h4Chapter 291: This Is Risky/h4

    "The Moon Goddessing here is not the only effect of my meddling." Morvakar sighed. His eyes were dim now. "You don’t get to hold the heavens hostage without paying a price."

    "You don’t have your powers anymore," Damien said. He stopped walking, forcing Morvakar to face him. Their eyes locked, vampire king to broken sorcerer. Morvakar only nodded once, stiffly, a proud man refusing to articte his own ruin. The nod was confirmation enough; Damien felt a punch of dread in his chest. "There must be something in your books, Morvakar. This is risky. What are they supposed to do with her to keep her from danger? Lock her in a vault somewhere?"

    "I have to get my powers back. That’s the only thing I can think of."

    "Then do that!" Damien eximed. He dragged his fingers through his hair, frustration pouring out of him in sharp gestures. "How... how exactly are you going to do that?"

    "It means I have to go into exile again." Morvakar’s lips curved in a humorless smile, and his gaze drifted far beyond the stone corridor. Exile was not foreign to him. It was his oldest lover, the one who weed him back when the world cast him aside. But this time it would be about sacrifice.

    "I don’t follow." Damien’s brows knitted. He hated when Morvakar spoke in riddles.

    "I’m going into Purgatory."

    Damien froze. Purgatory was the gateway to Hell itself. "Morvakar..."

    "I knew there would be consequences for my actions, your highness. But in the moment, when the prince went limp in my arms... I didn’t hesitate. And I would have made the same decision all over again."

    Damien let out a slow, guttural sigh. Then, in a rare act of intimacy, he pulled Morvakar into an embrace. It tight, desperate, masculine in how much emotion it contained. Damien’s hand fisted the back of the sorcerer’s shirt. "You are the greatest man to have ever walked the face of this earth," he murmured fiercely, his lips brushing against Morvakar’s ear.

    Morvakar’s hands remained at his sides for a moment before he allowed himself the indulgence of resting one palm on Damien’s back. "I need a favour."

    "Anything." Damien’s answer was immediate. He didn’t even need to know what the request was.

    "Don’t tell the queen."

    "Anything except that." Damien’s refusal was sharp.

    "I cannot break her heart," Morvakar said. "You know her... she will think this is her fault." He swallowed, his throat bobbing visibly, his usual arrogance stripped away.

    "No, Morvakar... no." Damien shook his head violently. "You will act like a man, walk up to her, and tell her."

    "Please...Don’t make me." Morvakar whispered. His eyes glistened, and his pride slipped enough to beg.

    Damien’s shoulders slumped, his head dropping forward in reluctant defeat. He closed his eyes, the image of Luna’s luminous face haunting him already, imagining her heartbreak when she eventually learned the truth. "Is this thest time I am going to see you?"

    "Yes. I will head to my old home and work on the ritual there."

    "How long does it take?"

    "For an offense as great as mine..." Morvakar tilted his head back, staring at the ceiling. "Could be months, could be days."

    Damien cursed under his breath, dragging his hand down his face.

    "Fine. In the meantime, is it safe to take the prince away from here?"

    "Of course. As long as you bring him back regrly." Morvakar’s voice was steady, but his hand trembled as he reached into his pocket. He pulled out Isolde’s ne. Damien’s throat tightened.

    "Here." Morvakar pressed the ne into Damien’s palm.

    "Why?" Damien asked, suspicion ring.

    "Keep it on you at all times," Morvakar said. "I worked on it—it will pulse whenever the sorcerer Gabriel was working withes within range. Keep the queen and the prince safe. The war is not over, Damien. Don’t let your guard down."

    "This is goodbye, uhn," Damien said softly. He wanted to make it a joke, to throw in some sardonic bite.

    Morvakar nodded. He pped Damien on the back. "I’ll wait until you leave. Tell Thessa that I am sorry."

    Damien began to walk away, each step pulling him further from a friend, a protector. He strained his ears, the way he always did, reaching instinctively for the sound of Luna’s heartbeat somewhere deep in the castle.

    When he neared the corner, instinct made him turn for onest nce. He expected Morvakar’s tall, broad frame leaning against the wall, arms folded. Instead, the corridor was empty. Damien swallowed hard. The sorcerer was gone.

    "Godspeed, Morvakar," Damien whispered.

    ******

    "I still don’t understand why Morvakar couldn’t just ride with us. We could have waited for him," Luna whined as the wind of Blood City hit her. The air was different here—colder, sharper.

    "He wanted more time with Mabel. Needs to figure out what to do about this Moon Goddess thing that has Kyllian bitching like a horny dog." Damien was trying to make light of it. He waited for Luna to untangle their squirming son. Magnus had inherited werewolf stubbornness—it took both hands to convince him to sit still long enough to be freed from the seat harness.

    Luna huffed, blowing a strand of hair from her face. "We still could have waited for him."

    "You want to risk Magnus being around Mabel for longer? We would never leave. I know I wouldn’t." He smirked.

    "Hmm, takes after his father then," Luna said, rolling her eyes as she hoisted Magnus onto her hip.

    "You looooove me..." Damien drawled, leaning close enough to nip at her ear as they walked.

    "Oh, quit it." Luna swatted at him with one hand, juggling Magnus with the other. But her cheeks flushed, and her heartbeat picked up.

    Damien’sugh rolled out.

    "Really, our son mated to the Moon Goddess. Oh boy." Luna shook her head as the enormity of it struck her again. "Another generation of vampire and werewolf mating. What are the odds?"

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