Wearing a long sleeved black shirt over black slacks and a black cloak, Ileus looked menacing, ominous. "Leave her," he growled. 

As if on his command, the man left her and she fell on the ground. He turned to run away but Ileus had thrown his hand forward and a shadow left him. It sliced the man into half. He didn't even know he was dead. Ileus walked towards him and threw so many razor-like shadows on him that they cut his body into pieces. "How dare you touch her?" Blood pooled around him. 

Anastasia screamed at the gore. She looked up at Ileus. He was looking mad, enraged. His eyes were red with fury and his chest was panting. 

Anastasia got up from the ground. She scrambled away from him and darted in the opposite direction. 

Meanwhile Kaizan had lunged over the third man and snapped his skull in his jaw. 

The three men lied in the white snow as blood pooled around them, dark against the whiteness. 

Ileus looked at the stunned blacksmith. He walked to him and tapped his head. "Forget everything that happened!" 

The blacksmith gave him a blank stare and then went back to his work. He scratched his head in confusion looking at the scattered goods of his shop.

As for Anastasia, she didn't look back. She had to get away as far as possible from him. She rounded a corner and then raced towards the forest that surrounded Óraid. Why didn't her magic surface when she wanted it? She wanted to disappear. She wanted to create a portal. Feeling tired physically and emotionally, her pace slowed. She was breathless. "Please gods!" she said. "I need to get away!" The dark forest was only a few meters away when something massive emerged out of them. Her pace slowed to a ramble. She blinked her eyes and rubbed them as she came to a halt, not believing what she saw. 

"Anastasia!" he called her from behind. "Don't run!" 

How could he come so soon in front of her? "Go away! You are one of them!" She was amazed at his speed. Ignoring him she started running in a different direction. With determination she regained her speed. 

Suddenly in the dark of the night, a massive animal landed right in front of her on its four. She screamed and shot in the opposite direction, but she came to a stop when she banged in hard rock-like muscles. 

Ileus held her as shadows swirled around him. His golden eyes were piercing her. 

She pushed him away. A wave of rage surged through her. She tightened her grip on her dagger. "Let me go, Ileus!" She said, "Or I will kill y—ohhhh!" She shrieked. 

A massive shape emerged behind him silencing her. It was so huge that it reached his chest. Anastasia's heart plunged to her stomach. "Ileus, there's a— there's a lion behind you!" She stood fixed to her place as shock rattled her. Cold gusts of wind added to the shock as her body quivered. 

Kaizan walked in his wolf form and came to a stop on Ileus's left side, his hazel eyes boring into her. The wolf was tall, just a foot shorter than the lion. 

Anastasia forgot to breathe, as she looked from Kaizan to Ileus and to the massive lion behind him. Slowly, her eyes traveled back to Ileus and her mouth fell open. The shadows had receded and the wind was tousling his dark hair across his forehead. He was such a mystery… one she wanted to solve… Was he the— Her raw attraction pulled her to him as an urge surged inside her to hold his silky hair… the way she held them when they made love. 

"Who are you?" she asked in a low voice, as she gripped her dagger again. Suddenly everything started to fall in place. Her eyes became wide. "You are the dark prince, the dark wizard." She felt choked. Her chest tightened. "The rogue." That's why he had those shadows dancing around him. There was a feeling of emptiness in her stomach. They had said that their abilities were limited in Sgiath Biò. Pieces were fitting together. Her face flushed when she recalled how she kept on mentioning that she wanted to meet the dark prince, wanted to solve the mystery he was… She pressed her hand to her mouth. And the man was standing right in front of her. Ileus was the dark prince! She staggered. 

But despite this revelation, why did she feel like going and seeking comfort in his arms? In the arms of the man who deceived her?

"You can call me the Dark Prince if you like," he replied. "I am Prince Ileus Volkov, son of Adrianna and Dmitri Volkov. My mother is the queen of the wizard kingdom, Draoidh and my Father is the King of the Werewolf realm, Silver Vales."

A tremor passed through her body as terror roiled through her. Her gaze traveled to the lion behind him. Gods! Where did he come from? 

"Where did this lion come from?" she asked, looking at the beast again. He was magnificent. The mane around his head was fluttering in the wind. 

The lion walked past Ileus and came to stand right in front of Anastasia. She should have felt scared, but she felt as if he belonged to her. She drew in a sharp breath. In order to touch him, she extended her hand slowly in his direction. Seashell lowered his head, allowing her to touch him. As soon as she touched him, a strange sensation enveloped her mind. She yelped and withdrew her hand. 

"That's Seashell. He is with me." 

The lion turned and walked behind her, as if to protect her. And to her bewilderment, she felt that this was so… normal. 

When she looked back at Ileus, her trance broke and she rasped, "You had hidden your true identity?" How could she not decipher when everything was right there in front of her. He had disguised as Kaizan and entered Vilinski.

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