Ileus: The Dark Prince

Back in the cave, it had been three days since Aed Ruad had done nothing but had sex with Siora. Having cast his father out of her body, he was laughing. Now it was Ráild's responsibility to take the spirit to Vilnski, and from what he knew, the fae was in no mood to leave so soon. Also being a fae, he was able to suppress Seraph inside him easily. 

Siora had argued with Aed Ruad to strike Iona as soon as possible. She had urged him to send his men to find out about her. His men had kept a constant vigil. Being faes, they were mostly in their shadow forms and that is why no one could detect them. Perfect covers. When they heard the rumor that the royal family was visiting the werewolf kingdom, they conveyed it to Aed Ruad. 

"I want to go there and strike!" Siora said as she got out of the bed and tied her hair in a low bun. "We already know where she will be going. Why not just attack her over there?" she argued. 

Aed Ruad traced his fingers over her back. A wife… He chuckled. He had thought that Anastasia would become his wife, and he hated that girl. He hated the fact that his mother wanted Anastasia to be his wife. He hated that his mother didn't grieve the death of his sister. She was so bloody focused only on her ambitions, that she used him as her tool. He could have had any damn fae in Vilinski as his wife and had that been the case, there was a chance that he would have been still there. But because of his mother, he was hiding in this cave. But as luck would have it, he was with a demoness as his wife. He sighed. "And give them the indication that we are hiding in the Northern Mountains?" He touched the lower swells of her breasts. "Not so soon, wife. Not so soon…" 

"Then what do you propose?" she asked desperately. "This is a golden chance. We can't let it go. Who knows when Iona will come back? She is an easy target." 

"Iona will be protected by at least two dozen Mozias and that many werewolves. We have to lure them all out and that too one by one. Don't be impatient." 

She balled her hands into fists. "I will go there to strike her today!" 

"No, you won't!" he growled. 

Siora simply grabbed her gown and stood up. She wore it and said, "I am not like you. I will take a chance today and you will have to help me." 

Aed Ruad glared at her. "You will end up ticking them!" 

"Then so be it! They should fear the unknown!" Saying that she simply walked out of the door. She was dying to fatally attack Iona. She walked to her room and wore tunic and slacks. Her magic was returning to her slowly. And she wanted to use it… on Iona. 

Aed Ruad followed her to her room, wrapped in the sheet they had just had sex on. He just said one thing, "Don't get caught." He needed her for the kingdom. "But you are doing the wrong thing." 

Siora ignored his warning. She went to Silver Vales along with two fae soldiers. She had to stay low on the outskirts. So, she waited until they came back with their information. Iona had come to Kaizan's house and they were all seated in the living room, which was accessible from the back alley. That was the opportunity she was waiting for. Under the cover of the night, she prowled closer to Kaizan's house. Staying at a safe distance, she threw her magic. 

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"The weather is too cold for a bonfire!" Ileus protested, when Kaizan suggested that they have a party at his place. Rolfe and Iona were supposed to leave in a week's time and Adrianna and Dmitri were about to return in two days. He couldn't let his wife shiver in such cold weather. It was snowing pretty heavily. 

"You have become too old, Ileus!" Kaizan snorted. "Just a year back we were all camped outside Sgiath Biò and then a few months back we traveled through with Anastasia. That was the worst place one could ever come across as far as winters are concerned. And right here, in the backyard of my house, you are saying that the weather is too cold?" he gave Ileus a pointed stare. "Next you will say that you need a cane to walk." 

"That time my wife was not pregnant!" Ileus snapped. Anastasia was sitting in between his legs. They were sprawled on a divan in his living room. The mist covered floor to ceiling glass windows marred the vision. Outside the ground was covered with snow that hadn't stopped drifting down for the last two hours. It had settled over everything, forming a thick layer. The garden tables and chairs seemed to have implanted themselves deep inside the snow. Thick layer sat over the firs that had surrounded the mansion. 

Rolfe and Iona had gone to meet Pierre and Cora over dinner. Iona had hugged her brother for being so over protective about her for sending so many guards with her and then left for her grandmother's place.

After the way Cora treated her in Lila's case, Anastasia had no intentions of meeting her or talking to her. Cora was Adrianna's mother-in-law and after the stories she had heard about how she treated Adrianna because of Keisha, Anastasia didn't even want to have any connection with the woman. She hated internalized misogyny in all forms, being a victim of it. And Cora was the kind who would do it over and over. According to Anastasia, Adrianna was too good to bear it all, but she would never. As far as she was concerned, Cora could go to hell. There was no way in the hell she would reconcile with a woman like her. 

Anastasia smiled at her husband's concern. She snuggled in him and he dragged the blanket over them tightly. "Are you fine, love?" he murmured as he pressed a kiss on her nape. 

"I am fine," she murmured right back. Over the past few days Ileus was being over-protective about her. There was a huge shift in the way he treated her. When initially she saw that fear in his eyes about having a baby, now the fear was replaced with an emotion that was akin to… looking forward. She didn't know the reason for his paradigm shift in his thinking, and she didn't even ask. It was just so good to bask in his warmth. 

"What good would you magic if you can't create warmth for out bonfire outside?" Kaizan fired back. 

"Then what is the point of having one if you want to be encased in my magic?" Ileus shot right back. 

Kaizan narrowed his eyes. "Then don't! Don't use your magic. But a bonfire would be fun. It's been ages since I have asked my friends to come over and that's what I am doing." His parents Ookashi and Nate had gone to meet Ookashi's brother, Niiya in the human realm and they planned on staying there for another week. 

All at once the door of the room opened and Paige came in.. "Anastasia!" she said in a breathless voice.