Diana retained the smirk on her face. From the moment she saw Eugene there, she knew that her leaving would be almost impossible. In reality, she didn't mind. If she wanted to go, she could. And there was nothing either he or Jasyn could do about it.
Well, that was for if she wanted to go. She didn't want to go. It was Julitta who wanted her to go. But now that she was refuted by Eugene, she had this sinking feeling that there would be more trouble for her if she stayed here.
This was probably the last war she would fight in the Fraco army. After this, the outcome would determine if she would stay in Wisteria or if she would find a more distant country to reside in.
Regardless of what it was going to be, she just knew that she couldn't remain in Fraco after this fight. Yes, she would miss Julitta, Tisha, Nana, the nurses, and even Yolanda. But, they weren't enough to keep her there.
Maggie's place was only a day's journey from Wisteria so missing her wasn't a reason to stay back in Fraco. If anything, it was more of a reason for her to go back to Wisteria.
"Pardon me for speaking, but Commander Diana should come with us," Julitta said. She stared at Eugene's eye to eye, letting him know silently, that she was more than ready to refute him if it was for Diana to come with them to Wisteria.
Eugene's brow cocked up in a questioning manner. He chuckled and then sneered at Julitta.
"Why are you speaking for her? Can she not speak for herself?"
"Personally your lordship, I do not wish to embark on this pointless trip," Diana interjected. "But for the fact that you have rejected me in particular, trying to refrain me from going, I feel the pressure to go now."
Jasyn sighed. "Your Excellency, why not wait for me in the office? I will be with you shortly."
Eugene nodded and turned to leave but not without sending a glance to Julitta. He hated that the girl had defied him and if she wasn't a human, he would have had her killed instantly. Nevertheless, he knew how to deal with her.
Diana kept her gaze on him as well. She could read his thoughts just by the way he stared at Julitta and she somewhere began to regret not wanting to go initially. Perhaps if she had shown her interest, Julitta wouldn't have felt the need to speak up for her.
"Julie, next time, don't speak unless I give you the chance," Diana whispered. "Eugene is going to try and punish you for what you just did."
"I did nothing." Julitta scoffed. "And let him try whatever he wants. Ugh, I'm not afraid of him. All it takes is one brave soldier and a poisoned meal."
Diana gasped. "Don't say such nonsense aloud." She scolded.
"People can hear you and you know that the lies of Fifi are so much here, taking after their queen in bitchiness, Yolanda."
Yolanda's eyes flared when she heard them mention her name while whispering. She marched over to where they stood.
"I dare you to repeat what you just said." She clamored. Diana stared at her and then returned her attention to Julitta, totally ignoring her. Yolanda became furious, she grabbed Diana by the collar and was about to hit her.
"Yolanda!" Came Jasyn's threatening voice. She instantly cowered back, leaving Diana's shirt. Diana didn't spare her a glance, she continued her discussion with Julitta.
"What is the matter with you?" Jasyn demanded. "Give yourself some respect at least before your subordinates."
Yolanda's face turned black as the bottom of a pot and she glared murderously at Diana. What annoyed her all the more was that Diana didn't seem to be bothered in the least by her presence. Rather, she was busy having her discussion with Julitta.
For Diana, responding to Yolanda was tantamount to reducing one's IQ and she wasn't going to stoop as low just because she wanted to prove a point. Yolanda was not worth it.
Jasyn took the volunteers to his office and instructed them.
"Listen, this is a dangerous mission. You must understand that spying entails that you have to know everything about them, their daily living, the way they do things."
"It's important to know all these so that when we begin to war, we would have an edge over them."
Diana scoffed silently. Have an edge over them? Calhoun could tear every soldier in the army and he wouldn't even have to blink up to five times before he finishes.
Maybe Jasyn and Theodore together could give him a tough time, but alone? He would finish them off.
"Do you have something to say, Diana?" Jasyn asked. He had heard her scoff and he wondered why she was scoffing.
"Carry on, commander," Diana replied, not meeting his gaze. She didn't want any more issues and also wanted to be away as soon as possible.
Jasyn nodded. "Also, you have to be careful not to get spotted. If one of you is seen, the rest have to leave."
"Sir? What happened to stick together?" Theodore asked.
"Yes." A soldier clamored. "You did say one for all and all for one."
"Yes," Jasyn admitted. "But not in this case. We aren't warring against humans but against wolves. They don't think or reason like humans, they are animals."
Although he was also referring to himself, he knew he had to do so just to be able to control what the soldiers felt for their enemies. Theodore was uncomfortable with the way he spoke but he reminded himself that Jasyn was one of them too.
"If they get a hold of any of you, if the rest cannot escape, spotting you will be very easy. They can sniff you out by sniffing one of you." Jaysn explained.
"So if one is not careful to not get spotted, the rest have to be sensible to escape." He said. "Clear?"
"Yes sir!" They chorused.
Jasyn nodded. "Good. Now everything you need has been packed in a small bag for you. You will journey alone and you will pitch tents in the forest."
"What about wild animals?" A soldier asked.
"Do you think a bear stands a chance against a werewolf?" Jasyn refuted. "Don't ask silly questions here. I didn't force anyone to volunteer. If you aren't brave enough, back out."
"No sir, I am brave enough!" The soldier exclaimed.
"Better." Jasyn huffed. "All eight of you and the two commanders, you must ensure to return safely."
"You will board the train and hopefully we could drop you off somewhere, where you can easily find your way to the east country. Is that fine?"
"Yes sir!"
"Good. Now, go and prepare yourselves. Say your goodbyes. We shall send someone to come after you and they should arrive two or three days after you have arrived."
"You shall give them the feedback and we will also prepare here. Our government has prepared a new means of transportation for the soldiers, we can get to the east country in a day."
"This is because returning will be too stressful for the soldiers. We can only come to meet you. When it's time for the war."
Julitta raised her hand. "What if we meet them in a defenseless and vulnerable state?"
"Then that will be perfect for the attack," Jasyn said, smirking. Even he couldn't wait for the war to be over. He had planned to leave the country once it was done. He would leave the eastern country when they won the war. He hoped they won the war.
Diana was quiet. Meeting Calhoun in a vulnerable position was likely to never happen. And if it ever did, it was because he had planned something else. Perhaps he wanted the person to think he was defenseless.
She smirked. She wanted to partake in this war just so that she could see how well Wisteria has grown and how well these people would be beaten.
Of course, she would join the winning team. After speaking to them, Eugene gave them a few minutes of speech and then allowed them to leave, asking Diana to stay behind.
"Take Coco with you when you get on the train, keep a seat for me." Diana mouthed to Julitta. She couldn't whisper because the two men in the room would hear her so she backed them and mouthed to Julitta.
"What did you tell her?" Eugene asked when she turned back to face them.
Diana scoffed. "I didn't know that I had no privacy anymore. When did we upgrade to this level?"
Eugene smirked. "Don't feel too smart, Diana. I can smell your betrayal. If you dare to do anything stupid, I will kill you."
"Kill me?" Diana reiterated. "I doubt you could."
"You have had so many chances to, the night you brought my acceptance letter, the time I challenged you in your office."
"We were alone and no one knew I came out to see you, you have snuck into the dorm several times just to sneak up on me, if you could kill me, you would have."
Eugene laughed loudly. "Don't think too much, if you had offended me at any point then, I would have not hesitated to kill you off."
"I would like to see you try, Eugene," Diana said. "And you too Jasyn."
Jasyn scowled. "Who says I want to kill you? How could I want to kill you?"
"I wonder too," Diana said, shrugging. "The train is waiting, I have to go."
Eugene watched as she left the office. He couldn't help the sinking feeling that she was up to no good.
"You want to spy on her too?" Jasyn asked sarcastically. "You seem to have been doing a lot of that recently."
"Shut up," Eugene ordered. "That's not how you talk to your governor."
"Please." Jasyn scoffed. "I know the truth and that is why you can't do anything to me."
"It's because I need you, that's why I can't do anything to you... At least not yet." Eugene said, smirking. Nobody was indispensable, everyone could be replaced. This was his only shot to get revenge on Calhoun for his grandfather's crime. If he missed this, he would have to wait another hundred years, locked in a coffin before he could resurrect.
He wouldn't like that. That could even only happen if Calhoun did not know how to finish him up. If Calhoun knew how to kill him, that would be his end.
Jasyn watched the man leave and he suddenly felt an eerie chill. He quickly ran out to catch Eugene talking to a female soldier. He looked carefully, it was Fifi. Fifi's mouth was leaking, she would tell anything about anyone so long as there was someone who asked.
"Eugene," Jasyn called. "Leave the girl alone."
"What do you mean, commander Jasyn? Is your governor also a soldier under your command?" Eugene asked.
"No," Jasyn answered. "But she is. Fifi, get out!"
Fifi stared in surprise. Whereas the governor could not harm her if Jasyn protected her, nobody could protect her from Jasyn. Would she need to still think about who to obey? She saluted him and ran off.
"Leave the woman alone," Jasyn warned. "You don't want to get on my bad side, trust me."
His eyes glowed a green that showed he wasn't human. Eugene stared into the eyes, in deep thought.
"Jasyn, have you forgotten? You read those letters. You know what they entail. What happens if she goes there and tells them of our plans?"
"She won't," Jasyn said.
"You can't be so sure. Women are full of surprises."
"She hated the man," Jasyn said. "From what I could deduce, the man had mistreated her so much that she got fed up and left."
Eugene snorted. "But she was in love with him? It's difficult for a woman to throw away her love, especially if she has a child for him."
"Speaking of children, where is the child?" Eugene suddenly asked.
"Should be with the nurse," Jasyn answered. He had given them strict instructions not to hand the child over to Diana.
Together they went to the nurses to find the child.
"Coco? You asked me to hand the child over." The nurse said. "I saw the note in your handwriting, with the same signature you sent to me."
Jasyn frowned. "I didn't write any note."
Eugene turned to stare at him. Was he so in love with Diana that he allowed her to do so much?
"You allowed her to take her child on a spy mission?" Eugene bellowed.
Jasyn frowned. "Don't yell at me, I did not. I am surprised to hear this. Did Diana present the note to you? Because it's very likely for her to have forged my writing and even my signature."
"Diana? Isn't Diana the boy's mother?" The nurse asked.
"Yes," Eugene answered.
"It wasn't her." The nurse said. "It wasn't Diana who came. It was someone else. She didn't look like a soldier. But since she had the note and your signature, I handed him to her assuming that it was another carer whom you have employed for the boy."
"It wasn't Julitta?" Jasyn asked.
The nurse shook her head. "Julitta came a few minutes later asking for the boy. I told her that you have taken him away."
Jasyn facepalmed. What was he going to tell Diana if she returned from the war to find her son missing? The only thing he could do was to ensure that she didn't return from the battle.