Anastasia held the manacles in the air, dangling them from her index finger. "Why the hell has he sent these manacles to you?" her voice was laced with suspicion and shock. Her wide-eyed gaze darted from the manacles to Iona and then back. 

Iona became red till the roots of her hair. How could she tell her that Rolfe liked his kink? She rubbed the back of her neck as she pursed her lips. She didn't know how to explain it to Anastasia and so she just mumbled incoherently. She took the manacles back in the box and closed the lid of the box. "Isn't the dress beautiful?" she said to divert Anastasia's attention. 

"Oh wait!" Anastasia stopped her. "There was one more, larger manacle inside. Didn't you see?" Her voice was full of suspicion as her eyes were wide with… terror. 

"It must be customary!" Iona offered an explanation, but obviously Anastasia wasn't convinced.. 

"I must tell this to Ileus!" she said. "This seems horrible!"

Iona looked up at the ceiling and closed her eyes asking gods to give her energy to speak about it to Anastasia, but she couldn't! 

--- 

It was almost evening and Ileus was sitting with General Yion in Kaizan's room. His wife and Iona were in the room and Rolfe was in his. The priest had already come to the fortress and he was preparing the courtyard as a venue for the marriage. When Ileus had said that it might shower since the weather was too unpredictable, the priest just smiled at him and replied, "The prince will take care of the weather, m'lord," and then continued putting garlands around golden urns that were filled with petals and pearls and rice. 

The fortress was now surrounded by a large contingent of demon soldiers even as the fae soldiers regularly flew around and patrolled the place. 

Ileus was now lounging on the chair beside Kaizan's bed. He couldn't help wondering that his small sister was about to get married. He crossed his legs lazily but, on the inside, he was all nervous. Kaizan could sense his friend's unease. "Why don't we kill his mother?" he said. Over the last few hours, even as Rolfe had increased his magic to suppress his mother's, he could still feel icy waves of it across his skin. 

"She should," replied General Yion, as he crossed his hands across his chest. 

"Have you done what I asked you to?" Ileus asked. 

"I have," came Yion's curt reply. "But there is an important thing that I have to convey to you." 

"What?" 

"My king and queen want to see their daughter as soon as possible. Once the royal wedding in Galahar is over, I have been asked to take Princess Anastasia back to Vilinski." 

Ileus' eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched. "Anastasia will go where she wants to." 

"Then I hope she chooses to go to Vilinski. I have my orders to take her there," he said with lethal calm. "Don't make me fight against you." He seemed to be on the edge. A command from King Ian Lachlan Aramaer was like a line etched on stone. 

"Then I hope you can enjoy fighting with me General Yion because I want to take Anastasia back to Draoidh. She is pregnant and needs all the rest in the world!" 

Yion sat up in the chair, his back ramrod straight. "I am bound to my king by an oath to the throne. If you are a hindrance to his orders, I will fight you. You should know that I am here on his request to be with you after you decided to come and find our princess in the wilderness of Tibris." 

This man could never be anyone's ally. With a hint of challenge in his eyes, Ileus said, "Then bring it on, Yion!" 

Primal anger flickered on Yion's face. "You have my word for it," he said and then left. 

--- 

By the time Iona came out along with Anastasia, all the men and women were already dressed. They were waiting for her. There was a knot in Iona's stomach. Her shoulders were tight and she loosed a breath to release the tension. She tried to shake the uneasy feeling from her as she crossed the passageways and corridors, each step taking her towards a new life, new goals, new people… 

When she reached the courtyard, Rolfe, who was dressed in a matching tunic that was woven with gold thread with beads of gold interlaced, was the first to notice her. His lips parted and he went completely still as he took in his mate's beauty and the sheer dress. 

The golden dress hugged every curve and dip of her body. It was transparent and a lot of skin showed, except the place where she was wearing a golden lace on her breasts and a golden thong. The dress matched her warm honey eyes and the demon was once again mesmerized as he took in all those curves. The V-shaped neck that dropped till the lower swells of her breasts showed her plump breasts amply. It took all the power inside him to control his feral beast. His eyes grazed over her body up and down and then up. Her hair was swept back with the golden combs he had given with the dress. The combs with spikes rose on either side of her hair, giving an appearance of a crown that looked like sun's rays. He noticed that she didn't put any kohl in her amber eyes, else that would have broken the overall effect. There was a deep maroon color on her lips and he loved it. 

Iona knew how everyone was staring at her. She was aware of how the nobility of Galahar looked at her. There were doubts, skepticism, jealousy and many feelings that she could sense. But she pulled away all her senses from the surroundings and focused on the man who was waiting for her on the dais. Suddenly, she saw that his hands shot up in the air and hundreds of yellow orbs of light started floating above them. She turned to look above and so did the guests. She heard their gasps, but felt her mate's eyes boring on her back. The back of the dress plunged and he could see the demonic tattoo on her spine. His eyes slid to her hips where the fabric pooled. When she turned, she saw hunger in his eyes. With her chin held high, she walked up to the dais where he offered his hand for her to climb it. As soon as she was on it, he whispered, "You look ravishing and I intend to eat you." 

"Not before I sink my fangs in you demon!" she whispered back and knew that Rolfe was having a hard time controlling the blood flowing between his thighs. "And why am I wearing this almost-nude dress?" 

"That's how the brides here dress," he replied nonchalantly without saying that he had made some alterations for her when he had ordered the dress yesterday from the palace's seamstress… to suit his taste.

"Oh!" Iona's mouth formed an 'O'. 

"Where are the manacles?" he asked. 

Before Iona could answer, Ileus hushed them both.

The priest bowed to his queen and the ceremony started. 

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