Chapter 259: Forbidden Rites
As the room settled into quiet, filled only with the soft rhythm of their uneven breaths, Aliana opened her eyes. She blinked away the lingering daze, and her gaze wandered past Gavriel’s shoulder to the dark, leather-bound books lining the study walls.
They were still standing in a room that wasn’t theirs, yet instead of panic that should have gripped her was entirely absent. Wrapped securely in his arms, a deep sense of safety took its place.
More than that, her volatile powers that had been thrashing beneath her skin before she jumped into the pool had completely receded, leaving behind a tranquil stillness.
As she looked into the dark, her mind began to piece together a pattern. It wasn’t just tonight. Every single time her powers had threatened to spill over, intimacy with Gavriel had acted as a soothing balm, making her powers bow down into submission.
Once could be a coincidence. Twice, luck. But every single time?
A slight frown tugged at her brow as the question lingered in her mind.
Before the thought could take firm root, Gavriel pressed a soft kiss against her hair, drawing her focus right back to him.
She raised her head, her dazed gaze meeting his, and a warm flush instantly bloomed across her cheeks.
Becoming acutely aware of the scandalous position they were in, still suspended mid-air, she looked down and whispered, "Um... you can... put me down now."
With reluctance, he slowly pulled away and let her unwrap her legs from around him, before letting her feet gently touch the ground.
The slick evidence of their wild encounter dripped down the inside of her thighs, sending a fresh wave of embarrassment through her. "Gosh! We really need to get back to our room."
Gavriel’s dark gaze swept over her thoroughly wrecked, beautiful appearance and a quiet wave of smugness settled in his chest.
Keeping his hands loosely around her waist, he asked in a low voice, "Can you stand on your own?"
Aliana, still holding onto his arms, slowly let go to test her weak legs before giving him a small, shy nod.
Gavriel’s lips curled into a small smile at her shy expression. Leaning down, he placed a light peck on her lips. "Wait here."
He walked over to the desk and grabbed a handful of tissues from the tissue box along with his discarded shirt.
When he returned to her, she had already adjusted her bikini top. Standing in front of her, he dropped to his knees and began cleaning her, making her eyes widen.
Instinctively, she took a step back. "I-I can do it."
However, Gavriel was not having it. He caught her thigh gently and looked up at her. "Let me."
Her heart tickled at the intensity in his eyes, and she found herself unable to refuse. So she quietly turned her attention to the bookshelves to distract herself.
Even so, she couldn’t ignore the quiet care he was giving her.
Biting the inside of her cheek, she was still unable to believe that they had done something so wild in someone else’s study.
Talk about being completely untamed.
Once he was finished, he dressed her in his shirt, buttoning it all the way to her neck. Then he fixed himself and walked over to the window.
While Aliana was distracted by the books, he opened the window and tossed the tissues outside. His eyes burned red as the tissues caught fire, leaving only ashes to drift away in the stormy wind, erasing any evidence of their presence.
Aliana, on the other hand, stepped closer to an old-looking book tucked between the heavy, leather-bound volumes.
It had no title on its spine.
Curiosity got the better of her, and she reached out before carefully pulling it free.
Upon opening it, the first thing she noticed was a familiar mark... a star enclosed within a circle. It was the exact same symbol she had seen on Kaden’s ring and on the jewellery worn by several other guests.
Below the mark was the title: The Silent Order of the Fallen and Forbidden Rites
As she turned to the next page, her eyes widened in shock.
"What the hell," she mumbled. "Gav! You need to see this."
Gavriel closed the window and walked over to stand behind her. The moment his gaze fell upon the open pages, surprise flickered across his face.
It read: "Only those chosen by the Star may witness these pages. To reveal them to the unmarked is punishable by death."
Below the text was the symbol of the star enclosed in a circle, with each point labelled: Blood, Union, Sacrifice, Silence, Death, and Rebirth.
When Aliana turned to the next page, she found rough charcoal illustrations.
They depicted people kneeling around a circular altar, wearing robes and masks, holding bowls overflowing with liquid. At the centre of the star symbol lay a body. Below the drawing, instructions for the ritual were listed.
As Aliana turned page after page, the illustrations grew more gruesome.
Violent images showed people being amputated or cut open, their organs exposed, followed by a drawing of a large dining table where guests were served food with smiles on their faces.
By now, cold sweat trickled down Aliana’s forehead as her wide eyes skimmed the contents.
With shaky hands, she turned to the next page, and her blood ran cold.
The header read: Records.
Year 1863, Female (B): Rejected
Year 1908, Twin Infants: Rejected
Year 1954, Male (G): Successful
Row after row of records showed that only the ones marked as Male (G) were labelled as successful.
Then, her gaze landed on the most recent entry at the bottom of the page:
Year 2026, Male (G), Status: [Blank]
Slowly, Aliana turned to look at Gavriel behind her, whispering, "What the hell did I just see?"
"Humans and their greed," Gavriel murmured softly as his eyes drifted back to the bookshelf, where a thick, dark green book stood out from the rest.
He reached past Aliana and pulled it forward.
Instantly, a heavy clicking sound echoed through the room.
Startled, Aliana gasped, the book slipping from her fingers and hitting the floor.
Instinctively, she grabbed Gavriel’s arm as the wall before them came alive.
With a low, grinding sound, two massive sections of the bookshelf parted, sliding smoothly to reveal a dark wooden door hidden behind them.
For several seconds, neither of them spoke as they stared at the door in silence.
Then Gavriel took a step towards it.
Aliana’s protective instincts immediately flared. Tightening her grip around his arm, she whispered urgently, "What are you doing?"
Gavriel turned to her, calm as ever, and he saw the panic in her eyes.
Stepping closer, he gently cupped her cheek and whispered, "Don’t be scared, Ana. I’m just checking."
Her eyes searched his, looking for even the slightest trace of uncertainty, yet found none.
Swallowing hard, she murmured, "Together. Let’s check it together."
Gavriel’s lips twitched at her attempt to put on a brave face, even though what she had just read clearly rattled her.
Unable to resist, he pulled her close and pressed a quick kiss to her lips.
"W-what was that for?" she asked, warmth rushing to her cheeks.
"I felt like it," Gavriel murmured and turned back toward the hidden door. "Stay behind me."
Aliana quickly picked up the book she had dropped before slipping beside him once more. She wrapped one arm around his, and he slowly pushed the old wooden door open.
A cold draft greeted them from the darkness beyond.
But before either of them could take a single step inside, their heightened hearing caught the faint murmur of voices approaching the study.
They grew closer... until they came to a stop right outside the door.