The Tiger Prince's Witch
Chapter 64 - Astaroth's Plans

Astaroth was shaking with fury. No one had been able to locate Santi in months. Alice and Marcus had searched everywhere, and there was no trace of him. The only place they couldn't check was the palace or anywhere near the palace. However, he didn't think Santi would be stupid enough to go there. Astaroth had ensured that his relationship with Randal was damaged, so they wouldn't be able to be on the same continent. Where could the damn tiger have gone? In the meantime, Astaroth had decided to use one of the former security guards that had been a spy for him in the palace. Anton's body wasn't as big or powerful as Santi's, but it would do until he was able to get him back. As he walked around the mansion in Anton's body, Astaroth felt like something was off. He couldn't tell what it was, but something was telling him there had been a shift of power. What was going on that he couldn't see? Most would be concerned about this feeling. For the old demon, it was just another challenge he would face head-on. Nothing was getting in his way of getting out from the underground.

News of the newborn cubs spread throughout the palace. Everyone wanted to see the unique little ones. However, they were careful not to let the information get outside the palace walls. No one wanted Astaroth to know about the cubs, or he would know about the power of six.

Anna and Jaz may not be shifters, but they healed quickly after giving birth. Everyone was back in training, including Liana and Zack. Lynn and Randal thought they were crazy to be including the two cubs in training until they saw what they could do.

Kamryn, Anna, Jaz, and Micah held hands while the two women strapped the cubs to their bodies. As soon as they were all united, they floated off the ground, and lights came out from all six of them, shooting to the center of the circle. The more they practiced, the stronger they became and the longer they could levitate. After a couple of weeks, they could last almost thirty minutes.

"How long exactly will it take to eliminate Astaroth?" Lynn asked worriedly as they took a break. All the grandparents had started training with them indoors, not wanting to let the cubs out of their sight.

"It shouldn't take long. However, if he uses magic to fight us, it's more about power than longevity. If we can stay up for an hour, we should be strong enough to kill him and send him back where he belongs." Anna answered. Lynn felt a chill run through her body at her words. There was a fire in her eyes that made her see that her son's mate was hell on wheels, hidden behind a sweet face.

"Do you know what role Jarek, Marcella, Gary, and Shila with their newborns will play?" Lynn questioned while rubbing her hand over Liana's head.

"Not yet, but they should know before they give birth. Something will tell Marcella and Shila the roles their children will have. I don't believe they'll have to face Astaroth, but they may be needed to defeat his army." Liana began fussing, so Anna unbuttoned her shirt and started breastfeeding her. She saw Kamryn looking around to make sure none of the other males were watching, but she just rolled her eyes at him. Anna bit her tongue when he came over and stood in front of her daring any of the men to look their way. She didn't mind his possessiveness; she kind of loved it.

While she fed her daughter, she thought over everything they had been through in the months since Kamryn stumbled upon her at the cabin. It seemed so long ago that she was there with no memory of who or what she was. Now she was in the tiger palace, getting ready to fight a demon. Before she lost her memory, she knew she was going to mate with the tiger prince but didn't think it would bring her so much love, happiness, and danger all at once.

She watched the others continue to train. As she finished feeding Liana, Kamryn rejoined them after kissing Anna and his daughter on their foreheads. She sat staring at her mate, who was wearing nothing but a pair of athletic shorts. As he trained with his brother, she couldn't help admiring the way Kamryn's muscles rippled as he moved. He had so much power, yet he treated everyone he loved with such tenderness.

He caught Anna watching him, and she felt the heat creeping up her cheeks. How could he still have this effect on her? She was still young, but they were mates and had a cub. Yet whenever he smiled at her like that, she wanted to take him to the bedroom and leave everyone else behind. That was something that she hoped would never change.

Santi was training with Randal and saw the look that passed between Anna and Kamryn. He felt sad, thinking he may never get a chance to feel that connection with a woman. His mate had rejected him when he was infected with the black magic, so he never really had that type of relationship. When he was with her, she meant nothing to him. Once she rejected him, and he accepted her rejection, that bond was lost. Santi understood that out of everyone, he didn't deserve a second chance, but it would be nice to feel some of the love he sees in those around him.

While he was lost in thought, Randal got the upper hand on him and kicked him in the side of the head. Santi saw the smirk on his brother's face. It didn't anger him; it actually made him want to laugh. This brought back memories of when he and Randal would train together as children. They were so competitive back then, but they were also best friends. During his time at the palace, they had been working on getting back to some common ground. He hoped they would return to being real friends again.

"What's wrong, brother? Am I too quick for you now? You must be getting slow in your old age." Randal laughed when he saw the look on Santi's face. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed sparring with his older brother. Santi was always able to beat him back then, but it never stopped Randal from trying.

"You know I had to let you think you could win. I would have thought you would have learned new moves by now, but it looks like you're still fighting like a ten-year-old human." Santi got in position to attack, and Randal set up to counter him. "It's better than fighting like a geriatric patient who just had two hip replacements." There was laughter from the others in the room at the brother's banter. They were twins, yet they treated each other as though there were years that separated them rather than minutes.

The brother's strength was comparable. Neither was getting over on the other. Everyone else had stopped to watch them train. Anna could see the similarities and differences between them as they fought. Santi seemed stronger, while Randal was faster. Their powerful auras could be felt throughout the room.

When they declared a truce and came to sit down for a break, Anna thought of something she had been meaning to ask Santi. She didn't want to upset him, but she needed to know in order to be prepared for Astaroth.

"Santi, what were the plans for the prisoners that were taken from the palace? Did Astaroth have a specific use for them?" The entire room went silent while they waited for his answer. She saw the hurt in his eyes and knew that whatever it was, he had tried to forget about it.

"He was going to take their souls and turn them into soldiers. Just as he did with Alice and Marcus." Santi looked at Stanely and saw the hurt on his face. He knew Alice was his sister, but she was long gone now. All that remained was the evil Astaroth had left in her body.

"What about Elsie? What was he going to use her for?" Anna asked. Once again, everyone waited. She wasn't a big fan of her cousins, but she would never torture anyone, and she feared that's what he had planned for her.

"He plans to take her soul as well, but first, he wants to find her Spirit Energy magic that he believes is still inside her. Once he had that, he planned to find a way to use her magic to defeat the four of you. He also plans to take the soul of every pack member under Alpha Gary to make them all his willing sacrifices. With all those souls, he thinks you will be unable to defeat him, then he can rain hell on earth."