Asher's Beloved

Chapter 17

"Yes, she arrived a few minutes ago and is being taken to the east wing's tower just like you asked." Corbin replies as they follow behind.

I rush across to my room, laying her down on the bed. Covering her with the blankets, I check her breathing and heart rate again and sigh in relief when it's normal. Vito can't take it anymore and asks me what's going on, his eyes flickering from mine to Ayla. Standing, I make my way over to them and grasp their shoulders.

"I need you two to stay in this room and distract her when she wakes up. Do not let her leave but don't upset her either." I order, fixating them with a stern look.

"What the fuck is going on?! What's happening to her?" Corbin breathes, blue eyes shining with worry.

"No time to explain, I need to find Astra." I rush, starting towards the door before turning to look at them one last time. "I'm begging you two, don't leave her side."

"Understood." Vito nods, gesturing for me to go.

Thanking them both, I sprint down the hallways and in a matter of seconds I'm in the east wing and racing up the steps of the tower. Not bothering to knock, I step inside and see Astra sitting in a chair. She hardly notices me, her features scrunched pensively as she scribbles something in her notebook that's filled with writing and drawings.

"Astra." I greet, taking a seat opposite her on the wooden chair.

"Why can't Ayla see me or know that I'm in the castle?" She frowns in confusion, barely looking up from her book.

"Because the witch is controlling her."

Her eyes widen as she leans forward in her seat. "I translated the meaning of the spell just minutes before you came in! How did you find out?!"

And so, I tell her about what I saw just moments ago along with the times I've seen Ayla acting weird; how she's not been herself after the attack at the courthouse. The times I'd catch her in the library or her room with no recollection of how she got there, her hands squeezing mine and her features contorted in pain as she struggles to tell me something but eventually giving up. How she's tired and sleeps more often, as if something is draining her daily.

I tell her of all the times I've woken up to Ayla crying in her sleep, begging someone to leave her alone or sneaking out of our bedroom instead and mumbling away in her room. A room that she refuses to sleep in alone at night, a room that hasn't been lived in once she moved her things into mine. All my frustration and terror pours out of me and I find myself confiding in her.

"We need to do something now, Astra. I can't take it anymore, Blithe is going to kill Ayla." I stand, pacing the room. I couldn't sit still knowing I should be working to find a way to remove Blithe from Ayla.

"Okay, the spell Blithe used is a very old one that witches would use back before it was prohibited. Obviously, she doesn't follow by the rules." She mutters, anger lighting up her eyes. "I know how to reverse it and separate them two, but I need a few things."

"Can you do it by tonight?" I ask, hope rising within me only to die out when she shakes her head in regret.

"I'm going to ask Fabian to bring back some things as he's in that part of the city right now. We will separate them tomorrow, I'm sorry but you'll have to wait just a little longer. In the meantime, distract her as much as you can and don't let her leave your side. From hearing what you noticed about her behavior, Blithe forces her teleport when she's alone and vulnerable. And the fact that she made Ayla leave in the middle of lunch knowing that it could raise suspicion only means our time is running out faster than we thought. "