The Hybrid: Book Two of The Legends of Peradon Series (14 +)

Chapter 4

Violetta

Tobias's quip could not have been a coincidence. He already knew of Elinor's powers, but how?

Violetta glanced at the scroll in her palm, backlit by the roaring fire. Why would Aemon send a letter to her? It just didn't make sense.

Her fingers fumbled to unroll the parchment, revealing lines of forest-green cursive.

      Queen Violetta,
      I have been hearing rumours,
      Of which I'm sure you're aware.

And hereby request for my heir to return,

Else I fear the truths I might let slip.

Violetta's hand began to drop when a new line of ink magically appeared at the foot of the page.

The Tower of Ancients has been compromised.

It seems someone managed to gain entry.

Violetta stared at the parchment. How could Aemon possibly know of the feelings she held for Xyhoni? They'd been so careful about hiding such things.

The air thickened as Aemon's words echoed in her mind. I fear the truths I might let slip. Such truths would present a slew of problems. Violetta needed to confront Xyhoni, to find out where these rumours had started. She approached the study door, convinced that these rumours would force she and Xyhoni to say their goodbyes.

*  *  *  *  *

The harsh click-clack of Violetta's feet unnerved her. Every sight and sound became intense, seeping into her every thought.

How dare he threaten me? Her fingers clenched around Aemon's letter. It wasn't just the king's words that had unsettled her, but the general tone she'd felt while reading through the scroll. Those messy scrawls weren't Aemon's usual style: his were so elegant you could tell a king had written them the moment the parchment was unfurled. No- these were the emotion-infested scrawlings of a madman.

Violetta ran, her legs pumping with frightful speed. Xyhoni will have the answers, she reasoned, he always does. It will all be fine.

By the time she returned to Elinor's chambers, she was convinced that nothing could take him from her.

Wait. The door to Elinor's chambers stood ajar.

Violetta flew over the threshold.

'Xyhoni?' She was met by an empty chamber. Where there should have been the sounds of her daughter at play, instead lingered a familiar whisper- 'Violetta.'

The hair at the back of her neck bristled. Violetta raced to the window, peering through the onslaught of rain.

A shadow drifted across the palace grounds. Violetta tried to make out its features, dark and blurry as it was through the rain.

'Xyhoni? Elinor?'

Violetta stepped back from the window, adrenaline surging through her veins. What if something happened to them? She made for the door when she noticed a lump in her daughter's bed. Relief settled over her. Elinor is merely playing a game- that's it, and Xyhoni has popped out to fetch her some supper.

Half-smiling, Violetta crept toward the bed.

'I wonder who could be hiding beneath these covers.' She spoke in a light, sing-song voice, grasping hold of the bed-clothes to lift them away.