‘Uncle,’ she sniped with no preamble, ‘we have horrible news.’
His eyes darted from Shiloh’s darkened face to hers, then back again.
‘What’s happened, my daughters?’ he asked, sounding casual.
Thefokkin’ creep.
They were not his offspring, and Saba wished they weren’t his blood.
‘I was kidnapped to Selburnia, to Zolan’s home, where Shiloh was being held. Mak came after me. I’d hoped he’d reason with Zolan and prevent any violence, but -’
Shiloh took over.
Her voice trembled with indignation as she gave him a false account of Zolan and Mak’s deaths, at the hands of Ladik, who she claimed also died in the shootout.
‘Mak bled so bad that he -.’
Saba choked, lifting her husband’s soiled shirt to the camera as proof to convince her uncle further.
Tewa stared at the crimson stain with morbid fascination, eyes gleaming for a second with joy that tried to dampen. But not before Shiloh and Saba caught it.
They exchanged a glance.
Shiloh took a breath to hold back her rage as she continued her stance while Saba clung to her tear-stricken facade.
Tewa’s tone cracked. ‘Oh no, my dears, I can’t imagine what you’re going through. This is devastating news. I’m so sorry for your loss. I never imagined-’
He trailed off as if searching for the right words.
‘Uncle, we have to come home,’ Shiloh said, quivering with emotion. ‘We need you to guide us on what happens next and how we can navigate this tragedy. How will we break it to both the Sidan and Sauvage clans?’
He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing. ‘Of course, my dears. I’ll do everything in my power to help you through this. You can count on me to be there for you,’ he added with feigned concern.
His eyes darted, the cogs turning in his mind as he readied to play his subsequent move, hungry for the desire to control, a serpent coiled, waiting to strike.
‘Sante, Uncle,’ Shiloh said. ‘We can’t face this alone.’
‘Absolutely not,’ he replied. ‘How fast can you get back?’
‘We’ll get on a Corvette straight away and send you the transponder details. Please meet us en route so we can discuss plans before we get back to the Light Nautilus.’
‘Certainly, my dears. I’ll be present myself,’ he promised. ‘If Mak and Zolan are indeed passed, we must move fast to consolidate their holdings, before the rest of the Sidani and Sauvage family members interfere.’
He could barely hide his glee.
Saba wanted to shout at and rail at him, but she held her tongue.
‘You are both now the formal inheritors of your husband’s thrones and fortunes. There is much we can accomplish together, my daughters.’
They ended the call, and the line went dead, leaving a tangible tension in the room.
Shiloh turned to them, lifting her hands in frustration. ‘Did you see it in his eyes? That hunger for power, that desire to control?’
Zolan nodded, his face hardened. ‘Aye, I did. What a snake!’
Mak growled from across the room. ‘But so are we. Kaal and a few of my men will meet him on that ship and ambush him.’
‘What will you do with him?’ Zolan asked.
