Chapter 99 Proud Wearing It

As the green paste on her body dried, the red fumes emerged, extracting the drug from her body. Though her skin became drier, she felt better. She turned her head around to see where she was, missing Lazarus terribly, missing his warm touch and worrying whether he was well or not. If she was in this condition, she wondered what he was going through. The realization that she was a weak mortal weighed upon her heavily.

When she turned towards the window, she found a woman looking out. In a weak voice she managed to murmur, "Where is Lazarus?"

As soon as the woman turned to look at her, Emma was shocked. "You are—"

Shira laughed. "I am the same woman you saw in the mirror. Yes, that was the best way to contact you." She walked up to Emma with a broad smile on her face. "And you are prettier than what I saw in the mirror image." Shira put her fingers on her belly and removed the paste from there. "I think you are healing well!"

Emma's shock turned into surprise, noticing Shira's friendliness towards her. She watched her as she took a wet cloth to remove the paste from her body. Emma shivered under the coldness of the damp cloth. Her thoughts went to Lazarus all over again. Where was he? Was he in grave danger? Her mind went to the last night and a blush rose to her cheeks. He had marked her. That feeling of belonging to him was… surreal.

"So you are Lazarus's bride?" Shira said as she dunked the cloth in clear water. "I really wanted to meet you. No matter what façade he puts forth, I knew that he would like you."

A faint smile ghosted on her lips. "I am not her bride," she said in a hoarse voice. "I am someone who he would kill in a few days." Tears ran down her eyes because she didn't want to die. She wanted to live with him for as long as she would as a mortal. She would turn into a vampire if that meant she could live longer with him.

"Emmalyn, right?" Shira asked. Her voice was filled with love and kindness. Was she friends with Lazarus?

"He calls me Emma…"

"Oh! Emma," Shira took her hands in hers. "That's a lovely nickname." She patted her hands and squeezed them a little. "You are safe here, Emma. No one will be able to find you here and we will protect you."

And for the first time in many days, Emma melted. She was dying for someone to tell her that she was safe and protected, but was she?

"I have never seen Lazarus so enamored with anyone other than you. Even the last time when Maeve was here, he didn't look this much in anger. And it is a lot to say because Lazarus had gone after her to Vilinski to get her to Wilyra."

Emma pursed her lips. She really hated this world. Why was she having this fresh bout of jealousy against Maeve?

Shira removed all the paste from her body. "I think you are nicely healed," she said, looking at her body. "Here let me help you to get up." She supported Emma's shoulders and helped her to get up to a sitting position. Emma became hyper-aware of her nakedness and covered her breasts with one hand and crotch with the other. Shira laughed sweetly. "Don't worry, I have seen it all and it doesn't matter." She pointed to a wooden screen at the corner of the room. "You can take a bath over there. The water is hot. And those are the clothes you can wear." Emma got up from the pallet but she was still too weak to walk. She stumbled and Shira grabbed her waist immediately. "Come, let me help you."

"Thank you for all your help, Shira," Emma said softly.

"Oh! It's nothing! After you take a bath, I will tell you how Lazarus helped me from a difficult situation. I am doing it for him."

Emma nodded, a little surprised that Lazarus could have a friend in this world. The water was just hot enough to soothe around her body. Shira placed her fingers inside it. A warm glow appeared around them and the water turned warmer. Soap bubbles burst on its surface and the room filled with a lemony smell. Shira went back to her work table where various potions and herbs were spread. "So what should I talk to you about?" Shira said, musing.

Emma really like how chirpy she was. She was so much like Olya. Where was Olya? Hope she was safe with Magnus. Emma's heart squeezed with emotion, thinking that she would probably never meet Olya again.

In a soothing voice that felt like a caress to her, Shira went on to speak about Nephie. How she was still circling the skies above and looking for enemies. "Nephie is beautiful! I wonder what she would look like when she shifts into her human form."

"Shifts?" Emma was surprised. "Dragons can shift?"

Shira chortled. "Of course they can, but they rarely do that because they love to stay in their feral form and shifting into a human form for them is pretty… troublesome." She went on talking about how Lazarus helped her once and saved her from a pack of rogue warlocks. Emma listened to her with rapt attention. At the end of it, she said, "Lazarus is a damaged man, and you—" she turned to look at Emma who was now wrapped in a soft towel. "—you are the only one who can save him from this madness."

Emma lowered her head. Sucking in a sharp breath, she looked to her left and winced in pain. The mark was painful but why was it that she felt proud of wearing it. Her thoughts went back to him. "How can I save him when I will be sacrificed for his betrothed?"

There was so much sadness in her voice that Shira felt for her.