CHAPTER 4

Emilia paused for a moment to catch her breath before blurting out in an extremely anxious voice, “You have to help me, Sandy….” 

Her gaze drifted towards Kevin as she continued, “Please, Kevin…. You have to help me.” With these words, a few drops of tears rolled down her cheeks and she sniffled.

Kevin trotted down the stairs with hurried footsteps, “Emy, Take a deep breath and tell me exactly what has happened. We can’t help you unless you tell me what the matter is.”

Emilia brushed past me and grabbed my brother’s arm, “My son, Evaan…. he has been kidnapped…”

Shock flitted through Kevin’s features and he gasped, “Kidnapped?”

“E…Evan, he had gone to play by the bank of the river as usual but he didn’t return the entire night….” Her voice was shaking so much that the rest of the words came out as a croaked mumble, “I looked for him everywhere, asked all our neighbours but we couldn’t find him.”

“Your house is in the midst of a wilderness. It is possible that he just got lost. Don’t worry, I will send my men to look for him.”

“You don’t understand, Kevin….” She snapped in an agitated voice. “There is no use wasting time looking for him there….”

There was a kind of frustrated certainty in her voice. I couldn’t help but feel that she was hiding something. I cleared my throat and spoke up, “Where exactly do you want us to look for him, Emilia? We won’t be able to help you unless you are honest.”

She gulped; her restless gaze shifting from Kevin to me. With shaking hands, she held out her phone. The moment I unlocked it, a single message became visible, ‘You made a wise decision three years ago, Emilia Ryanwood. Unfortunately, I will have to go back on my words…. It’s time for the ritual….”

I raised my head and looked at Emilia; my gaze boring into hers, “Why do I have a feeling that you recognize the sender of this message?”

She licked her dry lips and gave me a short nod, “I know but… I don’t think I can disclose it…”

I snorted and shook my head, “Then, I don’t think we can help you. Go and look for your son yourself.” My words came out ruder than I intended. If she didn’t trust us enough to tell us everything, there was no point in trying to help.

“Sandy! How can you say that?” My brother’s sharp voice sounded as he glared at me. “Can’t you see that she is disturbed?”

I shrugged my shoulders, “I was telling this for her benefit. If we know all the details, we can find Evaan faster.”

Kevin opened his mouth to reprimand me again but Emilia interrupted, “Sandy is right. I was the one being unreasonable. If I want you to help me, I should tell you everything.” She drew in a deep breath and continued in a wavering voice, “I think, no I am sure that the one who sent me this message is Valence.”

Kevin’s eyes flashed red with anger, “Kidnapping is a very serious allegation, Emilia. You can’t just pin it on anyone you like….” His voice grew louder with each word he spoke, “If you had accused a stranger, I would have investigated the matter. But, we are talking about Valence here.” He grabbed her arms and shook her up, “I know her very well. She can’t do such an evil deed even in her dreams.”

My brother’s reaction reeked of prejudice but it was expected. In the past, Valence had helped us so many times.  It was only natural that my brother couldn’t hear anything against her.

Emilia’s expression turned blank as she shrugged off my brother’s hold, “I knew nobody would believe me…”

She threw an accusatory glance at me before running out of the hall. I felt a twang of guilt. I shouldn’t have forced her to explain her thoughts. Turning my attention to my brother, I snapped, “You should have at least given her a chance to explain everything.”

Kevin placed his hand on my shoulder and looked into my eyes, “Don’t let her tears fool you, brother. She is just jealous that Nivaan chose Valence over her.”

Emilia didn’t look like she was here out of jealousy. Words can lie but expressions can’t. When I looked into her eyes, I felt an intense sense of despair brewing within her.  

“I will be back in a while, Alpha,” I muttered as I trotted out of the hall with brisk steps. Breaking into a run, I managed to catch up with her before she left the mansion.

“I should have never come here,” she said between sniffles. “Not when Kiara is away.”

I placed my hand on her shoulder and tried to say in a soothing voice, “So what if Kiara is not here, I will listen to you.”

“I…I…” she looked away and shrugged my hand off. “There is no point in wasting time, Sandy. You won’t believe me either….” After a short pause, she added, “I need to look for my missing son…. I should better get going.”

She started walking away but I blocked her path. “I will listen to your entire story, okay….” I tried to sound as sincere as possible. I usually didn’t poke my nose in other people’s business but a child’s life was at stake here.

“That won’t be enough, Sandy.”

A deep frown settled on my forehead, “What else do you want, Emilia?”

“I'll tell you everything, but…”

“But, what?”

“You have to promise that you will help me,” her eyes bore into mine; as if she was trying to delve into the depths of my soul. The despair and restlessness reminded me of my mother. I had failed to wipe away her sorrow but I could help Emilia.

Before I could realise what I was doing, I had already promised to help her. Her gaze turned distant as she recalled the event that shattered her life.

“This incident happened three years ago. I had just given birth to Evaan when Valence suddenly appeared in my ward. She used her magic to activate the second part of a ritual she had performed a few weeks ago. The ritual that was supposed to protect my son became a device to keep him away from his father….” Her voice trailed off; her eyes glazed over as if she had gotten stuck in that memory. Drawing in a sharp breath, she continued, “Valence forced me to choose between Nivaan and my son….”

“Does that mean it wasn’t Nivaan’s decision to leave with Valence?”

Emilia’s lips lifted in a weak smile, “Nivaan was in love with me, Sandy…. He was my soulmate. We were so happy together….” Her expression hardened as she continued, “If Valence hadn’t tricked him, he would never have left with her. I am sure Valence found a way to keep him trapped.”

“Why didn’t you tell anyone about this, Emilia?”

She raised her eyebrows and questioned, “Would they have believed me?” She paused for a moment before adding, “Do YOU believe me?”

Her question caught me off guard. Clearing my throat, I replied honestly, “Your story does sound far-fetched….”

Her expression deflated and she sighed; her eyes dulling with resignation.

I couldn’t bear to see her in distress. I ended up committing to something that I was probably going to regret.

 “I can’t promise to trust you blindly but I will give you the benefit of doubt. I will go to Halterland and find out the truth….”

“You will?”

“I promise, I will get to the bottom of this.” With these words, I made up my mind to go to the restricted land. First, my brother wanted me to go to Halterland; now this kidnapping. It was as if my fate was hell-bent on leading me there.