"Will!" Lauren called as she ran as fast as she could over the cobblestone to get to him. William dropped his hold on Askari's lead rope and ran towards Lauren. They reached each other and embraced.
"How are you?" Lauren asked, smiling.
"Great now that you got here!" William said. "King Odi told me that he sent you a dream, but I never would have guessed that you would have come this quickly."
Askari nudged Lauren's shoulder and she turned and put her arms around his neck. "I've missed you so much," Lauren whispered into his ear. Askari snorted an agreement. "How has he been?" Lauren asked William.
"He was a little shaken when you left, but he's doing much better since he's been treated better."
"How about we go on a walk?" Lauren suggested. William nodded.
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William gave Lauren a tour of the castle gardens. Beautiful flowers bloomed all along the quartz path. Narrow gravel paths twisted off into several directions, deviating from the main path. To the south-eastern corner of the garden, a small grove of trees stood with a small white bench. William guided Lauren over to it. "I've got something for you," he said, reaching behind a tree.
He pulled out a familiar sword and handed it to Lauren. "Is that..."
William nodded. "Your sword."
"Thank you."
William nodded and sat next to her. "I'm so glad you're back," he said.
"Me too," Lauren agreed. "Remember our race? I never got to ask you: Did you really let me keep up with you?"
William nodded. "I knew you were the Moonstar. Somehow, I knew since I first saw you. I know Elina was skeptical of you..."
"Oh, I also meant to ask, what's the deal with Elina, Icas, and you? Are you really his son?"
"Yeah, he is."
Before Lauren could say anything more, she saw a shadow cross one of the trees. What was that? Did I just imagine that? She decided to ask William, just in case there really was someone there. "Did you see that, Will?" she asked as she pointed into the trees.
"What?" William turned to look in the direction that Lauren was pointing. Sure enough, there was a black silhouette of a person standing a few yards away, watching intently.
YOU ARE READING
Hidden Fates (New Moon Trilogy)
Fantasy*SEQUEL TO TILL WE MEET AGAIN. READ THAT FIRST* Lauren has successfully saved Ben's life and finds out the shocking truth that he is Icas's brother. But when she receives a mysterious call from an old friend, she decides to return to Eddeathra. Reun...
