Reborn As The Daemon’s Wife - Chapter 115

She took a better look as soon as she spoke and it reminded her of an incident she had forgotten—Her meeting with Alaya, which the latter had erased form her memory. The goddess had called her ‘Catalyah’ before realizing that she was wrong and the female in Dairon’s mansion should be Jasmine.

“His mother knew that he’s keeping a substitute too.” She slapped her forehead, feeling more ridiculous.

She took a few deep breaths and tried not to reveal her feelings in the presence of the real mate.

She regarded the full body portrait before her and had to admit that they could pass off as each other’s twin. It would be shocking if no one else thought of her as Catalyah’s substitute—she had thought that the portrait before her was her own, after all.

The differences were slight and although she hated to admit it, they made her feel inferior.

Catalyah’s eyes were brighter and seemed to command respect even though it was a portrait. She looked confident holding her scepter and her smile was hypnotising.

“I don’t blame him. I would fall in love with her if I were a god or a demigod.” Jasmine remarked, and Sinos gave her a blank stare.

“Why are you giving me that look?” She frowned at him.

He cleared this throat. “I may be a god of wisdom but I don’t think I will ever comprehend females.” He took a turn and stood before another portrait. “Do you want to see more?”

“Of course.” She walked over to him and once again felt like an ant. In the next portrait, Catalyah had her eyes closed and her wings were out. They were the most beautiful she had ever seen.

“She had eight wings.” Sinos whispered beside her, making her feel miniscule. “Each of her wings represented a different ability.”

“Can you not make me feel worse?” She laughed. She was not trying to compare herself to Catalyah but she would feel a little better if the latter was less remarkable.

Sinos looked down at her with a slight laugh. “Does it make any difference?”

“I wish I wasn’t her doppelganger.” She sighed. She would have believed that it was possible for Dairon to have her as his second mate if they were different. She was still thinking about it when her eyes zeroed in on the necklace Catalyah was wearing. “That’s my necklace.”

She stepped forward and took a closer look at the necklace. “Isn’t that the necklace that Alaya gave me? Why would she give me a necklace that belongs to someone else?” She didn’t understand.

“Do you still have it?” Sinos asked. “Maybe it’s just a necklace that looks similar.”

“Maybe.” She thought about it and scanned the necklace. Her instinct told her that it was the very one she had on Dairon’s Island. But why didn’t Dairon ever mention anything about it? Besides, why would Alaya give it to her? None of it made sense.

“I hope you have satisfied your curiosity. We need to get out of here.” Sinos looked around as though he was scared of getting caught.

“I think so.” She took a deep breath. “Let’s go.”

“Do you need to know anything else about Catalyah?” Sinos questioned.

She wove through the shelves with the intention to leave but something caught her eye.

Sinos was behind her and he froze when he saw the path she was taking. It was too late to hide what he dreaded that she would see.

She turned to give him a confused glance and although she was smiling, he knew that there was nothing happy about it. She was on the verge of exploding.

“Did they all think of me as their family just because I look like Catalyah?” She nodded towards the family portrait that must be of the happiest family in history.

Blaze had his arms around Lolanthe and Catalyah who were all smiles as if they were discussing something, while Bardumond hugged a goddess who looked slightly younger than Catalyah and her face was flushed in embarrassment. They looked in love.

That must be Narilia, she thought. Since neither Narilia nor Catalyah was in the picture, their family had taken her in as the adopted daughter. Did it have anything—or everything—to do with her looks?

“Does everyone who likes me feel that way because they think I’m her replacement?” She asked with a scoff. It was ridiculous.

Sinos observed her and shook his head. “Well, Catalyah was my friend but I didn’t immediately befriend you when I saw you. At least my feelings have nothing to do with her and everything to do with the fact that you are beautiful and kind.”

She looked up at him as if trying to gauge whether he was telling the truth. “Did you ever wish I was her?”

“Not in the slightest.” H elooked like he was about to swear on his life.

She let out a slow, relieved breath. Even if everyone else saw her as a substitute, she hoped for Bardumond’s friendship to be real. She thought of him as her actual brother and if that turned out to be fake, she would be disappointed.

“I want to meet Alaya.” She decided and turned to walk away.

He followed her and caught up, his smile frozen. “Why?”

“For obvious reasons.” She pursed her lips with no intention to explain further.

He turned back to glance at the portraits they were leaving behind. His eyes lingered on the one where Catalyah was wearing the very necklace he had seen around Jasmine’s neck a few times. “I thought Dairon gave it to you. I would have expected him to explain everything to you, but he didn’t. He deserves all the misunderstandings that his silence caused, if you ask me.”

“What misunderstandings?” She rolled her eyes. She was not misunderstanding him. What was there to misunderstand?

“Well?” She probed, waiting for his response regarding her meeting up with Alaya.

“I don’t know where she lives.” He didn’t dare to meet her eyes.

She frowned and looked at him. “That’s why there’s such a thing as summoning deities. We don’t need to know where they live.”

He cleared his throat and she immediately knew that he was making up another lie.

Sure enough, what he said was ridiculous. “With goddesses like Alaya, it’s different. You have to know where they live because you can only go to them. You can’t summon them.”

She pursed her lips and stared straight at him. For a god of wisdom, he was too sloppy while lying. “Why can’t you summon Alaya? If it’s a good enough reason, I’ll not bug you about it anymore.” She promised.

“That’s the thing. How am I supposed to know what reason will be considered good enough by your standards? You will probably think of whatever I say as an excuse to keep myself out of it.” He scratched the back of his head.

He took her hand and teleported them back to the academy training room. She slumped onto her chair and looked up at him through sleepy eyes. “Why are you really afraid of telling me? Do you think I would tell on you?” She slurred, not comprehending why she was suddenly so sleepy.

He was yet to notice anything strange about her and her question was driving him crazy. “That’s not what I said.”

“Then why?” She demanded. She wasn’t certain she knew what she was saying anymore. She let her head drop onto the table and eased her hands on it.

“Jasmine?” He rushed to her side. “What happened?”

She forced her eyes open but they were hazy and looked like they would shut any instant. “I didn’t get much sleep thanks to that cursed fish.”

He was relieved that she was not asking about Alaya anymore. He hated to admit it but he was scared of what would happen if Dairon were to find out that he had helped her find a way to get to Alaya. The last thing he wanted was to be stuck in between a fighting couple. He liked adventure but there was nothing fun about that.

When he checked on her, he realized that she had quickly fallen into a deep sleep. She looked peaceful and nothing like the raging demigoddess she had become thanks to the secrets she had uncovered.

“If he can’t keep you happy, someone else can.” He whispered close to her ear. She must have thought it was a bug because she waved her hand through the air as if swatting something away. He chuckled and carried her in his arms, taking her back to Dairon’s Island.

He was home when they arrived and he glared icicles at Sinos.

“What do you think you’re doing?” He shot up from his seat and rushed to their side like he was ready to kill.

Sinos had intended to let him know that she had fallen asleep but annoyance suddenly filled him. He glared at his friend. “What right do you have to question who brings her home when you betrayed her?”