Collecting the Pieces of the Shandhi Sword (Book 2 of Mark Series)

Chapter 23

"There will be no pulling someone's body parts off of their body," Adele said, walking over to where we were gathered, with Monroe following close behind. She scowled at Carter, her steely gray eyes flashing, and Carter shifted on his feet and gulped. "And, there will be no sexual interactions with anyone on the job. Is that understood?"

Carter nodded his head. "Yes, Ma'am," he replied. He cleared his throat and shifted on his feet again. "I was just playing with Princess over here." He gestured toward me. "I did not mean anything by it. I promise." He placed a hand over his heart, and I rolled my eyes and scowled.

"Good," Adele said, and she nodded. She looked at Samuel and raised an eyebrow, and Samuel cocked his head while he waited for her to ask her question. "Did you get everything you needed?" she asked, and he nodded. "What information did you find?"

"She's the one," Samuel replied while he gestured to me. "The one that is to bring the whole world back into balance."

Adele looked at me, and a curious look appeared in her eyes while she studied me, and I couldn't help but feel slightly anxious. "Is she?" she asked, and Samuel nodded. She nodded and looked like she wasn't surprised.

"Does this have to deal with the fact that I am the Shandhi?" I asked and looked at the two of them. I furrowed my brows and cocked my head while I studied them in confusion. I had no idea what their looks meant, and I couldn't help but feel slightly intimidated by them. "Or does this have to deal with something else?"

"Something else," Adele replied. She cleared her throat and gestured to the books that Samuel had brought. "You may bring those with you and read for yourself later. Samuel will answer any questions that you have later when you have read everything." She gave Samuel a pointed look, and he closed his mouth without saying a word.

"Why later?" I asked. Impatience filled my body, and I gripped my sword tighter. I wanted answers from them and not these 'you will learn in time' crap that they had been doing. I wanted to know what he meant by me being the one that was to set the world in balance, and that would affect my job at being Alpha.

"Because your mate is awake," Adele said, turning her gaze to me. She nodded her head toward my sword, and I raised an eyebrow and didn't look. "You might want to put your sword down," she said. "Your annoyance is wearing off on it, and I would not like a huge hole in the middle of my library."

I looked at my sword to see that it had changed colors, and slowly, but surely a hole started to appear where the blade was pointed toward the ground. I quickly set the sword down and placed my hands behind my back. A small blush appeared on my cheeks, and I cleared my throat before I looked away from her. "I'm sorry," I said, those words feeling weird coming from my mouth. "I did not mean for that to happen."

Adele shrugged off my attempted apology and shrugged her shoulder while she studied me with her steely gray eyes. "Don't," she replied, her voice sharp and brisk. "I know that you did not mean for that to happen." She cleared her throat and stood taller. "As I was saying before this," she paused and gestured to the hole in the library, "your mate is awake and is wondering where you are at. I am here to escort you to him."

Relief filled my body, and I nodded. A lump appeared in my throat, and all I wanted to do was go to him and see for myself that he was alright. I needed to see that he was alive and well enough to move around. However, I knew that I had to make sure that Malena was alright because she had been under my care as well.

So, with a heavy heart, I turned to look at Monroe, who was studying me with something in his eyes. "What about Malena?" I asked and cocked my head while I studied him. "Is she alright?"

Monroe nodded in confirmation, and my shoulders sagged slightly in relief. "She is safe and doing well," he confirmed. He cleared his throat and placed his hands behind his back. A mask appeared on his face, and I could see the slight worry in his eyes. "She is wondering when the next trip is and if she can go with you to collect the next piece."

"Will you allow it?" I asked, and he raised an eyebrow in question. "You are her father. That is up to you and not me."

A smile flickered onto his lips, and he shrugged. "She would say that it is your call," he said. "You are the one that is in charge of the missions when you are there," he said. "They are your swords that you all are collecting."

"Yes, but you are still the father," I replied, "and she is a minor. She is only fifteen."

"I know," he replied. He moved a hand through his hair and sighed before he shook his head. "If you allow it, then she can go with you all. If you do not allow it, then she will stay here and mope."

"Or follow us," Carter said, and I silently agreed with him. He shrugged. "It's safer for her to come with so that she would not follow us. She could get herself killed if she did that." He bit his lip, and concern filled his eyes.

There was another emotion that I picked up on, and I had no idea if Monroe picked up on it or not. He had a soft spot for her; I could tell. He had feelings for her, and I knew that she had feelings for him. However, he was way older than her, hitting twenty-four, so there was a nine year difference between them. However, he didn't care, and I had a feeling that she didn't care either.

"She'll come with me then," I said, looking at Monroe, and he nodded. "However, I still think that both of them need rest, and so do I. We will collect the other pieces of the sword after that."

Adele nodded. "You can have a couple of hours of rest," she said. "However, I am afraid that I can not give you more time. You need the pieces of the sword and need them fast. Is that understood?"

I nodded in confirmation and stayed silent.

"Good," Adele said. "Then follow me to your mate." She turned on her heels and walked away from me, and I slowly followed, praying that the group would be ready in a couple of hours.

If not, then I had no idea who would be coming or staying. I didn't want anyone trying to find us if we were on a quest. I had a feeling that someone would die if that happened, and I wanted as few deaths as possible because I had a feeling that more was to come later down the road when I had both swords.

I also needed to find out what Samuel meant... I had a feeling that it was important in some shape or form.