issa looked at Okab with a stunned expression.
"Mates follow their mates wherever they go?" she said as if stating it rather than asking it.
Okab nodded. "Yes, my dear. So, if Lerna is killed, Rigel will follow her. However, for that they need to be mated and marked. I don't know whether your brother has already marked her or not."
issa got up from the bed and started pacing the room.
Okab watched her pacing up and down. "What is the problem?" he asked. "You look like you are in tension! Didn't you like the plan?"
"It's not that!" she paused for a mont and looked at him. "I am trying to rember whether they are mated or not."
Okab chuckled. He got up too and then walked to a long table that was set up on the side of the room where various crystal bottles were kept, each containing different type of wine. He poured two flutes for him and for her. He gave one to her and said, "If they are not mated, maybe you can force your brother to mate with her when she is here. Or maybe you can simply make a situation where your brother has this strong urge to mate with her." He winked as she took the glass from him.
"And how do we create that kind of a situation?" she asked and sipped so wine.
"Simple. The oldest thod works the best. Add a heavy drug in his food or wine or water. Whatever suits you." He shrugged.
She sipped more wine and then her eyes glead with an idea. "Aren't you smart, Okab?" she giggled. "I can think of a thousand such situations!"
He curled his finger beneath her chin and tipped her face up. "You are way smarter, more intelligent and braver than your brother, issa. If I were him, and I would have already had my suspicions on you and killed anyone who would have tried to dethrone . But he has such a wuss that he hasn't done anything." He pressed a kiss on her lips. "You are going to be a better ruler than him."
issa grinned as she looked at him with loving eyes. "And you are going to make a fine, fine king!"
Okab chuckled. "Once your brother is out of the way, your father will announce you as the Crown Princess."
"And then I will marry you imdiately, so that you beco the Crown Prince!"
Okab didn't say anything as he gazed into her eyes.
"What?" she asked him, her voice low and husky.
"I don't deserve you," he breathed. "You are so beautiful and I am miserably in love with you."
"And I love you too!" she rasped. She rose on her toes and kissed him. He wrapped his arms around her as she buried her face in his chest. "So what if we are not mates, Okab. We love each other a lot."
He placed his chin over her head and humd.
When they separated, he said, "You have to coax your brother into getting Lerna here. And for that you need to shed your reservations and make him feel comfortable. The sooner Lerna is here, the sooner she is going to be eliminated. Then we both will just enjoy ourselves till your father rules Orion."
She nodded as she flushed till her neck. She imagined herself on the throne of Orion along with her handso husband.
For a day she didn't go to Rigel because she knew that if she went imdiately, he would be all the more suspicious. She knew that after the conversation in their parents' bedchamber, when their mother remarked about Lerna being a traitor, Rigel had his suspicions. So, she waited for a day so that the emotions settled.
At the sa ti, she didn't like how Rigel attended the court along with father. Okab was made to sit on the last chair and she didn't like it even one bit. She knew that though Okab wasn't complaining, he was very hurt. She could feel his sadness. He was such a wonderful man that he didn't complain to her, but she saw the sadness in his eyes.
It was the next day that she went to talk to Rigel and to know of his plans of getting Lerna to the kingdom. Rigel was preparing to go to court when she stepped in his room.
"How are you?" she asked him in a low voice, seeing how distant and guarded he was with her.
"Is there anything you would like to know, issa?" he asked, his voice ice cold.
She cleared her throat. "I-- I am sorry for how mother spoke with you the other day. She shouldn't have called Lerna a traitor."
Rigel glanced at her as a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes, and then began buttoning his tunic without comnting.
"I wish to et her as soon as possible. I am so sorry about how mother and father feel about it, and I am also sorry about how I behaved with you, but Rigel--" she closed the gap between them until she was standing in front of him. "--you have to understand that my loyalty lies to Orion and I have all the right to question anyone's credentials and Lerna..." She let out a long exhale. "Lerna isn't on the right side..."
"It's fine, issa," Rigel replied nonchalantly. "You don't have to explain."
issa relaxed and a smile ca to her lips. "Thanks for understanding my point of view, Rigel," she said. "When are you getting her here?"
Rigel adjusted the belt of his sword. He inserted his sword in its sheath. With his hand on the hilt, he inford her, "She should be here in two days."
"Oh wonderful!" issa exclaid. "I would love to et her as soon as she is here. I am waiting for her!"
Rigel chuckled. "That would be very nice of you, issa. She needs friends."
issa's answer was a sweet smile. She couldn't wait to finish her off. She couldn't wait to see herself nad as the Crown Princess.
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