Chapter 269 - h.e.l.lo Cousin
The yellow orbs of that were lighting up the stage now circled over the dancer, putting her in the spotlight. She rose above the fog and floated towards the audience with her hands and chest moving seductively. A tendril of fog twined around her and carried her further up to the level where Ileus and Anastasia were sitting. The tendril looked like a white serpent slithered around her body like a lover and brought her right next to Ileus. Shock flitted wildly through Anastasia"s when the dancer lowered her body to touch Ileus.
Stunned Anastasia looked at her, trying to see into her eyes through the veil. She could feel the dancer"s eyes fixed on her. An unknown horror settled into her heart. Her heart pounded so fast that Ileus held her hand and placed it on his thigh as the shock that blasted through their bond overwhelmed his senses. He tried to comfort her mentally but it was of no avail. She opened her mouth as she tasted bile in her throat.
As the fog retreated to the side and waited for her, the dancer snaked her body in fluid motions and started dancing around them with frenzy. Anastasia"s face heated up when she became aware that every pair of eyes in the restaurant was looking at them. The girl"s dress was clanking as she rocked her hips that would get exposed every time she moved them. The chains of veil also moved around but they were so thick that it was impossible to see her features.
All of a sudden, the girl lifted her leg and put it on Ileus" thigh over their joined hands. Ileus is furious as h.e.l.l and wanted to shove her but Anastasia stopped him by looking at the orbs above them and telling him that the audience was watching them.
The dancer moves her leg over their hands and crushes them with her foot. Then she turned her hips towards Ileus, bent back in a full arc to touch the floor with her hands only to show that she wasn"t wearing panties.
Ileus" nostrils flared and a shadow peeled off him in wisps of smoke. A growl formed in his chest as his eyes became cold, hard and flinty. He glared at the dancer and was about to remove her foot from his lap when Anastasia stopped him. She exhaled a ragged breath as dread rose in her chest. Her fingers dug into the table"s edge that she was now clutching while one hand remained locked under the foot of the dancer. The acidic anger from Ileus was palpable and she knew that he wanted to rip the dancer. But she knew that if he did that, the audience was going to go against them. For the audience it was just a part of the dancing act, which was done to please the prince. Then why was she feeling so dreadful?
When the dancer pulled herself up, her rosy lips tugged up in a satisfactory smile. She put her foot down and twirled around them and reached behind the sofa. She lifted herself in the air and then from behind wedged her leg in between them. The snake-like fog slithered on the ground and held her from behind. Taking its support, she pushed off and in one graceful swing landed right on Ileus" lap.
Claps resounded from the audience for her beautiful performance. They cheered her and whooped for making their day. They also thanked the prince for coming over and giving them a rare glimpse of the best dancer of the restaurant.
Breathless in his lap, the dancer only bowed to all of them but she didn"t get out of his lap. Anastasia stared at her as her eyes started turning violet. Seeing that Ileus waved his hand and the orbs above them became dark. Only the candle on the table was the source of light. From the corner of his eye, he saw that the fog had settled on the floor as if waiting to carry the dancer back. It was uncanny to note that it was heaving like it was a real thing.
Anastasia had to retract her anger and Ileus waved his hand to light the orbs again.
Anastasia brought her hands to open the veil of the dancer, but as soon as she brought her fingers near her face, the dancer moved back.
In a voice loud enough for the audience to listen, the dancer said in a soft voice, "If you pull my veil aside the prince has to kiss me. It is the tradition of the place."
On the verge of exploding, Ileus" chest rose and fell as he breathed roughly.
"It"s fine," said Anastasia acerbically. "A frog doesn"t become a princess when he kisses her, and you— you are a toad." Saying that she pulled her veil apart but as soon as she saw her face, she blanched.
"Kiss, kiss, kiss!" the audience shouted.
"h.e.l.lo cousin," said the dancer.
"Kiss, kiss, kiss!" the cheer of the audience became louder. They started clunking the gla.s.ses with their spoons.
Dread that had knotted in her chest, blossomed to life. "Lilette?" she rasped. "What are you doing here?" And how did she recognize her in a disguise? Confusion marred her thoughts to the extent that she couldn"t believe what she was seeing. Her eyes had widened.
Anastasia was just too shocked and disturbed to notice that a hand cupped her head from behind and his lips crashed on hers. She tasted his wine on her tongue. He moaned in her mouth and she closed her eyes. The audience erupted in laughter. They clapped and clapped till Ileus kissed her and poured all his pa.s.sion into her. When he pulled away, he rested his head on hers and whispered, "I love you." He left her and then flicked his fingers for the orbs to stop their glow. Once again, the place delved into darkness. Immediately he shoved Lilette out of his lap. And then he growled, "How dare you sit on me? Do you wish to die?"
Lilette got out of his lap and simply smiled. She removed her headdress and placed it on the table without giving an explanation. Anastasia watched with horror her cold, inhuman smile and demeanor. Her mind refused to believe and refused to fathom the depravity of Lilette. What the h.e.l.l was she doing here and, "How did you recognize me?" she asked. Ileus held her hand and squeezed it hard, feeling as stunned as she was. He cast a spell around them to block the sound from going out.
"Why are you here?" he asked. "And how did you enter Draoidh?" It was a huge thing that she came to Draoidh and they never came to know.
Once she took her headdress out, Lilette turned to look at him with her pale emerald eyes and said, "I am here for you, can"t you see?" She picked up his gla.s.s, swirled the wine and drank it. "I followed you all the way from Óraid to here. I wanted to meet you but the royal guards never allowed me. So, I joined this restaurant and waited for you to come out of the palace." She placed the gla.s.s back on the table and licked her lips.