Chapter 131 : The Ambassador

*Lena*

Xander planted a rough, hungry kiss on my lips and any shyness or apprehension vanished in an instant.

“I missed you," he said into my neck as I continued to clutch him against me, my fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt.

“How long have you been in Mirage?" I asked when I finally pulled away to look up at him. He was clean-shaven and dressed in casual trousers and a button-down shirt, with a white undershirt beneath. He looked more like a random resident of Mirage than an Alpha King, but I was more than okay with that. I reached up involuntarily and ran my fingers through his black curls, which were brushed back away from his face. He'd gotten a haircut since the last time I saw him. He looked.... Well, he looked so much healthier, and happier, since we'd parted ways after the war.

“Only a few hours," he replied, leaning down to press a kiss to my forehead. “I'm on my way to meet with someone, actually–"

“Meet with someone?" I laughed, pushing away from him. “Was that someone not me?"

“Well, I had to meet with them first, and they're on my way to the castle," he smiled with a shrug. “I didn't expect to run into you, but I'm glad I did. I think you should go with me."

He took my hand and began to lead me away, drinking deeply from the lemonade I'd bought for Mom.

“Who is it?" I asked.

“The ambassador for the vampires who are settling in the east," he replied. I halted, an uneasy feeling settling in my stomach.

“What?"

He turned to face me again, and I could tell by the look in his eyes that he totally understood my hesitation.

“There are a lot of them," he began, “and some, especially the families with children, have expressed the desire to spread out. There were four kingdoms of lower vampires, and they don't all get along, as well as those who had been enslaved by the king for… centuries. There's just not enough room in Crimson Creek for all of them, and your dad is planning on relocating some of the families to Mirage."

“My dad? You saw him?"

“I did," he said, blowing out his breath. “He doesn't like me very much, but I told him I'd check in on the ambassador. The vampires will start arriving at the end of the summer, from what I've been told. Winter Forest has also offered to accept at least three dozen families…"

continued to talk as we started walking again. How hadn't I known

by. The lower vampires were a totally different type of people compared to the Death Walkers who had battled against the allied forces for weeks. They were… good, at least the ones

me

along a cobblestone road. It had white-washed window frames and baskets of flowers hanging near the doorframe. A

thick curtains were drawn behind the windows, to keep the

It opened a crack, and whoever was behind it paused for a moment before opening the door wide enough for us

raising my eyebrows at

at me, a ghost of a smile touching

***

around the corner. They were sitting in the snug kitchen at a breakfast table, and every once in a while I heard

head then snuggled deeper into the floral couch were sitting on. I looked down at the baby she'd placed in my arms, his cheek resting against the curve of my stomach as he made little suckling motions with his mouth in his sleep.

smiled weakly, meeting my eyes. “My mom says he looks just like me when I was

who was living with them in the cottage but was out running errands. I could see the sadness behind Carly's eyes when she mentioned her father, and my heart squeezed with

happened, right?" she

my arms and settled into a comfortable position on the couch. I had a

a soft sigh leaving her lips. “So I assume you know why I was in Crimson Creek in

read the conflicting emotions

the village. We went out to the bar one night, and a man approached us, telling us about

“Why?"

were testing the soil in the village one day and had traveled out past the village

eyes shot to mine as she

research it, but I couldn't find anything about it in the texts available in the library. But I found one mention

as well," I added, “but it was

the

began to ask questions. Our soil samples and the samples of blood root we'd sent back to Morhan for testing were

“My roommates went to that party. I went back to our apartment and gathered my books in my backpack to go study in the foyer of the hotel, which felt like a safer place

head to look through the doorway to the sitting room and across the hall into the

The Novel will be updated daily. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

Comments ()

0/255