The Werewolf King’s Mate
Chapter 69

Silas

POV:

As Lola was resting, I took the opportunity to wrap up a few things in our shared space. I had a mountain of paperwork to tackle and a plethora of tasks to handle. There was a sudden, jarring knock at the door. Who might just be knocking at...I looked at the clock... two in the morning?! As soon as I turned the doorknob, I was met with the sight of a heavily-breathing Tommy. It was quite unexpected! "What is it, Tommy? Do you know what time it is?"

"Its, uh, the high priestess...Elisha...amulets..."

"Slow down, Tommy! Take a deep breath!"

"T-The high priestess called me a while ago! She told me that Elish was, ah, in the coven. Ah hah, the amulets were laced with dark magic. We are in danger."

My eyes darted back and forth, alternating between him and the glowing screen of his phone. His coming here was bigger than I thought. We are all in danger, including Lola, Cory, and Lucas! I told Tommy to wake Elias and the others and meet us in the study hall. Meanwhile, I grabbed a shirt and a pair of shorts from the closet and woke Lola up. We all hurriedly went to the study hall. Next, it was time to rouse Lucas from his slumber, so Tommy and I headed into their room. "We're dead, Silas! Lucas would be mad!" Tommy worriedly said

I felt my throat tighten as I took a deep gulp, my nerves getting the best of me. Tommy was right. Lucas would be furious about this information we received. I am just praying to the moon goddess that our necks are still intact before the break of dawn. As soon as the door creaked open, I was met with an intense glare from Lucas, obviously from being woken up at this late hour.

"What is it? Do you both know what time it is?"

"We have an emergency. I received a call from the high priestess!" Tommy informed Lucas.

"Let's talk about this in the study hall."

The study room was buzzing with curiosity as we all assembled there. Tommy soon revealed the high priestess' warning to everyone, and the room fell silent as we took in the gravity of the situation. Not one expected us to be in danger because of the amulets that were supposed to protect us.

"I'm feeling quite uncertain, and I can't seem to shake it off.

And I am unsure if I could trust the high priestess right now." Lucas said to everyone.

I do understand where he was coming from. It's becoming increasingly difficult to determine who we can rely on.

Everyone was confused at the moment. I don't have any idea what to do anymore. Of the years I have worked as Lucas second in command, this is the first time I have been lost and exhausted. Whatever Elisha's plan, I want it to end soon.

"Take deep breaths, Silas," Lola whispered, and her tiny hands held mine as support.

I nodded in response. I am glad Lola is here. It helps me and my wolf calm down when we are experiencing stress and uneasiness. Soon after, Lucas and with everyone's agreement, we will surrender our amulets except for Lucas'.

Given his current distrust of the high priestess, he wants something to hold on to to protect Cory and his pup. The amulet had worked before, so with that in mind, he kept one of the amulets for Cory.

"Silas, Tommy, and Ellie." I perked up as he called our names.

"Go to the coven tonight and check with the high priestess what happened. But be careful. I am still a bit skeptical about the situation. If something feels off, return immediately. Do not engage in any fights. And DO NOT trust anyone. Elisha can disguise herself as anyone." "Yes, Your Majesty!"

We prepared for our departure, and I talked to Lola before we left.

"Be careful, OK? I am again restless leaving you. I will be back as soon as we can."

'You have to be careful, too!"

"I will. Now, get back to the room and continue your sleep."

We left the chateau and embarked on a short trip to the witches' village again. As we got closer to the village, the amulets in my hand grew heavier and heavier. Is this a sign? If so, it means that we are in danger.

"Tommy and Ellie. Watch your backs. The amulets are heavy. We may soon replace ourselves treading on treacherous ground."

"Got that! I could feel my amulet weighing on my wrist as well." Ellie raised her arm, showing the bracelet with the charm on it.

In a few minutes, we arrived at the coven. The intensity of the atmosphere was palpable. And the amulets weigh heavier than before. It felt like I was lifting a 10-pound dumbbell.

"Should we retreat?" Ellie asked.

"I suggest we return now. I don't feel good about this," Tommy said.

"Come on, you two. Let's look for the high priestess."

"WHAT?!" A loud whisper escaped the twins.

"You must be kidding, Silas! Lucas said to return to the chateau if we think something is wrong. And I am pretty sure that something is not right!" Tommy exclaimed.

"I know! But we have to try! I don't think anyone will attack us. So, let's go!"

As I made my way into the village, I could hear their grunts of disagreement, yet they still obediently trailed behind me.

After going deeper into the village, we finally arrived at the high priestess' office. When we opened the door, the high priestess sat behind her table. Surveying the surroundings, nothing seemed to be out of place. The previous setup of her room remained unchanged. We all stepped in, and she greeted us. I had an eerie feeling when I looked at her. She seemed rather calm for someone who saw Elisha and panicked mere hours ago. "Be on your guard." I mind-linked to both Tommy and Ellie.

"I am glad you made it! Tommy! I was glad you answered my call. I, uh, was frightened when I saw Elisha here in the coven."

"Do you mind telling us what happened?"

"Hm. When Elisha entered, I was in my office doing some work for the coven. I was caught off guard. I didn't expect her to return after she left."

"What does she want?"

"It was weird. She asked me if I had given you something to use for protection. I tried to keep my mouth shut, but she used magic to threaten me." In fear, the high priestess covered her face with her hands. "He had my heart in her hands. One squeeze, then, I...so, please understand if I told her I gave you amulets and an evil eye."

"We understand, high priestess. Your life was on the line," I said.

"Thank you, Silas! I know you would understand!"

Then I showed her the amulets. As soon as they landed on her table, she eagerly examined them.

"What did Elisha tell you about the amulets?"

She looked at me and said, "At first, she thought I gave you more potent protection. But when she learned that it was these amulets and evil eyes, she laughed it off. Saying, 'Oh, I have nothing to worry about, then! Before I left, / enchanted those with dark magic because I knew you would do something like that. After that, she left. I called Tommy immediately to warn everyone. I was glad I made it on time to warn you."

"We must take our leave immediately."

"Wh-what?"

"Something's off with the high priestess. She was not as enthusiastic or concerned about us before. And she switched from calling us wolves to our names." "Yeah, I do replace it weird."

"What are you going to do with the amulets?" I asked.

"I will clean and get rid of the dark magic embedded in it. If you continue to wear it without cleaning, then sooner or later, your body will absorb the negativity. It will poison your body, and eventually, you will lose your life."

For the past few days, we've been wearing these amulets given to us. But so far, nothing seems to have happened.

Therefore, there are only two possible things here - (1) our bodies haven't absorbed the poison, or (2) the high priestess is lying. With everything so far, I am leaning towards the latter. This is not the same high priestess we met. The person in front of us was none other than Elisha herself.

"Does it mean that after being cleansed, we can use this to see the true identity of Elisha?"

"I cannot guarantee you that. But, this time, it would surely protect everyone."

"Another thing, high priestess, the last time we were here, you mentioned that something else could stop Elisha. We found the ingredients you asked for."

"Silas, what are you doing? We never talked about that."

Tommy interrupted my thoughts.

"Shh. Just play along."

The high priestess appeared startled by what I said. Let's see how she will respond to that.

"Oh! That's wonderful to hear, Silas! I was also wondering if we could ever replace those. Time was running out for us, so I'm glad you brought it."

"What the heck?! We never.." Tommy was starting to realize the situation we were in.

"Stay put. Don't make unnecessary moves. We will not engage in any fight." "But..."

"I know, Tommy."

"I will bring them to you before we leave. We leave the rest to you, high priestess."

"Don't worry. I will help you as much as I can. I will not let Elisha win this war. In this coven, we do not tolerate those who use dark and forbidden magic."

War?! So that must have been her plan all along. I must inform Lucas of this right away.

"Here you go! I believe the dark magic has been removed now. Make sure to wear them at all times. We don't know when Elisha would come."

"Thank you, high priestess. We will take our leave after we drop the ingredients."

I'm relieved we had a few things stowed away in the back of the car. We made sure to pack a couple of things before we went on a mission, and luckily, we had stuff that I believed would pass us ingredients - fruits needed, wood that I was not familiar with, but there were a couple of different ones in case we needed to build a fire, canned meats, and clothes. We put them all in a container and covered it with a cloth. We placed the ingredients on her table.

"Thank you, Silas! I will look into these and craft a tool to expel Elisha's magic."

"We will keep in touch, high priestess."

We left the coven calmly. We need to exit before she catches wind of our suspicions quickly. When we got back in the car, Tommy couldn't contain his emotions.

"Holy sh*t! That was Elisha!"

"Calm down, Tommy."

"She was right in front of us. Why didn't we capture her?!"

"It's not the right time. We were not prepared to engage in any fights. And I dare to believe that something happened to the high priestess. She could either be contained somewhere or..." "or dead." They finished the sentence for me.

"If she really is dead, Elisha is powerful enough to defeat someone like the high priestess. We might not stand a chance."

The whole ride back to the chateau was quiet. The interaction with Elisha showed how powerful she could be.

And with a war coming to the kingdom, it brought us anxiety and fear. The kingdom is soon to be plunged into a state of turmoil and unrest. We must prepare. Immediately!