The Search Continues (Dani’s POV)
“Miss Dani, I’m afraid we haven’t found anything here.” The Dwarven hunter’s face said it all. That they had been searching for two weeks and there was no sign of Kat anywhere.
I beat my hands against my thighs angrily. “She’s alive. I know she is. We must keep looking.” Pinching the bridge of my nose I took a few deep breaths in hopes of calming my nerves. “Tell the men to come back to camp. We will sleep here tonight and tomorrow we will hop to the last realm. She must be there.” He nodded but he didn’t leave. “Is there anything else?” I asked, half afraid of the answer.
He shifted uncomfortably in front of me. “Well miss, it’s just that the last realm is Elven lands mostly. While the Elves and the Dwarves have a very good working relationship, the King there is a bit… mad.” He swallowed hard. “He doesn’t take kindly to trespassers. If she found herself there then we must hope to find her before he does.”
“It’s my experience that mad kings are mad for a reason. What is his story?” I began walking deeper into camp.
“The last king, Leonide, disappeared suddenly. He had been married once and sired three boys, but his beloved wife passed. For many years a curse seemed to hang over the castle. All that got close to him suffered a horrible fate, including two of his sons. Thirty-some years ago he rescued a fair maiden and fell in love but evil still followed him. He and his last son rode off into battle against a great monster and Leonide was struck down. His body was never found. His son was so distraught that he had the realm sealed off from all others.”
I stopped walking and turned to face the Dwarf. “Wait, if the realm is sealed then how will we get in? How did she get in?”
The Dwarf shrugged. “Yer working with the Kringles. They are the one family that can pass through any realm gate. If anyone can get you there it would be them. As for the Lady… Princess Lily fell through a sealed gate because her Soul Mate was on the other side. Magic is strange,” he finished with a shrug.
“Kat… I mean, Lady Alizeyah already has a Soul Mate!” I wanted to argue with him but he was right that Magic could be strange. I sank to the ground beside the fire, ignoring the pain and itchiness along my spine. “Stupid wings… I thought you would come in overnight!”
