White Empress, Ashes of Love Sequel

Chapter 27

"My head hurts."

"I wonder why?" he asked, tapping the side of his lips as he fixed her with a teasing stare the next morning as they waited on the otherwise empty dock.

"I don't care. That was fun. I like it here. I should like to come back."

"We will. Actually, we have to. I would like to know the results of the questioning of those men," Runyu said.

"Hmm, I wonder if they're still kissing? I forgot to tell them to stop last night. Or did I? I can't remember..." she trailed off.

"They stopped as soon as you passed out," he stated with the beginnings of a smile. "Luckily, the guards showed up in time to haul them away."

"I passed out? Ugh...how did I get to the Palace?"

"I carried you."

"Oh," she mused. "Thank you."

"My pleasure." And it was. The memory of her snuggling into his chest was still fresh in his mind. He cleared his throat and looked away from her.

"Where is this boat?" he breathed out in agitation, turning toward the water once again. 

"Maybe it's too early? I swear, my eyes just closed before you came for me."

"Sorry, I have to remove the night sky, otherwise the Realms will have an unnaturally long night and that tends to throw things out of balance." he said.

"But not this one," she said looking around at the dark sky with whorls of color. "It's always dark," she stated.

"Yes. I don't control the Demon Realm sky at all."

"Hmm. It's actually very beautiful," she said, looking up.

"It is," he agreed, but he wasn't looking at the sky, he was looking at her profile instead.

"We could just transport back to the Heavenly Realm, why do you insist on this boat ride?" he asked.

"You'll see," she answered vaguely. "Here he comes," she announced as the lantern hanging from the front of the small boat came into view in the distance.

They watched as the boat was steered and turned as it neared the dock, the veiled man hesitating  his movement as soon as he looked up at them, causing the boat to bump hard into the dock, jarring him.

Runyu jumped in, holding his hand out for her as soon as the rocking subsided, her eyes connected firmly to the man behind the veil as she stepped in.

She immediately sat facing him, her stare causing Runyu to look from her face to the man behind him before his eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

"Hello, Grandpa," she stated as he manuevered the boat through the water without looking at her.

"I have something that I would ask you," she said, tilting her head and watching him.

He continued pushing the boat along without responding.

"Your hearing is not that bad. We are the only people in this boat and yet you don't respond. I am not fooled," she stated lightly before swirls of blue light appeared in her upturned hands. The boat rose slowly into the air from the water causing Runyu to look over the edge and back at her in alarm.

"Why do you lie? Why do you let everyone think that your brother is the oldest in the Six Realms when he is not?"

"What?" the old man breathed out, a look of alarm on his face evident through the veil covering it.

"Now I have your attention. Tell me."

"How do you know this?" he gasped out.

"I read his mind. He is not an Immortal. He mentioned his family and I saw...you. I thought he looked familiar to me and now I know why. You resemble each other, but you are much, much older than he is."