Chapter 37: Salt
Cassian whimpered as he watched Lynsandra approach. He glared at Evander, who was walking a little too close to her, but reluctantly looked away.
This is not the time to confront this priest, he told himself. I should make up with Lizzie first.
With that thought in mind, Cassian dramatically lifted his puppy eyes. At the same time, Lynsandra and Evander stopped a step away from him.
"Lizzie," he whimpered, his eyes rounding. He kept his arms raised, still kneeling on the salt that grazed his knees. "I’ll do anything for you to forgive me."
Lynsandra arched a brow. "Anything?"
Cassian blushed, making her already dead expression die for the second time. He looked away slightly, and whatever thoughts were running through his mind were something she absolutely did not want to know.
"Yes," he whispered, fluttering his eyelashes coquettishly. "Anything."
His answer, however, sent a chill creeping up her spine.
Even if Lizzie binds me, tears my clothes, and ravishes my body... I will not complain. I would even kiss her feet if that was what she wanted, Cassian thought, smiling at her as if giving silent consent.
Lynsandra crossed her arms under her chest, staring at the man kneeling on salt before her. Clearly, punishing Cassian was more of a reward to him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be blushing like this.
Before she could tell him to snack on the salt he was kneeling on, the main door creaked open.
She and Evander instinctively glanced at it, catching August walking in. August stopped one step inside, his brows knitting at the scene in the lobby.
"..."
Just like the other two, August was completely speechless.
Meanwhile, on the second floor, Severin looked toward the commotion he had heard. When he glanced down, all he saw was Cassian and the white substance he was kneeling on.
Salt.
The vampire’s eyes gleamed as his pupils dilated, his grip tightening on the railing. Was Cassian asking for Lynsandra’s permission to take revenge on him?
He smirked. "Fool. Did he think that much salt would kill me?"
Back to Lynsandra, she massaged her brows, feeling the doubt in August’s eyes. She even sensed Severin on the upper floor. Surely, this man was a magnet for trouble.
He never fails to remind me of my mistake.
This was why she had been careful since crawling her way back to the royal pack. One misstep, and it would cost her everything. Had she not believed she was dying, she wouldn’t have been compelled to be reckless and petty and let this man into this place.
She thought if she were dying, she might as well get back at Victor. Victor, after all, was one of the many reasons her curse had worsened.
Snapping her eyes back to Cassian, Lynsandra let out a defeated sigh.
"Get up," she ordered coldly, but instead of listening, he shook his head profusely.
"Lizzie, I will not get up from here until you forgive me!" he stubbornly declared. "Even if my kneecaps are crushed, I will stay here!"
Everyone: "..."
Lynsandra deadpanned, then nodded.
"Fine." She turned on her heel to leave.
As she walked away, Cassian panicked. "Wait, Lizzie!" When she stopped, his breath hitched. "Are you just going to leave me here?"
"..."
He placed a hand across his chest, tears brimming at the corners of his eyes. "Are you really just going to let my kneecaps get crushed?"
For a moment, Lynsandra pictured herself sending him flying with a roundhouse kick. Meanwhile, everyone else simply shook their heads.
"I’ll forgive you," she blurted out, watching his face light up. Then she glanced at Evander, her lips curling into a smirk.
"But first." She raised a finger and pointed at Evander. "You will finish an entire week of morning prayers with him. Only once you complete a full week of service will you come to me again."
"What?!" Cassian gasped, only to see her raise a brow. "I mean—sure! Sure! If I pray with him all morning for a week, you’ll forgive me?!"
She nodded. "Is that alright, Reverend?"
"Of course." Evander smiled gently as he turned to Cassian. "It is my honor."
Cassian’s face contorted as he looked at Evander in disdain.
"Don’t show your face to me until then," she hummed, resuming her steps.
But as she reached the staircase, she paused and glanced toward the corner. There, she caught Elias leaning against the wall, watching her. It reminded her of last night’s outburst, but the memory wasn’t enough to stop her from leaving.
As she left, Evander offered his hand with a polite smile. "Cassian, please, let me help you—"
"I’m okay!" Cassian pushed himself up without any problem, dusting off his knees before facing Evander. Once he straightened, he pointed at him. "You!"
Evander almost flinched at Cassian’s sudden change in demeanor.
"I am joining your morning prayers, but I’m warning you right now!" Cassian exclaimed. "Don’t you dare sabotage me!"
He smirked, beaming. "It’s just a week. Once I complete this one-week mission, I’ll ask Lizzie out on a date as a form of reconciliation—hehe."
Everyone who heard him couldn’t help but shake their heads. August, especially, couldn’t believe he had almost lost control because of this fool.
"Just one week," Cassian nodded. "It’s not that hard."
Evander smiled until his eyes squinted, nodding at Cassian. "That’s right. It’s not that hard. If anything, it is quite healing."
Cassian scoffed proudly, already gloating about the date he had planned after this week’s punishment.
Little did he know, morning prayers weren’t what he expected. Evander’s prayers didn’t last just a few minutes or the entire morning.
They lasted the whole day.
Just like today, Evander hadn’t left the chapel from morning until evening.
*****
Lynsandra had initially planned to head to bed and rest since she would be back to work the next day. However, since Evander had given her the button, she decided to go straight to her study.
She stopped by the window where the vase and the edelweiss were placed.
"First, this flower," she whispered, then slowly took out the button. "And now this."
Lynsandra placed the button inside the vase, watching it float on the water’s surface.
In the quiet, she felt a slight irritation over this unamusing mystery and a faint ache in her chest. She drew a deep breath, closing her eyes as she sighed.
Her body ached, her blood craving his touch.
Slowly, she touched her lips, remembering the faint sensation of his kiss.
"Enlly, you know him, don’t you?" she whispered, hoping her wolf would answer. "If you’re not going to tell me who he is, at least tell me... why didn’t he mark me?"
Of course, silence followed her question.
Lynsandra clicked her tongue and was about to drop the matter and try her luck next time when Enlly’s voice echoed in her head.
[Because he knows you would hate him if he did.]
