Touch of Flame

"Oh!" Ravina shot her eyes open with a strangled cry.

Ester was looming over her with a worried expression. "My Lady, are you alright?"

No, she wasn't. She was horrified. She quickly sat up, touching the straps on the front of her dress. They were tied and her heart was beating rapidly beneath them.

"Just another nightmare." She told Ester.

Ester made a sad look. "Come let me take care of you." She said, helping her get out of bed.

As Ester helped her with her morning routine, Ravina remained shocked. There were just so many things wrong with that dream. Two men at the same time, the prisoner, being free, being held down, being touched and kissed by both. She shivered.

Make her enjoy herself? Make her his breedmate?

She shivered again. Oh, Lord. She was getting sick.

Once the shock wore off, she realized it must be the books messing with her mind. Why would she dream about two men?

She went to the mattress and pulled out the books. She gave them back to Ester.

Ester waited for her commentary.

"They gave me nightmares," Ravina admitted.

Ester's head fell back and she laughed. She didn't believe her. "You are funny my lady. You must have enjoyed them even a little."

"I didn't. The author needs to find a better way to use their time instead of writing these lewd things"

Ester continued to laugh. "I'll let the author know if I find her." She teased. "But I know books couldn't satisfy you enough. You are an experimental person. You will try it." She shrugged.

"I won't."

"You have some ideas now of how to seduce and what to do." Ester continued ignoring her.

Ravina liked Ester so she really didn't want her to be one of those she wished to shoot with an immortalizer, but she wasn't helping right now.

After she was done with her routine, she decided to skip breakfast not feeling ready to meet Ares yet. Also not wanting her uncle to come and find her, she didn't go to the inventory. Instead, she tried to find a hidden place in the castle where she could continue to read one of professor Ward's research notebooks.

As she walked around the halls to find a secluded place, she remembered the moment she had with Ares in the hall. While trying to shake off the thought she recalled what he said about the old armor storage. For some strange reason, Ravina felt compelled to visit the storage.

She didn't find it odd that her uncle would permit Ares to reassemble the weapons. He had once assisted her father in developing weapons after all, so why was she doing this?

She walked through the hallways, taking the same way she took while following him. It was one long hall with right and left turns only this time she didn't turn. She continued straight ahead to the end of the hall and arrived at the front of a large wooden door.

She opened the metal clasp and then pushed the heavy door open.

The air was thick and dusty as she stepped inside. When she looked around everything was covered in dust and spider webs.

He was right. He didn't lie. It was an old storageroom for weapons.

She sighed. What was she trying to do?

Pulling the door close, she continued her search for a secluded place. She walked down the unknown halls, opening doors on the way and every time the smell of dust would irritate her nose and she would close it.

This must be the abandoned area of the castle. She pushed one last door open, ready to be met by dust and leave but strangely it smelled like something else. She pushed the door further ahead and stepped inside. Her eyes widened. What was this?

A laboratory? Not an abandoned one. It was clean with no dust and the windows were open to let some air and light inside.

This one was being used. Before she could ponder more, she heard voices and footsteps from outside.

Ravina panicked. Turning around she carefully shut the door and then quickly tried to find a place to hide. The sound of footsteps neared and she had no choice but to crawl under a table covered by a white cloth. Then she waited with bated breath.

The sound of the door being pushed open made her heart skip a beat and then she heard a couple of steps before her uncle's voice spoke.

"They have to be trusted," he spoke to someone.

"I trust them," Ares said.

Ravina stiffened. Why did her uncle have a hidden laboratory? And why did Ares know about it and she did not?

They walked over to a table and fumbled with a few things. Ravina wished she could see what they were doing.

"Here. Give these to them and then this if it doesn't work." Her uncle said.

What was he giving him?

It became quiet again but she could hear the moving of objects, glasses and paper.

"You will have to remove this laboratory from here. It can be found, especially by a curious someone." Ares said.

He was talking about her?

"I know." Her uncle said. "But she is leaving with you."

They were talking about her and now they were leaving. She listened to their footsteps and then heard the door open and close. She waited down there just to be sure and then peeked outside before crawling out.

What on earth was happening without her knowledge? She went to the table where they stood and looked through the materials to find out what they were hiding.

She looked at the papers spread on the table. They were empty. Ravina knew better than to believe this so she took one of them and placed it above the light of a candle. She was right. She found the words but… it was an unfamiliar language.

Her heart skipped. There was something big that her uncle wanted to keep a secret. But why from her?

She put the paper back exactly where it lay earlier. She then went on to search around and see if she could find some answers. She opened drawers and looked through shelves and cabinets but there was nothing she found suspicious except for the whole thing in general.

A hidden laboratory. Was her uncle doing something with the prisoners? Was that why he kept them alive?

No. it had to be something more. He wouldn't go to such lengths only to hide that he was experimenting with dragons. No one would care. Then what could it be?