The Spoils of War (COMPLETED)

Bait and Hook

Months pass with no news of Jeremy Wright. It was like he disappeared, or like the snake he is, he crawled in some dark hole. Jasmine was worried about him still on the loose, but having Alaric by her side she felt better than if she were alone.

They had gotten to know each other quite well and whenever he entered a room her eyes couldn't help but follow his every movement. She wanted Jeremy to be found, but a part of her worried that once they caught him she would have to leave the palace...to leave Alaric.

Meanwhile, Alaric had similar concerns, that once she was safe she would no longer need him. Her family was requesting an audience and for all, he knew they would whisk her away from him the moment they stepped foot into the capital. He had spent months tracking Jeremy Wright but the guy was slippery. He always seemed to be one step ahead, and no matter how many of his contacts got caught or imprisoned for their crimes he always seemed to have more.

Truly if he wasn't such a bad person then his social networking would have been a blessing for the empire.

Alaric rubbed his temples as he sat at his table, a stack of documents in his hand and at the top another letter from the Pendegrass family. He knew what it would say before he even opened it. He had requested them to stay away at the moment so that he could catch all those responsible for hurting Jasmine but it had been months and her family was quite angry. They wanted to take her home...to make up for all the time they thought she was dead. If he made her father too angry he would never let him marry his daughter. Alaric's breath hitched at the thought. Him marry Jasmine... They hadn't even said that they liked each other and here he was thinking of marriage.

"You know you always overthink things. I bet you could take care of two birds with one stone if you use the old bait and hook strategy." Alaric wasn't even surprised when Morgianna popped up on the other side of his desk.

He placed the papers back on his desk before cocking his eyebrow. "Bait and hook? I'm not going to put her life in danger just to catch someone, not even him."

Morgianna wanted to smack the back of his head. "What kind of danger would she really be in inside of the palace? This is the most heavily guarded place in the country, and you would still be right there."

When she had said palace she had caught his attention. "How would we get him to come to the palace?"

"Simple, you let that girl's family come, using that as an excuse you throw a huge party and you make it open to the public, then when he shows up you grab him." Marianna really did paint it as easy, but he still didn't feel comfortable with using Jasmine as bait.

He was just about to tell Morgianna that the plan wouldn't work when a new voice joined the conversation. "I'll do it. I'll act as bait so we can finally get him." Alaric turned with wide eyes to see Jasmine standing in the doorway. Glancing from her to the clock he cursed, this was their normal meeting time and she was never late. A look at the smirk on Morgiannas face proved that it was all planned from the beginning. She knew he wouldn't agree so she let Jasmine hear the conversation and make her mind up by herself. Clever, but he still had the final say.

Alaric wanted to fight back. "How are you sure Jeremy would even come? He could just keep hiding."

Morgianna rolled her eyes. "Why would he, who has lost everything miss the chance to take his revenge? By opening the banquet up to everyone he would use this as a chance to slip in undetected." She held up three of her fingers. "So in short he hasn't attacked yet because there was no opportunity." Ticks one finger down. "He also had more people he could run to, but you have been capturing them." Ticks a second finger. "And lastly her family still wasn't in the picture. By giving him an opportunity, and having the long-lost relatives show up, the very people who can prove her identity... He will go mad with trying to silence her. Right now all evidence of him being involved is all hearsay, there is nothing concrete. Even the kidnapping of a noble is void because there were no papers to prove who she was."

Alaric knew that Morgianna had made valid points, but he still felt uncomfortable. Looking into Jasmine's blue eyes he felt his heart palpitate loudly. Fear and love waged in his body."I don't want you to be put in danger. We can find him, and your family can come soon...." Alaric felt his mouth go dry as he started at the unshed tears in Jasmine's eyes. He sighed in his heart because he knew just as Morgianna knew that he was going to give in. "Fine, but you do not wander too far from my side during the banquet. At the slightest hint of trouble, you cling to my side and only move once I have been assured that everything is okay. Do you agree?"

Jasmine's whole face lit up. "Yes! Of course, anything to see my family." He felt bitter hearing her words. Yes, she would see her family and if he was lucky they wouldn't immediately leave with her after the banquet. He wanted her to see them too...just not to leave with them like he knew they wanted.

...

Immediately after their talk, Morgianna had left. Alaric set to making plans for the banquet and inviting the Pendegrass family for the grand affair to reunite with lost family.

It took two weeks to hear back from them. It seemed that despite his warning to stay away they had slowly been making their way to the capital. Among those coming were her mother and father and one of her brothers. Unfortunately the other had passed during the war. Still, it was a far cry from being all alone in the world. With the loss of a son and thinking they had lost their only daughter the family, what was left of it left and thought they would never return.

He could understand how they felt, how they must still be feeling. He needed to finish up arrangements for entertainment and food, but settling the date was the last thing he wanted. He knew he couldn't keep putting it off though so with a heavy heart he sealed the envelope that was to be delivered later that day. In pristine letters, he had handwritten the Pendegrass family invitation and at the bottom, a date two weeks later kept flashing through his mind. Did he only have two weeks more with her?