A Whole Lot Of Trouble

Ariana’s eyes lit up.

“Every two weeks, you’d slip out of the palace at night to see someone. However, whenever you came back, you’d always look terrified. Your hands would be shaking so badly that you would sit on your bed counting your fingers for hours. Anytime I asked you who it was, you would go blank and tell me never to ask again.”

Outside, Kaleb’s eyes narrowed.

“If you knew when I left, why didn’t you follow me, and how come the night guards never caught me?”

Clara snorted. “Oh, I did follow you. Countless times. But for some reason, you always disappeared before you reached the courtyard—every single time. I don’t know how you never got caught. I guess you must be highly skilled at evading the night guards.”

Ariana’s mind whirred. A mere maid having midnight rendezvous with an unknown person yet no one ever caught her. The woman she had possessed her body wasn’t as simple as she looked.

"You... then why haven’t you reported her yet?”

Clara looked downright insulted. “What kind of person do you think I am, Elena? How could you even think I’d report you? You are my friend! I’d never betray you like that. Besides, do you know what they’d do to you if I reported you?”

“If you get caught covering up for me, you will face the same consequences.”

The slender maid with red hair paled, highlighting the freckles on her cheeks. “Y-y-yes, I know that, but still I’d never betray you, okay? If I have to give my life to protect you, then so be it.”

How stupidly naïve.

The door banged open. Both women jolted. Guilt flashed across their faces as they turned to the Captain. He stood with a twitch on his lips, but his eyes were chillingly cold.

“Chitchat is over. You may leave, Clara. If I have further questions, I’ll send for you.”

He’s acting weird. Did he hear what they were discussing now, Ariana wondered

“Oh,” Clara looked unsure, like she didn’t trust leaving her friend with the scary man.

“Oh, don’t worry, your friend is in capable hands. After all, she almost got killed, but I saved her life.

“What?” Clara looked faint. “How did—“

“Jake, take her away.”

“No, wait! I—“

The door slammed shut, leaving the Captain and Ariana all alone. The silence in the room stretched until the air grew stiflingly thick.

“What?” she snapped when she couldn’t take the pressure anymore.

“So who do you go to meet every two weeks, like Clara mentioned, and where?”

So he was listening. “I don’t know.”

“You do not know?”

“Yes, I do not remember.”

Kaleb chuckled; the light sounded threatening. “Do you know the type of punishments awaiting those who betray the crown?” He slowly approached.

Ariana warily eyed him, taking a step back for every one he took forward. "Yes, I know some.”

“Can you please enlighten me?”

She swallowed. “Um, there's the Traitor’s iron cage, the iron’s scold collar and chain dragging, and public execution by slow burning.”

She hit the wall. Before she could move, Kaleb crowded her, palms on either side of her head.

She stiffened and huddled her shoulders, almost trying to melt into the wall. He leaned closer, his lips grazing her ear as he whispered.

“Do you know which one is my favourite? It’s The Drawing and Quartering. First, a horse would drag you through the cobblestones of the kingdom while you were tied up. You’ll be hanged. Before you lose consciousness, they cut you down. This keeps you aware of what comes next. Your stomach will be cut open while you watch. Then, your insides will be taken out and burned right before your eyes. Only when you beg for the sweet relief of death will four wild horses be bound to your wrists and ankles. The beasts will be whipped until they tear you into four parts. Then, those parts will be fed to the crocodiles caged under the castle.

Ariana looked sickened. Her eyes were bulging out of their sockets, as fear made her face sunken.

The Captain smirked. “Glad you've got that image. It would be a shame for a pretty little dumpling like you to go through that.” He pushed off from the wall, creating space between them. “I’ll be waiting for you when you remember and are ready to walk off your nightly rendezvous.”

He walked out. Ariana slouched on the floor. Why won’t anybody believe a word she says?

———————————————

Knock, knock, knock.

“Enter.” A muted, stern voice called out.

Kaleb inhaled deeply to prepare for the upcoming discussion or disagreement. Then, he walked inside.

Lavender candles lit the room, filling it with a calming scent. It stirred fond memories, making him relax without realising it.

His gaze fell on the slender, white-haired woman on the chaise longue. She sat by the tall, closed windows, her eyes fixed on the darkening sky.

“You said you wanted to see me, Grandma."

Lady Valeria Orion turned to look at her grandson. He looked just like her late husband.

“I asked you hours ago when you came back to the house earlier, how come you’re just coming to see me now?”

“I had to go back to the palace, Grandma. I need to interrogate someone related to an important investigation I’m working on. And such things take time—“

“Don’t act smart with me, young man. I was once the head of the Elite Guards and I know how such things are done. I don’t get why you’d bring the prime suspect of the stolen royal seal into my house without telling me.

Kaleb’s gaze narrowed. “How did you know that? The King had that information sealed from reaching the general public.”

Valeria gave him a flat look. "I may be seventy and indoors all the time, but don’t forget—I know almost everything that happens in this kingdom. That pompous king of yours thinks he can hide such a big incident from me, which is laughable. Now tell me, why did you bring her here without telling me? Are you an idiot or something? Don't you know that the missing seal can be implicated on us as our doing by our enemies?”

“I had no other choice," Kaleb gritted out. “Bringing her here was the only way I could protect the suspect.”

“No, you fool. That’s not the only way,” Valeria snapped, palm slapping the cushions. “What have they been teaching the Imperial Captain candidates after I left? The palace has dungeons for keeping prisoners in, for crying out loud. Why isn’t this suspect of yours there?”

“Because it has been compromised.” Kaleb finally confessed. “A cloaked shadow penetrated the palace today through the wall. It nearly dragged her away right under my nose. When I tried to stop it, it vanished into the wall and get this, the wall shut by itself after it.”

Valeria went still, her face drained of colour. “Dark magic in the palace? But all forms of magic are—"

“Restricted by a powerful seal, I know. Yet that thing that attacked the girl today did the impossible. Now you see why I had to bring her here. Aside from the palace, the intruder’s seal here is potent, if not more so than the palace.”

“Tell me everything that happened.”

Kaleb gave his grandma a funny look. “But I thought you already knew everything.” His tone was a touch smug.

Valeria rolled her eyes. “I want to hear about the situation analysis from an Orion Heir I personally trained. Now talk, you brat.”

Kaleb narrated it.

"The girl doesn't remember anything about herself. That's worrying. I understand why you suggested bringing her here." Valeria gave him a disapproving look. “But why haven't you cast a Memory Reader Spell on her to see if what she’s saying is true or false?”

“Magus Alistair is out of the kingdom for the Annual Magi Conference, remember?”

“Oh yes, and it’ll end in a month. This is bad.” Then Valerie leaned back, her gaze gaining a lost-in-thought glaze. "Someone like this existed before you were born. Your grandfather was still alive then, serving as an Imperial Captain."

Kaleb’s brows lifted.

“A man once entered the Royal Court. For days, nobody guessed he was pretending to be the King. He used dark magic to change his looks and voice to match the monarch’s. Luckily, your grandfather found him before he could kill the real king and seize the throne. After that, they fixed the magic-restricted seal in the palace.”

“I didn’t know this. Why didn’t King Myde mention this? I mean, he should be a young prince then, right?”

“Correct. But who knows what the pompous man is thinking? Perhaps he has forgotten or doesn’t think the relevance of it is connected to the missing seal. I'm worried about how the missing seal will gradually destabilize things.

“What do you mean?"

“If the Council dares to learn that the Seal is missing, chaos will occur. And their knowing is a matter of time. Then you’ll see the ugly side of people.”

“As my duty as Captain, I won’t let that happen. I've got the main suspect here, so sooner or later, the truth will come out. I’ll figure out who took the missing seal.

Valerie sighed. “Just make sure you carefully watch her. I've got a feeling this girl is going to bring us a whole lot of trouble.”

“I will," Kaleb promised. “She won’t move without me knowing.”

“Make sure of it, because if trouble comes for her, it will come for this entire household.”

After wishing goodnight, Kaleb left. He hadn’t taken more than a few steps when a piercing headache drilled into his skull without warning. He slouched against the wall, biting his lip so hard it bled to keep from shouting out.

Then, as abruptly as it came, it vanished. As though it were nothing but a trick of his imagination.

Kaleb straightened, his breath coming out in short pants. “What the heck…?”