The Alpha's Temptation

Eltanin sank to the ground on his knees and stabbed his fingers into his hair. He could smell the poisonous vapor of opium in the air. This meant that Tania was sedated before they had taken her. Something horrible had happened and he just didn't know what. The dread propelled him to his feet and he moved towards the palace at a dead run. Uncaring that he was covered with mud, he raced down the corridors of the palace with his guards following him until he reached Fafnir's chambers.

Fafnir rose to his feet with a dead alarm. "Your Highness!" He had his hand on the hilt of the sword on reflex.

"Seal every entry of the palace, now!" he barked.

Fafnir jerked his head back as his brows furrowed. "And what will we be looking for?" he asked without questioning his king's judgment about sealing the palace.

"A slave girl!" He ran out of Fafnir's chamber. Fafnir followed him while giving orders to his soldiers to seal every entry and exit of the palace. He couldn't understand as to why the king interested in a slave girl. Yet he didn't question.

They reached the staircase that led to his bedchamber.

"What happened to her?" asked Fafnir.

"She was taken," Eltanin snapped. He skipped the last seven steps as he vaulted over the rail to reach the foyer of the palace wing that he stayed in. He picked up his cloak and then Tania's discarded gown. He tossed it towards Fafnir. "Smell it and commit that smell to your memory. You have to find her and like yesterday!"

Shock took over his surprise when Fafnir caught the maroon silk gown in his hands. He had never ever seen the king so panicky about a woman and the king had had numerous in his life. Not only that, the king had never brought a woman to his bedchamber. He surveyed the room and found a tray of food, petite silk sandals, a strong smell of a girl, tangled bedsheets and blankets, panties, shifts, and potions on the bedside table. Was the king tending to this slave girl? Who was this girl the king was personally attending too secretly? His curiosity was at an all-time high. The king had never been this anxious before.

Eltanin rushed out of his bedchamber. "Come with me!" he shouted. The journey back to the orchards lasted an eternity, at least for him. His fear for Tania's safety was overcome by an overwhelming rage that someone dared to abduct her and steal something so precious to him. They even dared to kill guards in his own palace. Long back, in a battle against Aquila, a part of his kingdom was destroyed. Eltanin had been extremely upset, but he had gotten the damaged parts reconstructed, pacified over the loss by making it even better.

Tania was not a part of the palace that could be easily replaced. She was his mate. He vowed to himself that if she came to any harm, he would wreak such heavy havoc that it would make all his previous battles look like a child's play.

He reached the orchards with a faint hope that Tania might be standing under an apple tree, frightened, but not harmed. But the moment he reached it, the hope had died soon after. He was furious. Disappointment surged through him like a strong wave in the Jade Sea. All at once a sudden realization weighed heavy on him, his fury over the fact that she was abducted, would pale in comparison to his horror, if he found out that she was dead. A big hollow hole formed inside his chest. Stabbing his fingers through his hair, he looked wildly around. He should have locked the door that led to the tunnel from his room.

When he found out who had abducted Tania, he would obliterate them from the face of Araniea. He would make their death agonizingly slow and painful. He would bruise them till they were drained of every last drop of blood and then suffocate them in a saltwater tank, their punishment would look harsher than any heap of dead bodies he had seen in his life.

"Did you find out about the murders?" he asked Fafnir as he gazed at the oak trees that bordered the orchard. He darted towards them to find any evidence of her abduction.

"Not as of yet, Your Highness," he replied, following the king. "The murderer was very proficient at what they did. They killed the victims and knew the art of torture inside and out. So, we are dealing with someone who is a professional." He paused as he halted at a shrub. "Was the slave girl injured?" he asked.

Eltanin stopped. He spun around and strode over to Fafnir. "Why?" he asked as he followed the direction of his gaze. He found a tiny piece of a shredded shawl with stains of blood. Fear blasted through him. This was his shawl. She must have worn it before leaving. But why was it stained with blood? He felt the ground slipping beneath his feet. Eltanin knelt on the ground, no longer able to think coherently. Was she murdered? No. That couldn't be. His heart and his wolf said otherwise. He untangled the tiny piece of shawl, as his breath lodged in his throat. After that he didn't know what Fafnir was instructing the soldiers to do. He wrapped the piece around his palm and brought it near his heart. "Stay safe, Tania," he murmured. "I will find you as soon as I can."

"Your Highness!" Fafnir called him.

Shaken out of his reverie, Eltanin got up to his feet. It was dead of the night but sleep was the least of his concerns. He ordered his soldiers to comb the entire palace while he went straight to the guest wing. He was planning on putting Morava under arrest in her room until Tania was found. He highly suspected she had a hand in Tania's abduction after he connected the dots. And if he found a modicum of evidence that pointed in her direction, he was going to destroy her and her father before razing down the kingdom of Pegasii.

Tania—