Page 6 of Dark Witch Resurrection
"Take a breath," he commanded himself. "You are not going to hurt anyone."
Edgar toweled off, pulled on a fresh set of clothes, and began to plot.
He wouldn't do anything stupid, but there was no law against competing for the affection of a female and using any means considered fair play. He would find ways to undermine the prince and expose him as the dangerous alien freak he surely was.
There was a good reason for Kian to demand that they all wear compulsion-filtering earpieces around the twins. They were rumored to be incredibly powerful and dangerous.
Jasmine was just a fragile human, and she had no business being anywhere near the powerful alien creatures. She might not realize that, but she needed him to protect her.
5
JASMINE
Jasmine observed the wide, industrial-style corridor as she followed Negal and Dagor, who were carrying the prince's stasis chamber.
The bowels of the keep looked very different than the top portion, and not only because they were underground—there were no windows ,and the only light was artificial. No interior decorator had bothered to spruce up the space, and everything was utilitarian. There were naked concrete floors, walls made from blocks painted some off-white, and no pictures or plants in sight.
"I need coffee." Frankie stopped in front of the open doors of a huge commercial kitchen. "Do you think they have the stuff to make it here?"
"They do," Gabi said. "Follow me."
As Margo joined the two, Ella fell in step with Jasmine. "I wonder if the stasis chambers could hover when they were still working. It doesn't seem right that such advanced technology needs to be carried."
If self-driving cars were a reality on Earth, which was primitive compared to the planet of the gods, then the stasis chambers could probably drive themselves too.
Jasmine tried to imagine them hovering into the pod, perhaps guided by a technician or maybe self-guiding. The latter made more sense, given the advanced technology of the gods.
"Over here." Bridget waved Negal and Dagor into the clinic and then straight into one of the patients' rooms. "Put it right here on the floor."
The hospital bed had been shoved against the wall to make room for the stasis chamber, and as the two gods carried it inside and lowered it to the floor, it took up most of the floor space in the room. There were about two feet left on each side, so the doctor and the nurse could attend to the patient while he was still inside his chamber.
There was no room left for observers, though, and Jasmine hated having to stay out in the waiting room.
"Where do you want the princess?" Aru asked as he and Julian arrived with the other stasis pod.
"The next room!" Bridget called out. "It's ready for her."
Jasmine moved to stand against the wall to let them through, and when they cleared the waiting room, Kian walked in.
"Hello, Jasmine." Kian offered her his hand. "I want to thank you in person for helping us find the pod. It wouldn't have been possible without you."
"I'm glad that I was able to help." She put her hand in his and let him shake it. "I just have one favor to ask in return."
It was bold, but she had rehearsed the request for hours.
Kian let go of her hand. "What is it?"
"I want to be present when the prince is revived. The cards foretold his arrival in my life for months, and I'm eager to meet him."
Kian nodded. "I have no problem with that, but you might. He's not looking pretty at this time. Wouldn't it be better to wait until he looks less corpse-like and has some flesh on his bones?"
Jasmine swallowed. "I can't. I need to be here when he opens his eyes." She put a hand over her chest. "I feel it here that it's the right thing for me to do."
"As you wish," Kian said. "Don't say that I didn't warn you, though."
Behind him, the tall redheaded Guardian nodded. "I've seen a dude wake up from stasis once, and it turned my stomach. It's nasty, and I'm not talking just about the looks. The stink is almost worse."
Jasmine grimaced. "Thanks for the warning. I'll make sure not to breathe through my nose."