Kaelen’s fingers brushed a loose strand of hair from her face, his touch light. “It varies for each Omega. Usually two or three days, sometimes longer. A week at most, though that’s rare.”
She bit her lip. A week. Seven days of need gnawing through her, worse than what she’d already felt. Without an Alpha to ease it, how did anyone survive that kind of pain?
Kaelen seemed to read the question in her eyes. His thumb and forefinger took her chin. “We’ll figure it out before it gets that far, I promise.”
Reiya nodded, though the thought lingered.
Silence stretched between them before Alarik’s voice cut through, low and intent.
“What did Solmaz say? About the bounty? About Castiel?”
She exchanged looks with both of them, brow arching in surprise. “Solmazknowsabout those things?”
Kaelen exhaled, rubbing a hand along his jaw. “She knows more than most. Her influence in Zohara—and beyond—shouldn’t beunderestimated. This bathhouse is only one piece of what she controls. Being under the protection of one of the most powerful desert lords grants her certain . . . liberties. She notices things others miss, and she knows things most would rather keep buried.”
Reiya straightened, pulse quickening. “Then, what did she say?”
His jaw ticked, the golden of his eyes deepened. “She warned me the bounty is a small matter compared to what’s coming.”
Pausing, the weight of his next words pressing into the space between them. Then, he told them what Solmaz had told him—that Omegas of noble blood had begun to disappear from all across the nine kingdoms.
Reiya’s stomach twisted. “And no one noticed?” She looked at them both. “Aethonia hasn’t heard of any such news.”
Kaelen’s voice hardened. “Nothing that raises alarm on the surface—which only indicates someone’s been covering them up.”
She shifted to look at him, her thoughts racing. “But . . . noble Omegas in particular? Why them?”
Alarik’s tone was clipped, decisive. “Power, perhaps? If you monopolize noble Omegas, you control alliances across the nine kingdoms. Marriages. Bloodlines. Without Omegas, no more Sunborns and Moonfires can be born. No more prophecy of golden eras for any kingdoms.”
Kaelen nodded grimly. “It’s possible. Omegas influence the rise and fall of dynasties. Whoever is orchestrating this is looking for something far bigger than wealth.”
Her fingers tightened in her lap. “Precisely what Castiel hinted at on the ship,” she whispered.
“Solmaz doesn’t have proof of Castiel’s involvement,” Kaelen admitted. “But his position as a diplomat certainly gives him access—movements of royal families, which kingdoms have Omegas in their courts, and how to reach them. He could tip the scales in ways no one would notice until it’s too late.”
“Or worse,” Alarik muttered, knuckles brushing against his chin. “He’s not just the informant. He orchestrates their acquisition.”
The words hung in the air, weighted with implications. Reiya’s mind churned, piecing together fragments. It certainly explainedCastiel’s actions in luring her away from Aethonia, putting up a bounty on her to get her back.
“Did Solmaz say anything else?” Alarik asked.
“Her Luminara Isles sisters wrote to her about Omegas missing from their midst as well. Quietly, without a trace.”
Reiya’s brow furrowed.Luminara Isles.The name stirred no recognition, yet his tone carried an easy familiarity. She conjured the map of the nine kingdoms in her head, combing through every nook and cranny she’d studied so much as a child and youth, but couldn’t pinpoint the location.
Before she could ask, Kaelen spoke, “Whatever their reason, it doesn’t change what we need to do. Solmaz warned Zohara isn’t safe, especially with the bounty on Reiya. We know it’s likely from Castiel or his allies.”
“At least we’re leaving tomorrow,” she said. “What time?”
“First light,” Alarik replied. “Xian Jun already asked me to ready the horses.”
Reiya nodded, though her thoughts remained tangled. Castiel’s shadow loomed larger than ever. He’d always presented himself as a diplomat, a broker of peace, but how much of that had been a mask? She had misjudged him once—what else had she failed to see?
Kaelen and Alarik, their expressions set with quiet determination, seemed certain of their next steps. But a nagging unease curled in Reiya’s chest. What if they were still missing something vital?
Her gaze drifted beyond the darkened windowpanes. Castiel’s words echoed in her mind:‘This is bigger than you, bigger than me, bigger than the kingdom.’
Now, she truly believed him.
