Ragnar imdiately pulled her into a tight embrace. Her body trembled faintly as her arms wrapped around him, clutching at the back of his coat as though he were the only thing holding her together.
"Please don’t say things like that," he said firmly, leaving no room for argunt.
"There is only one person to bla here, and it isn’t you."
His hand moved to the back of her head, holding her close. "Dena forced her way into your life. And when you refused to play along with her sches anymore, she took Rowen to punish you. Nothing about that is your fault, my love."
Even so, there were far too many things about Rowen’s disappearance that troubled him. Too many questions that remained unanswered. How had Rowen managed to leave the manor without a single maid noticing? How had he slipped past the estate gates without being seen by the guards stationed there? The estate was not so loosely guarded property.
It was one of the most heavily protected places in Amris.And yet sohow a young boy had vanished from it without leaving so much as a trace.
Even though Ragnar knew that magic was most likely involved, it did little to help him understand the situation any better. If anything, the thought of unseen forces at work only deepened the unease twisting in his chest.
"While I was out searching the streets last night, I couldn’t stop thinking about how strange all of this is. I know it might be too early to start making speculations, but..."
His words faltered when Circe lifted her head from where it had been resting against his chest. She stared up at him, desperation written so plainly across her face that it made sothing inside him ache.
"Please tell ," she said. "Whatever it may be, tell . I have nothing right now, give sothing to hold on to."
Ragnar hesitated. All he had were suspicions, half-ford thoughts that might very well prove aningless. He disliked speaking on matters he was not certain of. But the pain in her eyes left him with little choice.
"The other disappearances," he said at last.
Around the ti she had first co to Lamora, there had been a string of vanishings that began here in the south before slowly spreading across other parts of the kingdom. It had beco a quiet but persistent concern whispered about in noble houses and taverns alike. Only vampires had been taken. No bodies were ever found. No signs of struggle. No witnesses who could say what had happened.
They simply vanished. And always in the dead of night.
Ragnar could almost see the thoughts forming behind Circe’s eyes as she processed his words. Rowen was human, not a vampire. And he had disappeared during the day, not under the cover of darkness. There was no clear connection between the two.
Even if there was, it still left them exactly where they had begun, with no clues and no path that might lead them to Rowen.
The heavy silence stretching between them was suddenly broken when the library door creaked open.
Both of them turned.
A maid stepped hesitantly inside, as though afraid to disturb the grim atmosphere that filled the room. She ca to a stop a few feet away and bowed deeply, her hands folded neatly before her.
"Your Highness," she said softly, keeping her head lowered. "There is a ssenger waiting outside for you. He said he was sent by Arik Tomar."
"Who is Arik?" Circe asked as Ragnar reluctantly loosened his hold on her.
"Luria’s brother," Ragnar answered.
"I will see what the ssenger wants and return shortly. I won’t be long," he assured her before turning toward the door. The maid quickly stepped aside and followed behind him as he left the library.
Outside, the air was colder. A lone rider waited near the courtyard, his horse shifting restlessly beneath him. The mont he spotted Ragnar approaching, the man quickly dismounted. Without hesitation, he dropped into a deep bow before Ragnar had even fully reached him.
"Your Highness," the ssenger greeted respectfully.
He was young with sandy blond hair and smooth, almost boyish features.
"Go on," Ragnar said, his tone edged with impatience. "State your business."
"Arik Tomar asks that you be present at the palace tomorrow when the king holds court," the ssenger said.
"I cannot oblige his request." The refusal left Ragnar’s mouth almost instantly. "There are urgent matters in my ho that demand my attention."
There was no possible way he could leave now. Not while Rowen was still missing. The thought of abandoning the search, even for a single day, sat poorly with him. Worse still was the idea of leaving Circe behind in the state she was in.
"He said it was imperative that you make an appearance," the ssenger continued cautiously. "Even if it is only a brief one."
Ragnar remained unmoved.
But then the ssenger added quietly, "He also said to inform you that he has found one of your wife’s killers."
The words struck like a blow. Ragnar went completely still. For a long mont, he simply stared at the ssenger, his mind struggling to process what he had just heard.
How? For years he had searched. For years he had followed every lead that might bring him closer to the two n who had broken into his chambers on the night of his wedding to Luria eleven long years ago. And yet he had never been able to find them.
The desire to punish those responsible for her murder had burned quietly inside him for more than a decade. It had been one of the few things that never truly faded.
But the timing... The timing could not have been worse. He could not leave now.
"You should go." The voice ca from behind him.
Ragnar turned and found Circe standing several steps away, just close enough that it was obvious she had overheard everything.
Her posture was straight, her chin lifted slightly in determination, though the shadows beneath her eyes and the lingering tension in her expression betrayed the pain she was still carrying.
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