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"I need your help." I say, slamming down a peice of paper on the desk in front of me.

Dilin leans back against his seat behind the desk and raises an immaculate brow my way.

I squint my eyes. I suppose you do not ask for help by barging into someone's room uninvited and slamming down a peice of paper on the desk they'd been working on as if giving the person a death petition. And I suppose you do not use the tone of wanting to wring them alive either.

But I didn't have the energy for manners right now. Nor did I have the patience.

I was running low on time with Layla just declaring during the breakfast today morning that Dilin and I get engaged within a week and then there is Zander. . . .

I willed myself not to think of him and focused my attention on the task in hand.

"Please." The words tasted like led on my tongue but it'll do.

Dilin's lips twist, his head tilting in that cat-like way again, "What's got your panties in a twist?"

He did not just say that. He did not.

Ugh. Why do I want to kill everyone today? Cool down, Marilla. Cool down.

"Aren't you a researcher?" I ask instead, maintaining a calm tone.

"I am." He smiles, curls framing his honey dewed eyes.

"I need you to help me find out about something," I open the folded paper atop the desk and point towards the dates noted, "Both of the dates and time mentioned here are the same as well as the name. But the same person died and lived at the same time? Which makes no sense. Could you find out what exactly happened that day when these certificates were created or atleast which one is the real one?"

Dilin doesn't look at where I'm pointing, his gaze are adamant on my face as he asks, "This concerns you because....?"

"Because it's my name mentioned there which you would've noticed if you could spare your eyes to look at what I'm pointing." I deadpan.

His lips curl but he finally glances down from my face towards the document laid out on the table and picks it up in his hands.

For a long moment, he just scans the paper, honey gold eyes roaming over each text with a keen interest.

When he finally lifts his gaze, there's something unnerving in those orbs, "Where did you find this?"

"My parent's sea castle on Seagill's Island."

I frown at how he stares my way as if looking at me for the first time, his eyes take in the blue of my hair shifting down to my eyes before accessing each and every feature of my face as if seeing them in a new light.

"Some things are safer left unknown." He mumbles to himself and something about the tone of his voice makes him sound so very ancient.

Wait, how old is Mr. Hot Shot again?

When I ask him the question, he holds his chest as if in pain, "That's a touchy topic. Males could be equally pricky about their age. So spare me the details, will you?"

I roll my eyes, "Fine. But will you help me?"

Dilin straightens at that before his lips pulls into an agonizing slow smile, "I think you've awoken the inner spy in me. I'm most curious if not anything else. So yes, I shall help you, my lady. Although it'd take me a few days. Rest assured, I'll try to find out before our most-awaited engagement."

I almost face-palm myself at his last sentence before shaking my head and offering him a small smile myself, "Thank you."

He observes me with that unnerving gaze before cracking a wider smile, "You're welcome, bearer of the seven seas."

I give him a strange look at the somewhat of a title, "I'll take my leave now."

Dilin immediately stands up from his seat, "I'll accompany you. I've done enough fishing information for today." He says stretching his limbs in a poor attempt at warm-up.

I glance away from the disturbingly attractive way his muscles flex at the movement. There's something about Dilin that's too eye-catching to the point it's almost ethereal.

It reminds me of how I felt so at loss and everything felt so ethereal when yesterday night Zander and I were in the lake and his lips were on mine and his fingers-

I yank myself out of the gutter.

It wasn't just the feeling of bliss though. It had felt so peaceful for a sparse moment I'd wished for it to be like that forever. Wished for a forever with him.

But then reality had hit hard of how I needed to marry Dilin to free my people of Layla's hold and how despite whatever she'd done, despite knowing Zander is my mate, I knew Layla loves Zander and I didn't want to take one more thing from my sister after already taking her rightful throne. Whether by own choice or not, I'd still done her wrong.

Maybe I just wanted to rectify that. Or maybe there was still some stupid part of me that hoped the old Layla would come back someday if she got to be with someone she loves.

Even if it hurt somewhat to see Zander and Layla together no matter how much I wanted to deny.....

I think Zander does love her too-

'I sort of don't care about her?' Zander's words from the lake echoed in my head like a bad warning.

Wait!

"Did you truly mean it when you said Layla used a love spell to make Zander fall in love with her?"

"Let me tell you one thing," Dilin stops his baseless stretching and looks over, "I only convey the information I'm hundred percent certain is true. I have my own set of principles and giving accurate information is one of them. So do not ever question the truth of it."

Confusion seeps into my bones, "But why would Layla do that? And who would cast a spell for her?"

"You tell me." He says, "She's your sister. Not mine."

But how could I if I couldn't make sense of it myself? Why would she want Zander to love her unless she loved him a lot since long ago and wanted the feelings returned.

Although the spell. . .

Which witch could've possibly granted her such a spell?

And why?

Should I tell Zander about it?

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"Are you sure you don't want to accompany me to the court? We'll have fun." Layla asks fully dressed for a court meeting, her lips are set into a semblance of an annoyed pout as she hovers over my laying form on the bed covered in blankets.

I wait for the guilt of betraying her to seep and when it doesn't, I let out a sigh and shake my head, "I don't feel good. You go along. I'll join later." I pass her what I assume should be an encouraging smile.

When I see a frown pull on her lips, I realize how the attempt was an epic fail.

She crosses her arms over her chest, "You didn't even return to our chamber yesterday and fell asleep in the guest room. What's happening with you?" She raises a brow in instigation.

"I told you I was tired and slept in the first room I stumbled upon." I lie for the nth time feeling more exhausted than ever. All I wanted was a few moments away from Layla's constant pestering after sulking hours over Marilla's parting words yesterday night.

"I could use some rest, you know? It's been one hell of a past two days. Maybe that's why I feel strange?" I suggest hoping she'd buy the lie.

Layla's eyes soften and she leans in towards me to brush away the hair from front of my eyes.

The gesture reminds me of Marilla doing the same thing a lot of times. Which in turn reminds me of yesterday night.....

Marilla and me in the lake, her looking enchanting in her siren form, the way those blue eyes had turned hazy and dark with dezire, her soft breaths and silken skin, her roaming hands over my body, the way her eyes shut in ecstasy as she came undone.....

I force myself to veer clear of those thoughts and look at Layla only to find her staring down at me.

She has a strange glint in her eyes, something about it screams viciousness and possessiveness but it's gone within seconds and she gives me a smile, "Take rest as much as you need. I'll seen you soon."

With that, she thankfully inches back and walks out of the room shutting the door behind her.

I let out a long breath.

I am tired of her constant questioning. And with the confusing mess of empty emotions I felt around Layla....I was exhausted. But I had to bare this for what I wish to find.

And so I spring off the bed once her footsteps fade faraway into the hallway and shut my eyes winnowing myself to my room in Helvon's castle.

Once the familiar confines of black interior and starry ceiling appear in my sight, I don't spot a single soul around.

I let out a groan of frustration, "Where the Hell are you dying now?"

Almost instantly, I hear the sound of the door to my room creak open and Derek pops his head in, "Aww, did you miss me?"

I turn towards him with a blank face as he enters the room dressed in black jeans and a black leather jacket, "Glad that you finally decided to bless me with your presence."

"Woah dude, who hurt you? You're in a mood. Spare my poor soul." Derek raises his hand in mock surrender.

I pinch the bridge of my nose letting out a sigh, "Sorry. It's just everything is so confusing with Layla's schemes and then what I feel for Marilla....."

"I get it, man. I get it." He says placing a hand on my shoulder giving it a firm squeeze before his eyes switch to mine, "Is Avyanna still in the....?"

I nod and see him squeeze his eyes shut, his jaw clenching as he clutched the paper in his other hand tighter.

"Did you find out anything from that?" I gesture towards the letter clasped in his hand.

I found the letter the first day on approaching the Black Sea after ransacking Layla's closet while she slept like the dead due to the sleep drug I slipped into her drink when we clank wine glasses for reuniting after ages.

It was a very small letter addressed from Charlotte to Layla which read,

♧

Dear Elder Daughter of The Sea Queen,

I shall grant you what you seek. In return, you shall help me with what I seek.

~Charlotte

♧

Derek's face is a mask of seriousness as he nods.

"I hunted down two of the black witches who flew when Charlotte was killed and enquired them thoroughly. I couldn't find how and when Layla switched her place Laira. I couldn't find what happened to Laira either..." A look of grief coates his face at the lack of knowledge he had about his sister's whereabouts.

Laira was the only family Derek had after his parents death in the war with the hunters centuries ago.

"We'll find out about her." I assure him, giving a squeeze to his shoulder just the way he'd done.

"Yes, we will." Derek passes me a weak smile before inhaling a long breath and looking straight at me with a new conviction, "You were right about the letter though. Layla had approached Helvon as Laira for a reason."

"That means...." I drawl waiting for him to continue,

"Layla and Charlotte had indeed cracked a deal. The witches didn't know what Charlotte had granted to Layla but they knew part of what Layla had done for Charlotte in return."

My hands fist at my sides. Why am I not even surprised? I'd thought there was some big loophole in the story Layla sprewed that day.

She'd said how she pretended as Laira and come to Helvon because she had no place to live. But as far as I'd found out from the historic scripts in mother's archives, when Laira had come to Helvon, was exactly when Layla had already infiltrated the Black Sea. Which means Layla had a place to live at already but she still came to Helvon.

Maybe making me fall for Laira was always part of the plan she came to Helvon for. Maybe it was to win my and mother's trust so she could easily take us offguard when the moment was right. Maybe Marilla had never been the one to blame and had just been framed for all of it. Maybe the whole charade of Laira 'dying' was to keep our trust on her so no one doubted the poor little Laira and no one went searching for her like we did with mother.

If we'd thought Laira was captured as well, we might've looked for her and there was no guarantee we'd have maybe found out that the Laira we knew wasn't even Laira to begin with. And it was Layla. Which would've leaded us to her. With making a show as if Laira died, her story got ended then and there. We didn't dig it any further because of the pain of the loss.

What a huge mistake that was.

Although....

Just when Layla acquired the Black Sea and could live on the isle, she left it. Considering the same timing, could Charlotte have done something to the isle Layla resides at right now which made it livable? Could she have used some black magic counter-spell to halt the curse off just this isle part of the Black Sea? Is that what was Charlotte's part of the deal? Could it be why Layla helped Charlotte? Could there be more to it?

It was shocking how well the dots connected, how badly it made me feel like shit for blaming Marilla all these years and hating her but I forced myself to focus back on Derek's further explanation,

"We could never find her in any of Charlotte's hideouts because she was never there to begin with. Whatever Charlotte had done for Layla, Layla had helped Charlotte capture and keep captive her greatest enemy. And that means we finally know that...." He looks to me as if checking whether I got what he wanted to say,

After a long time, a seed of hope seems to swell inside of me. The words leave my mouth in a whisper of relief,

"Queen Annabeth is captured here within the Black Sea."

Do you think there's some other reason Charlotte wanted to capture Queen Annabeth so badly except for wanting to take her place?