Chapter 16
Mulan didn't notice that a copper-and-charcoal eye watched her from the keyhole. Galyn Khaan was waiting outside the door, thinking over his plot.
Mulan was still fighting the handmaidens' attempts to prepare her for the wedding ceremony. A little more of their harsh treatment, and they'd break her down. It would break any woman down. Perfect, she was starting to cry.
Galyn Khaan had originally planned to use Prince Jeeki as a cover-up. When the ceremony was over, he would have Mulan right where he wanted. Love did not matter in this marriage, and he could easily torture her. She would be powerless against him, and he would finally have his revenge. Oh, this was his idea of a good plot…
...or maybe it wasn't. Perhaps he was taking on too much at once. He knew how much the Chinese were attached to their great hero. If they received news of her death, the Emperor would definitely call to arms. Not that it would matter, the Imperial Army would be outnumbered…
...unless the surrounding peoples didn't heed him or Lord Chin….
...although the Imperial Army had been devastated during the last war…
...no. The plan was going splendidly so far, and forcibly marrying Mulan could cause it to fail.
Galyn Khaan pulled something from the folds of his fur cloak. It was a spell and a vial of liquid, from one of the sorcerers. He chanted the spell and drank the liquid - causing him to turn invisible. He felt something like a strong wind carrying him away, over the gates of Qui Gong, and back to his home on the steppes.
Now, he could plot his next move with better clarity!
TO BE CONTINUED...
