Jason and Ishmael hung around the library for a few minutes before they headed for the west wing of the keep. At the back of his mind, Jason wondered what Ishmael actually asked of Astrid. During the short few weeks he had spent living with the undead dominatrix, Jason knew she was a nuclear weapon wrapped up in tight leather pants. Pray for the poor fool Ishmael sent her to play with. He half-expected the keep would start crumbling around them, but no war broke out, which piqued Jason's curiosity. What was the vampire up to?

As they made their way down a lengthy corridor separating them from the west wing, Jason spotted Astrid down below through the stained-glass windows. He choked down a chuckle. In the middle of the paved courtyard, Astrid had a royal guard in a chokehold. The young man was flailing about, trying to dislodge his head from her ample bosoms. Jason shook his head. Only Astrid would turn a simple sparring match into a battle of the sexes. You go, girl!

Just as they reached the access door to the west wing, a newcomer cleared their throat. A chill ran down Jason's spine. For a fleeting moment, he feared that a guard had caught them red-handed, but the bitter-sweet scent of deception told him otherwise. Selene. He should have known the Queen might send out her lackey to round them up. Stupid Jason! The lordly bitch, it seems, didn't want her 'guests' to wander about without having her peepers on them.

"Can I ask you gentlemen why you're not with your fellow guest in the courtyard below?" demanded the witch in sheep's clothing.

Jason and Ishmael whipped around.

Ishmael took the lead, much to Jason's relief. He wasn't one for improv. "Just thought that since we had the time, we'd visit the King and see how he's faring." The warlock's face lit up with a charming smile that could melt wax in mere seconds, but under his charm, Jason could sense the rage simmering underneath his carefree demeanor. "It won't take long, I assure you."

The witch stepped forward and said, "Unfortunately, the King's in no condition to receive any visitors...as the Queen regent undoubtedly told you earlier." A smirk crossed the physician's haggard face. Strands of gray hair blew through his face, which the physician quickly smoothed back with his hand.

An unobservant person would have mistaken the man's disheveled appearance for a lack of sleep, but Jason knew otherwise. Keeping up her deception took a lot of magic. It took all of Jason's willpower not to strangle the bitch from where she stood. She was enjoying the moment, preventing them from seeing what was truly going on with the King.

Selene stepped aside and raised her left hand, pointing toward the corridor they just came from. "Shall we join the others in the courtyard?"

To hell with this! Time to stomp the evil witch into the dirt where she belongs.

Ishmael was about to speak, but Jason cut him off. "We'd rather not, Selene. We insist on seeing the King."

Before the witch could register Jason calling her by her true name, he snapped his fingers. Black chains shot up from the stone floor beneath her feet. They wrapped around her arms and legs. Jason then raised his hand toward her face. A piece of his jacket ripped off his person and shot into her mouth, gagging her before she could alert the guards.

Jason sauntered up to Selene as she struggled against the chains. She moaned while glaring back at him. She flinched as he reached out to touch her face. "Why are you so shocked?" Jason asked her. "Did you think you could fool a demon?" Jason flicked her on the forehead. "Naughty girl... Why don't we go see how much damage you've already done to our King?"

Black miasmic sludge seeped out from beneath Jason's feet, creeping along the ground until they stood over the goo. Slowly, as if in quicksand, they descended into the sludge until their heads disappeared out of sight. Jason had never traveled by shadows before. Cyron only showed him how to do it and to say it was an unnerving experience was an understatement. They stood in the same corridor as before, but only devoid of any natural light seeping in from the windows. In fact, there was no 'outside' to speak of, only perpetual darkness covered the windows.

"What's this place, Jason?" Ishmael asked as he took in his surroundings.

Jason wanted to answer his question, but even he had no clue. He only knew that they entered the shadow realm where spirits dwelled.

"True. The shadow realm is a dimension where lost souls dwell. Those who died in a gruesome manner or without finding peace. They can't move on to the afterlife until they've settled their unfinished business." Cyron explained. "The realm mirrors the real world where ghosts hide when they aren't terrorizing the living."

"So they can enter the shadow realm at will?" Jason asked, stepping up to the window.

Cyron nodded.

An icy shiver stabbed him in the back. He half-expected that a gruesome monster out of his wildest nightmares would pop out of the void and yank him out of the keep through the window. Jason took a step backwards.

Cyron chuckled, startling him. "Pussy"

"Jackass..." Jason huffed out.

"Jason?" Ishmael interrupted their conversation.

Jason turned his attention back to his two companions while scratching his head. "Sorry for spacing out. This is the shadow realm."

"Ahh," Ishmael replied. "The realm of the dead. Well, let's get on with our mission before we attract any unwanted attention."

Ishmael walked up to the weatherworn door before them and opened it. A loud creak echoed out into the darkened castle. Their surroundings didn't match the physical world to a tee. It was as if a tornado swept through the keep and wrecked the place. They had a hard time navigating the gloomy hallways. The only light came from the river of shimmering blue light above their heads. Jason could have sworn whispers ebbed from the river.

Jason stared at the slow-moving light and asked Cyron, "What's that?"

"You don't want to know."

"Why not?"

Cyron said in a cooing voice, "Because I'm afraid you would run scared and probably piss yourself and I have a reputation to protect. No hellhound would piss their pants."

Jason rolled his eyes and said, "Fuck off, furball. Just tell me."

"So help me Hades... If you piss in your pants, I'll throw us out of a window and into the void."

Jason scoffed, "Who's the pussy now?"

"Still you—"

"Get on with it!"

"Fine... It's the souls who were ripped apart by the less benevolent denizens who roam the shadow realm."

Jason stopped in his tracks. "So we're not alone in here? Aside from a ghost or two?"

"Not by far."

Jason picked up speed, pulling on the black chains he had ensnared Selene in. He didn't want to spend another minute in the twisted realm if he could help it. Just as they neared the King's chamber, a ghostly wail shrieked out of the darkened keep. Selene's muffled shriek died in her throat as she fought against the chains.

"We need to get out of here! We drew the attention of a windigo," Cyron yelled out inside of Jason's head, adding to his stress. There was no way he wanted to end up dying in this hellish place.

Fuck! Jason rushed up to the chamber's door and kicked it open. Luckily for them, the large bedroom was vacant. He then pushed Ishmael into the room with the flailing witch hobbling behind them. Just as Jason slammed the door behind him, something huge slammed against it. They backed away from the door. It groaned under the strain of the windigo's relentless attack.

"What's that?" Ishmael asked, his voice strained to whisper.

Jason turned to the darkened room. "You really don't wanna know." From beneath the king-sized bed, a humanoid-shaped blinding light crept out. It was his shadow, but in this realm, it shined. The humanoid light walked to the middle of the room and extended its hand toward Jason.

He yanked the chains again and said, "Let's go. We don't want to overstay our welcome."

Ishmael raced up to Jason and grabbed his shoulder. Just as Jason touched his shadow's hand, it pulled them out of the shadow realm and into the physical world. Jason sighed out a sigh of relief, happy that he didn't end up as the main course in the claws of a cannibalistic spirit.

Just as Jason took in the sights of the King's modest quarters, (not a flick of gold in sight, thank Hades) a heavenly scent caught his attention. Musk and sandalwood... Jason's mouth began to water as he followed the scent. It came from the emaciated man laying on a bed fit for royalty, King Killian, or what was left of him. The queen bitch and her underling had done a number on his mate. His damn fuckin' mate! Killian's once olive-tanned skin fought for supremacy against the white linen sheets he lay upon. Killian's curly brown hair had lost its former sheen, and stuck to his sullen face that once held the world at ransom with his roguishly handsome features. His plum lips that Jason wanted to kiss held no luster, but were chapped and bluish in tint.

From the pit of his nauseated stomach, Jason erupted in rage. Before Selene or Ishmael could twitch a finger, he rushed forward and clasped his hand around Selene's frail neck. Jason imagined all the horrors he was about to inflict on the bitch. Her frantic heartbeat echoed through the veins beneath his fingertips, the pulse of life he wanted so desperately to snuff out. He squeezed tighter. A thundering growl escaped his mouth as he brought the witches' face toward his. Jason had to remind himself that the frail old man before him wasn't real, just a body bag for Selene to hide in.

"Look what you've done to my mate, you bitch!" Jason said, venom dripping from his lips and onto the Persian carpet. Cyron crawled under his skin, clawing to break free. "You'll pay for hurting him."

Before Jason lost control and snapped the wretched creature's neck, Ishmael grabbed onto his arm and yanked Selene out of his grasp. "Jason, stop! Think about what you're doing. We need—" Ishmael's eyes widened as Jason's revelation hit him on the side of the head. "Mate? Jason? Is Killian really your mate?"

Jason nodded and returned his gaze to the fragile wolf on the bed. The silence between them broke suddenly when Selene's laughter filled the chamber.

"Well, slap me silly." Selene heaved her off the floor. The surrounding chains rattled along the marbled floor as she stumbled toward them. A grin spread across her wrinkled face. "Isn't this a delightful twist to the story? The hellspawn and his pathetic king... Such a tragic story. The King dies in the end while the demon takes the fall for his untimely death. Couldn't have wished for a better ending."

Ishmael scoffed and said," The King's not dead yet. We still have time to save his life."

"I wouldn't rely on that assumption, my dear," Selene replied. "Killian's organs are already failing as is, and by tonight, he'll be dead. And as soon as the medical examiner completes the autopsy, they will reveal that the King died of blood poisoning. Demon blood, to be exact."

Ishmael turned on his heel and rushed over toward Killian's side.

"Don't bother. You can't heal his wounds by magic. The potion I created using Jason's blood prevents you from doing so." Selene turned to Jason with the same sickening grin etched into her face. "As soon as the Queen and her foolish mate return—which should be any minute now—they'll find the perpetrator in the act. And me as the witness to the whole crime."

Just as Selene finished her rant, the hall outside burst into life. Several dozen footsteps thundered toward them. They fell into her trap. No doubt the Queen had waited patiently for them to make their move. Knowing well that if the guards caught them in the King's quarters without her consent, she could use their trespassing to pin the crime onto Jason and his friends.

Fuck!

"You've lost, little one," Selene said, chuckling along. "You should have stayed put and accepted your fate. But don't worry... My Lord will have the Queen hand you over to him in no time. He still has use of you, and if you beg well enough, he'd might forgive you for disobedi—"

Jason, yet again, wrapped his hand around the witches' neck and said, "Just shut your trap. I have no intention of returning to the walking corpse." It was Jason's turn to smirk. "Since you love my blood so much, why don't I introduce you to my venom?" He cocked Selene's head to the side and lunged forward. He sank his fangs into her shoulder.

The chamber doors burst open just as Jason dropped Selene to the floor.

"Halt! Step away from the King, assassin!" the Queen yelled.

Jason groaned and said, "Fuck my life."