Page 35 of Taken By Fury
“I didn’t want to speak of this now with Orien, but I believe you are likely the doctor’s soulmate. Orien’s decision to send her back home is not something a Valarian in love would do.”
“You took the words from my mouth.”
“Also, Aimee and I discovered something most intriguing that might explain why Lomara would be reincarnated.” Greydon pointed to the scrolls scattered across the table. “We found a passage about the queen’s protectors.”
“I don’t understand. Bethany is the queen’s protector. How would Lomara fit into this?”
His brother shoved a parchment under his nose, so he was careful to take the worn paper in his grasp and study the ancient language. As he read, his jaw went slack. “Am I reading this correctly? It says the queen shall have the power of three. Her protector, and the two princesses. Each represents a point of Uuna’s trident and will share their power with the queen. When the time comes and the rest of the artifacts have been collected, four females of power will go forth and slay the god.”
Greydon was smiling. “It would seem that each female is an artifact herself.”
He did the math in his head. “That means we have collected four, one being Bethany, and then Lomara would make five?”
“Correct and Orien’s mate, wherever she may be, would be the sixth.”
“Then that leaves the seventh. We are nearly there. I have to believe Orien’s mate must be within reach.”
“Let us hope so.”
This put a whole new light on everything, and Zander was now more determined than ever to make Sheila his.
* * *
As she stoodin the man's embrace, a man she had loved more than life itself, the man she was going to marry, Sheila realized, nothing felt the same as it did before she was taken. That should be expected, of course. After all, she had been away for what? Two years? She had been to hell and back.
“Sheila, where have you been? I have hired private investigators, and it was as if you vanished off the face of the earth.”
She had done exactly that. “It’s a very long story.” She thought she had been prepared for this moment. Had wanted it so badly, but now that she was here, she almost wished she wasn’t. That damn demon Zander kept interfering in her life. She could still smell him on her skin, the scent of sandalwood now her favorite. The way his eye color changed with his moods. Gray one minute, silver the next, and when aroused, they were dark as storm clouds. There was no way to deny how his body felt pressed against hers. They seemed to fit together perfectly. Then there was his kiss. It was passion and pleasure rolled into something very familiar, as if she had kissed him a million times before. If she took a second to think about it, everything about him was comforting and made her feel at home. This moment, this place, felt foreign to her now.
“Sheila?”
Jeff shook her from her thoughts.
“Sorry. Can we sit?”
“Of course. Please forgive my manners. I guess I am so shocked to see you. Shall I get us refreshments?” He took her hand and led her past the foyer, through the formal sitting room, and to his library.
“Maybe a stiff drink?”
“A little brandy?” He led her to a black leather chair and helped her sit.
“Yes, thank you.” Jeff remembered her favorite drink. What did Zander know of her? Who she was now, not this Lomara.
When he moved away to get her a drink, she studied him from the back. Nope. Definitely not Zander. Jeff was a surgeon and carried himself completely differently. While Zander was a prince, he was also a warrior and switched between royal pleasantries and the icy demeanor of a man at war in seconds. He was both power and polish, rolled into one.
Why am I thinking of that demon?He had gotten into her head with all that rubbish of being a reincarnation of his long-lost love. Still, her DNA did not lie. She was not human. She should not have come here.
Jeff handed her the snifter and took the seat across from her. When she really studied him, she realized that while he seemed happy to see her, he was nervous.
“Tell me, did you move on? I would have expected you to.”
“Is that what you did? Where have you been?” Hurt filled his eyes and she knew what he was thinking.
“No, Jeff, I did not leave you. I was taken against my will.”
“How did you escape?” he whispered.
“I didn’t, I was… I was rescued.” When had she started thinking of Zander as her rescuer rather than her captor? She eyed the bracelet on her wrist, the one that was supposed to keep her safe, and smiled. A sense of peace came over her. “Do you recall my telling you about the bone fragment Father had given me?”
