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“What is that?” I asked uncomprehendingly, but Ash didn’t answer me. He fell back off the bed, his face as white as a sheet.
“Ash!”
Without a word, he rushed out of his suite, slamming the door with such force, the room shook in his absence.
Chapter33
Ash
“Rachel! Rachel!” I howled, barreling down the hallway, my eyes wild as I searched for my assistant.
One of the guards appeared, flustered by my incoherence, but I shoved him aside, racing down the double staircase, almost tripping on the carpet as I did.
“RACHEL!”
Tearing through the courtyard, I raced toward the offices, head swimming and dizzy to the point where I was sure I would faint.
“What is it? Is it Briar? The baby?” Rachel demanded, jumping up from her desk when I rushed inside.
Trembling, I tore away the buttons of my shirt, but the golden arch above my heart was gone. The realization calmed me only slightly. Just because it wasn’t there anymore didn’t mean anything. It only meant I wasn’t in close proximity to my mate.
“Oh…” Rachel murmured understandingly. “The mate bond clicked in?”
I slumped onto the sofa in the outer office, burying my head in my hands.
“This is bad. This is very, very bad.”
Rachel slid around her desk to sit at my side, laying a hand on my shoulder.
“Maybe not,” she offered without any confidence. “Maybe you got your years wrong. I mean, it was like two thousand years ago.”
I raised my head and looked at her balefully.
“I’m just trying to help.”
“My mate and child are going to die. This is not helping. You need to find a way to combat this curse! I don’t care what it costs or where we have to go to find resources.”
Rachel made a commiserating noise, but she shook her head.
“I’ve looked into it for you, Ash. Honestly, you can’t buy your way out of this one. There are no magic answers for this. The only way is if the original fae undoes the curse…” She trailed off thoughtfully, as if she’d just had an epiphany.
I eyed her cautiously, but she didn’t continue, her mind whirling as I stared at her.
“What?” I pressed, seeing a light go off in her eye.
“I’m not sure, but…”
“But…?”
“Maybe the curse won’t affect Briar at all,” Rachel said.
Irritation raced through me. I didn’t need Rachel’s cockeyed optimism. I needed real answers and results.
“No, really. Maybe it won’t,” she told me, her eyes brightening with sincerity.
“Come again?” I growled, unsure if she was placating me or genuinely onto something. I didn’t dare hope.
“No, hear me out,” Rachel said, the thought formulating as she spoke. “Briar may not be a fae, but she is part of Valeria’s bloodline, right?”
