CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
‘Yusumi, do not go near him,’ Kai said swiftly as she took a step towards the Afterdead.
She ignored him, her focus completely on her father. ‘You died…ten years ago. I saw those men tear you apart. The Royal Guard buried you by the old windmill where you fell.’
‘Yes,’ her father said. His voice was splintered as though several people were talking at once. ‘Yet I have been given life once more. Yusumi. My Yusumi. I have come back to you.’
He held out his arms, beckoning her nearer.
‘Do not be fooled, princess,’ Jidan growled, the fur on his back bristling. 'He is a puppet, nothing more!’
Her father smiled, stretching the scars on his face so wide that they looked like they were about to split apart. ‘I am no puppet, beast. Come, my daughter. Touch my hand and feel th
