Page 121 of Valpar

She caught it, and pulled me back up, grunted before keeping our original flight direction.

“I could let you die right here. Not even worry about you any longer.”

I pursed my lips and kept quiet. She was right. She could end me right here. Why was she carrying me so far away and not killing me now?

She probably did kidnap Simon and wasn’t going to kill me but do something more sinister. Like killing Simon in front of me and giving me a deep-rooted pain that would forever gut me. I didn’t think animals were within the laws of Bergarian to be considered murder if one was killed.

Cheese and crackers—how can souls be so evil?

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Calliope

I never enjoyed theidea of flying. Sure, I loved wings of the fae and the fairies, but the idea of flying super high off the ground, with your feet just dangling and not touching the ground, scared the dumplings out of me.

I was doing it for Simon, and I pushed that fear deeper inside me, the more I thought of him and the hot butt I was going to have later.

We flew for what seemed like forever, covering a lot of ground. If we had gone on foot it would have taken us days. That worriedme for Valpar. For one, he wouldn’t find me because there was nothing to track and two, I was too far away for him to get to me in time for whatever Ivy and Karma had planned.

As we approached Valpar’s territory, our path took a slight detour to the east, bringing us nearer to the mysterious Vermillion Kingdom. The dense forests in this region exuded a darker look, with their ebony tree bark and foliage adorned in richer, deeper shades of color. I’d never had the desire to visit this kingdom. It was dark and gloomy, and from stories I read about anything being dark, it meant evil resided there.

It was terrible of me to think that. There were a lot of vampires that were super nice, such as the current king and queen. It was just the darker scene just wasn’t for me. Plus, there were giant spiders.

And spiders were icky.

My calloused feet sank into the rough, scratchy rope, causing an incessant itch. The friction had left my hands blistered and tender, aching from the strain of gripping tightly. As I hung there, suspended in mid-air, a sigh escaped my lips, a mix of exhaustion and anxiety. I let out a tremendous sigh, but I dared not complain. I didn’t want to freefall to my death; I wanted Simon and to make sure he was okay.

Ivy slowed down, and Karma wasn’t far behind us. For a small thing, he was pretty fast, and he dove in a spiral waiting for Ivy to lower us to the ground.

As we made our way downward, the skeletal branches of the trees loomed overhead, devoid of leaves. I could feel their rough, jagged edges graze against my bare legs, causing a prickling sensation. Desperately, I tried to maneuver my body to avoid their grasp, but they seemed relentless. They tugged at my hair, my hips, and my arms, as if seeking to ensnare me. The branches left tiny, stinging cuts on my skin, eliciting a sharp intake ofbreath. Suddenly, one of them became entangled in my hair, causing the brittle branch to snap and tumble down with me.

Once we were five feet off the ground, Ivy dropped me without a care. I landed on my backside and yelped in surprise. She fluttered down, with a smirk on her face and I glared at her.

If only I could make her burst into flames.

She’d already died like six times in my head already. All being slow and torturous deaths.

Wow, now I am becoming the meanie.

I slapped my hand. “Bad Calliope.”

Ivy glanced over at me and rolled her eyes. “Weirdo.”

“Where’s Simon? I came like you asked.” I kicked off the rope around my ankles and dusted off my dress. “Come on, where is he?”

A faint, muffled rustling emanated from beyond a bush painted in deep, navy hues. As I strained my eyes, I caught a fleeting glimpse of a white tail protruding from the other side of the bush. With a sudden jolt, I lunged towards the source of the sound, my heart pounding against my chest. However, before I could fully react, Ivy swiftly extended her hand, clutching my arm and forcefully pulling me back. The unexpected motion caused me to lose my balance, sending me tumbling onto the ground, landing unceremoniously on my butt.

“Not so fast.” Ivy waved her hand, sauntered over and unwrapped a rope that had Simon’s neck tied to the bush.

Simon didn’t do well if he didn’t eat every ten minutes while he was awake. He had to be cranky.

He nodded his head, trying to buck at Ivy to get away. Unfortunately, he had a pillow wrapped around his head to pad his horns, so he could not hurt her. Poor Simon looked utterly defeated, yet unharmed.

I stood up and balled my fists at my side. “Let him go, you got me here!”

Karma snorted, his little booty shorts squeezing his junk a little too tight.Does he like goat bondage or something? Is he into animal torture? What is his problem?

I hoped someone would sit on him and he’d get squished like the bug he is.

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