Page 148 of Dissection of Immortal Hearts

Mikhail remained impassive. “And yet you’re convinced that the cause of the disrupted regeneration is hidden there?”

“The Queen wouldn’t have been sending Chosen to check the place regularly otherwise. The humans provided us with a landing platform, and we’d go weekly to patrol the field. All we had to do was ensure that nothing was happening.”

Mikhail placed his palms on the table. “And this entire time,not once did you ask what was there? Or how the Queen is disrupting regeneration?”

“When you’re raised and trained by her, the first thing you learn is to obey without asking questions.”

Presiyan whistled. “She sounds like someone I’d take advice from on training agents.”

“Why did you run away?” Mikhail asked.

Kathrine’s steady gaze met his across the table. “Because my fiancé tried to kill me.”

She then recounted the same story Amelia already knew about the Queen. Afterwards, she spoke of the Sacreds. How the Queen had forced Constantine to take Belphegor’s Gloves from Hell…

“Damn it!” Presiyan slammed his hand on the table.

“But she wasn’t sure if Amelia had taken the necklace,” Kathrine said. “At least, not until today…”

“What’s her plan?” Mikhail asked.

“No one knows all her plans, but from what I was told, everything will end on the twenty-first of June.”

An icy shiver ran down Amelia’s spine. “That’s in five days!”

“What’s meant to happen then?” Mikhail asked.

Kathrine pursed her lips. “She’ll grow her powers.”

“How will she grow them if she doesn’t have all the Sacreds?” Amelia reached for the necklace around her neck.

Presiyan furrowed his eyebrows. “And what’s so special about the twenty-first?”

“No idea…” Kathrine followed Amelia’s hand on the necklace.

Presiyan exhaled sharply. “Futile babbling to intensify the situation.”

Kathrine shifted towards him. “The Queen never babbles. And nothing about her is ‘futile’. The sooner you understand that, the better your chances against her.”

54

Amelia

It was well past midnight, yet Amelia lay wide awake, her body tense beneath the thin sheets. She had to speak to someone about everything that had happened. Not Mikhail. His presence stirred too much. Not Callan either. Her barriers refused to lower for him. No, she needed Viktor. He might not have the answers, but he had always met her honesty with honesty.

She dressed and went back to the restaurant to look for him. Mikhail sat alone at a table with a glass of red wine.

“Have you seen Viktor?” she asked.

He made a vague gesture with his hand. “He disappeared somewhere about half an hour ago.”

Amelia was about to search for the lycanthrope outside, but couldn’t resist and nodded at Mikhail’s glass with her chin. “I’ve only seen you drink alcohol once before.”

He indicated the empty bottle on the floor behind the bench. “I hate it. Presiyan convinced me that it would help me see the situation better... So far it hasn’t worked. I’m surprised you saw me drink even once.”

Changing her mind, she grabbed an unopened bottle of wine and a corkscrew from a nearby table before walking over and handing both to Mikhail. “It was when you first invited me to dinner,” she said. “To this day, I’m not sure why you did. Whether it was to learn more about me or because the ring already influenced you.”

Without answering, he uncorked the bottle. Amelia found an empty glass behind the bar and sat atop the table, facingMikhail, propping her boots up on the edge of the bench.