Elias’s office was unusually tense that afternoon. He sat across from his father Lord Marius who was burning with fury after the revelations his son had just made.

"Your mother can never know about this." Lord Marius declared. "If she knows about Sienna’s background, I am afraid she will murder your wife." She would go from calling her chubby charms to dead chubby charms!

Elias groaned. "It gets worse. Lord Edris has more demands that he has delivered to my wife. One includes a marriage alliance between his son and Cyra. He used the words ’we are all one family.’ He wants my wife’s honey and half of her property. Sienna has extracted bee venom and given some to the kids. It seems to me like she has made up her mind to take out Edris."

His father’s eyes narrowed, his fur bristling. "Blackmail. Typical of falcons, they don’t have much honor, like the eagles. I don’t blame your wife for seeking to use extreme measures to get rid of him. At the end of the day, she has to protect herself and the rest of the family. Leave this matter to me. I will handle Edris and his cunning group.

I am sure that not every falcon elder is involved in this matter. Thad is not here, as are five others. Only those Edris schemes with are here. I will take care of them."

Elias bowed hos head, his white fox ears twitching. He knew his father’s methods--calm, deliberate, but often ruthless.

Later that night, he returned to the the compound instead of going to his estate. He found Sienna in the bedroom, adjusting her hair before the mirror. The long silk white night dress flowed freely, exposing her arms. It didn’t stick to her body as it once did. She had lost more weight in three days that she did with her usual exercises.

As long as Edris was alive and holding their family hostage, she would end up skin and bones. "You should take a trip tomorrow," he said suddenly. "Go to the Novak forest, livestream it. They have very beautiful waterfalls and great fishing spots."

Sienna blinked. "A trip to a forest? At a time like this! I don’t think that is such a good idea. I don’t have it in me to smile and have fun Elias." She turned her body and looked his way. "I am tense. I am afraid. I am scheming how to get away with murder." Her body shivered. "I never thought that I could be capable of such ruthlessness in my life until now."

He walked toward her slowly, and put his hands on her shoulders. "You are the lady of the fox tribe, if you are not ruthless, how can you hold your position. How can you protect me and our kits?"

She looked up, brandishing her hairbrush like a weapon. "I am the human here, how am I supposed to protect you?"

"Well, you could start with some of that venom you gave our children." He suggested, lips curved upward in a smile. He brushed a strand of her hair back. "And before I forget, I do need to remind you not to use it on Edris. You are the only person with bees in this city. If the poison is discovered to be related to bees, we will be the first suspects. I will send it all to the lab and have my people change its obvious quality, add more toxins and disguise it. That way, it can never be linked to the bees." 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

She yawned in response.

He cleared his throat. "Tomorrow, I will be in Cykress, the capitaI city. I have some urgent business matters to take of and I will be gone for a few days. Keep the people’s eyes on you, not me."

Sienna gulped. He was definitely up to something. It seemed like they were creating alibis.

***

Before the morning sun spilled across the sky, two flying ships departed from the same sky space. But, each was moving in a different direction. Elias set off for Cykress, while Sienna and her group left for the Novak forest in the West. It was a six hour journey.

Sienna treated it like a flight on a plane. Servants pushed carts with breakfast through different cabins. In her cabin, only Eli and Ali were with her. Their polished table had warm buns, honeyed fruit and milk porridge in sealed vacuum cups. Ali was giggling as she tried to balance a cup of milk while the ship tilted slightly.

Eli was holding a book in his hands, looking out of the window. He was staring at the falcon beast men who were flying beside the ship. They were not the only bird beast man on watch. On the deck, guards from the vanguard were standing at every edge. Their orders were clear: watch for eagle beast man and anything that looked suspicious.

"Mama, I have seen the new Linkin 300 air flying ship." Eli gasped.

Ali raced to the window, pressing her small face against it to look at the sleek flying ship whose speed was said to be double of the model they were using. Instead of the standard common flying ship body, it was built like a bird!

"It really looks like a bird. It can carry up to two hundred people and float on water in case of an accident. They have a version that carries six people as well, much smaller than all the flying ships on the market. The seats recline all the way to the back into bed. Each cabin has a private bathroom and personal butler." Eli gushed, just before the ship vanished. "I know what I want for my next birthday mama. I want the Linkin 300."

Sienna blinked. "My pockets are not that deep. But your grandmother Cadelaria now...." she paused for dramatic effect. "She is rich, rich, rich. And she loves you very much. I bet she would buy you two Linkin 300’s if you asked really nicely. Then, you can give one to your mama as her birthday gift."

Eli clapped his hands. "We should get one for papa too."

"And me." Ali shouted.

Sienna nodded. "Yes, grandma should buy one for everyone. She is always talking about her generosity and this would be a great opportunity to show it." Her scheming, gleaming eyes focused on the children. "What else do you want? Let’s make a list and send it to her."

Miles away, in her house, Lady Cadelaria felt a chill. It was an odd feeling for such a warm day. A dreadful feeling settled over her. She rubbed her hands over her arms and shook her head. "Better not be causing trouble Chubby charms," she whispered.