Chapter 361: Nedra Discovers Penelope
Nedra made her way to the castle, avoiding as many of the lycan males as she could. The storm cloud was gone for now, but she was desperate to find out who it was that she made the cage for.
The problem was if Zagan found her there. She was not sure how he would react to her presence, particularly if it was not one of her children who was locked up in the bedroom. If he actually had captured Selah or Sage, he would likely be expecting her. Otherwise, it was unheard of for her to go anywhere near the castle. She always stayed as far away as she could from the vampire and his residence.
Once she made it past the threshold of Zagan’s dense forest with its disturbing bent trees, she slowed her pace, picking her steps more carefully and keeping all of her senses attuned to her surroundings lest she be discovered prematurely. As long as she got a glimpse into the room, she didn’t care if she was found or what he would do about it. At least she would know for sure. The uncertainty and potential scenarios playing out in her head were worse than anything else.
Hopefully Brandt and Emmett were in the castle, because then her presence would be less obvious. Any noises Zagan heard with his sharp vampiric ears could be initially attributed to one of his lycans.
The side door was already propped ajar with a large rock at its base, allowing her to slip through without making any noise opening it. This castle was so depressing. It was dark and cold just like its inhabitant. This was Zagan’s artificial night since she had failed to create him a real one.
Now Nedra had to decide which path toward the room to choose. The most direct path—the side staircase that curled upward until finally delivering her to the floor she sought—would require that she walk past Zagan’s bedroom and office first. She wasn’t sure if he left the door open or not, but surely he would hear her pass by.
Otherwise, she would have to wind her way through the labyrinthine halls on the first floor toward the wide main staircase, which would then leave her exposed to the males who were likely bustling around doing chores for their master. Maybe she could fool them by saying she had been called for. Yes, that is what she would do.
Most of the lycans on this island left her entirely alone or feared her. She was the powerful alyko pet of Zagan’s who was kept wild, allowed to roam freely whilst the rest of his prized possessions were caged.
As she tiptoed through the dim light, staying close to wall, she planned what she would do if it were one of her children she saw in that room. If it were Selah or Sage, she needed to not panic. She would enter the room, undo the cage that she had created, and give them instructions for how to flee.
No wait, that may not work. Undoing the complicated lattice of restrictive energy she had constructed might sap all of her own energy again, causing her to pass out from exhaustion. She would need to give them instructions before she opened the cage just in case.
Finally she was at the main staircase with no one in sight. She scurried up its steps as lightly as she could without making a sound. Thank the Goddess for the massive stone walls that separated each room in this castle. If Zagan were not specifically listening for someone on this floor, then the thick stone would likely make it so that he didn’t notice the sound of her heart hammering away in her chest.
There were so many floors and rooms to this castle. Zagan had requested it that way, but she doubted he actually used them all. Did he? She wondered now what else could be hidden away here.
This hallway seemed longer than the rest, each second that passed while she was exposed in its corridor like a small eternity that threatened to end her quest. A tall shadowy figure could appear at any moment, but thankfully it didn’t and eventually she made her way to the door that was closed—the other side holding the answer to her fears.
Rather than pausing to give any more thought to the scenarios that could unfold, she pushed the door open quickly and passed inside. When she turned back around after closing the door behind her, she was met with the wide alarmed eyes of someone who was not either of her children. Instead, it was a petite female with cotton white hair twisted into loose dreadlocks, half of which were pulled into a messy bun on top of her head. Her skin and eyes were a matching golden brown.
"You are a Winter," Nedra found herself saying in surprise.
"And you are?" Penelope asked, stunned by this sudden intrusion.
"I am... well it doesn’t matter who I am," Nedra said quickly, almost chuckling as the massive weight of her fear left her body.
"You made this cage, didn’t you?" Penelope’s eyes went hard. That was the only way this female would have entered without any reservations. What kind of alyko would work for this monster?
"Yes, I am sorry. Do you know why he is keeping you here so close to him?" Nedra’s eyebrows pinched together, not understanding the significance of another Winter such that he would keep her close by. They were known to be powerful, yes, but not more powerful than she was. What was so special about this one?
Penelope glared at her. Obviously she would not be able to trust this female, despite her being alyko. There was no way she was telling her anything about August, so she shrugged stubbornly in response to the question.
A thought suddenly occurred to Nedra about something she had read long ago when she was still searching for a way to kill Zagan, before she had given up entirely. It was an obscure and unreliable notation in an ancient book on mythical creatures, but perhaps...
"Are you... are you his mate?" she gasped.
