think about that, but it was already there in her mind and now she wasn’t going to be able to get it out.
“He abruptly left the cave and it was clear he was following the shadow cat. I was elated. He would save the day and I wouldn’t be involved.”
“Of course not,” Isai said.
Did she hear sarcasm in his voice? Judgment? She clenched her teeth together and then let out a large sigh. “You’re determined to think the worst of me. You’re the one who spanked me. If you do that again, I’m going to stab you through the heart.”
“It won’t be necessary to spank you again. In my world, at least during the time I came from, a man treasured his woman. If she needed a lesson as you did, it was his duty to give it to her. He was responsible for all aspects of her care. Times were very dangerous, and obedience was necessary for safety. Others, not Carpathians, over the centuries abused their women and I suppose it became something else. Something not between two people who love each other.”
She started to tell him it wasn’t love, but then what he said caught at her. “What do you mean it won’t be necessary?”
“You are clearly not my treasure.”
She frowned and pushed a hand through her hair in agitation. She examined his tone. It was neutral. Matter-of-fact. Dismissive and, unfortunately, genuine. She didn’t care. He wasn’t making any sense. He was so old-fashioned he thought spanking was caring. People didn’t even spank their children anymore to correct their behavior.
“What are you going to do?” she whispered, afraid of his answer.
He shrugged. “Find my brother, get the book back, take it to Mikhail and return to the monastery. Hopefully, my emotions will fade with time.”
There was no self-pity, simply acceptance. She wasn’t the lifemate he had envisioned. She didn’t want to be a lifemate but . . .
“Please continue.”
She forced herself back to the main, very important topic. “The shadow cat did manage to steal the book. Iulian severely wounded the shadow cat. It was a terrible battle, but he was able to get the book back. I thought Iulian would return it to the prince, but instead, he took off with it. I knew because I saw the entire conflict in his mind. I didn’t want to waste time, so I didn’t continue on my journey to see Mikhail Dubrinsky, but instead, chased after him.”
Julija pressed her fingers to her eyes. She had run after him without too many supplies. “I had to get a regular flight. I’m also dodging my family. They pretty much want to kill me . . .”
His head jerked up. “What did you just say?”
“I am betraying them and now they know it.”
“They can’t know it. For all they know you were trying to get the book for them.”
“We had a terrible fight before I left. At least, my father and I did. He sent me to my room and put a holding spell on it. The thing is, I’m good at spells. Not just good, very good. I can blow my stepmother right out of the water matching her spell for spell. Same with my brothers. My father is used to dealing with them and he underestimated the force he needed to keep me in. I’ve always been careful not to show all my abilities or power.”
“You told him you would warn Mikhail?”
“Yes. He wants the book in order to carry on Xavier’s work. They all do. It’s been their goal all along. I wasn’t privy to it because they felt I had too much Carpathian blood in me and might betray them. Xavier had forced Soren to be with a mage because he needed his own bloodline to be the more powerful of the two in Anatolie. They needed me to be more Carpathian so they could live off of my blood.” She gave a little shudder and rubbed her hands up and down her arms. “All of them.”
“Where is Iulian now?”
She sighed again. “I was taken prisoner by Sergey. I would have broken loose when he wasn’t around but there were children and Elisabeta to free. I wanted to try to find a way to help them and I thought, even being a couple of days behind Iulian, that I would be able to catch up. I’d been in his mind and I had a clear path to it. I just needed to find a direction.”