approval.
We reached the rearmost compartment…smaller, more secure with the door reinforced. James keyed it open and we stepped in.
Inside, the girl sat strapped into the wide leather seat, wrists bound behind her with silver-threaded cuffs, mouth sealed with duct tape.
Her eyes…wide, furious, terrified…locked on me the second we stepped further in.
She started thrashing immediately, muffled sounds vibrating behind the tape.
“Take it off,” I told James. “We’re at thirty-five thousand feet. No one’s hearing her scream.”
James hesitated for half a second…long enough for me to shoot him a look…then peeled the tape away in one careful pull.
The girl sucked in a ragged breath, wincing as the adhesive ripped at her skin.
“Please,” she rasped, voice cracking. “I don’t know what you want from me. I don’t know anything. I swear I won’t tell anyone. Just…please let me go. Why are you doing this?”
I exhaled through my nose. I don't have time for this. “I want to talk to the other one.”
She blinked, confusion carving deeper lines into her young face. “What… what other one?”
I stepped closer. Reached behind her neck and pressed two fingers to the small, raised symbol etched into her skin…the mark that had been dormant for years until yesterday.
Her eyes glazed over instantly. Pupils dilating until the iris disappeared just like before. A slow, eerie smile curled across her lips.
What's with the eerie smile anyway? Does she think this is some kind of movie?
“Are you here to awaken me?” The voice that came out wasn’t Emma’s anymore. It was deeper, older, layered with something ancient and amused.
“Where is the blood of your mate, Your Majesty?”
“You won’t be getting even a drop,” I said flatly. “So you’d better start searching for another way to wake up.”
The laugh that burst out of her was wild…high and unhinged, going on far longer than any human throat should have been able to sustain.
I felt my claws prick against my palms, the urge to rip her throat out surging so fast I had to lock every muscle to keep still.
She needed to stay alive.
She needed to stay cooperative.
She's my miracle after all.
The laughter cut off abruptly, like someone had flipped a switch. Her head tilted, that same slow smile returning.
“I have a feeling that his Majesty doesn’t understand what’s going on.”
The voice was almost pitiful now…like she was trying to extend condolences to me. “You have everything to lose if I don’t awaken and fix you. But me?” She leaned forward as far as the restraints allowed. “I literally do not.”
Frustration burned hot behind my ribs.
Every second she breathed without giving me an answer was another second Kira stayed vulnerable…another second Sebastian could circle closer, another second the old laws could keep her from wearing my mark…another second I could die.
“There has to be another way,” I said, voice low and dangerous. “One that doesn’t involve you taking a single drop of my mate’s blood.”
Her smile widened just then…slow, knowing, and cruel..
“Oh, but there is another way, Your Majesty,” she said, her eyes gleaming with amusement.
“Are you willing to take that path?”