163

163


The palace felt tense from the moment the sun rose. Every guard stood stiffer than usual. Every servant moved with fear in their eyes. It was clear that Kevin’s anger was spreading through every wall of the kingdom. Keegan walked through the hallway with a heavy chest. He felt sick. He had not slept for two nights. He kept replaying Kevin’s threats in his head, and each memory made him feel weaker.

Keegan paused at the corner where two guards were standing. They looked at him, bowed, and turned their faces down. They looked scared. He wondered if Kevin had threatened them too.

He whispered, “Is Kevin in the council room?”

One guard nodded. “Yes, my prince. He has been shouting at the elders all morning.”

Keegan let out a slow breath and walked away. He needed to find Rosa. He needed to talk before Kevin pushed him any further. He moved down the back stairway and slipped into a quiet hallway that was rarely used. He checked behind him, then behind a curtain, and tapped on a stone in the wall.

A hidden door opened.

Rosa stepped out quickly and pulled him in, shutting the passage behind them. Her eyes were filled with worry.

“Keegan,” she said. “What is going on? You look worse every day. Talk to me.”

He looked at her, and the guilt crushed him. He tried to breathe, but the weight in his chest made it hard.

“I lied,” he whispered.

Rosa froze. Her hands slowly dropped from his arms. “What do you mean?”

“I didn’t kill him,” Keegan said. His voice broke. “I didn’t kill my father. Kevin forced me to confess.”

Rosa covered her mouth. “What? Keegan… why would you—?”

“He threatened me,” Keegan said. “He had something. Something from the past. Something that could destroy everything. He told me he would ruin you and the children if I refused.”

Rosa shook her head. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“I didn’t want you to be scared,” he said. “But I see now that hiding it only made things worse.”

Rosa stepped closer and held his shoulders. “We will fix this. You will not face this alone.”

Keegan breathed out slowly, shaking.

Rosa nodded to the end of the passage. “There’s someone you need to talk to.”

Keegan followed her deeper into the hidden passage. At the end, a torch was lit. An old man stood there, leaning on a cane. His face looked tired but strong. Keegan knew him immediately.

“You,” Keegan whispered. “You were my father’s closest advisor.”

The old man nodded. “And still loyal to him, even in death.”

His voice was steady and gentle, but there was something sharp underneath it.

Keegan frowned. “Why are you here?”

“To help you,” the advisor said. “Because I know your confession was not the truth. And because your father did not die the way Kevin claimed.”

Keegan felt his heart pound. “What do you know?”

The old advisor lifted a leather bag and opened it. Inside were several old pages, dusty and worn.

“These are entries from your father’s private journal,” he said. “He wrote them in the final weeks before his death.”

Keegan and Rosa stepped closer as the advisor opened the first entry.

The writing was shaky, but clear.

Kevin is becoming unstable. His ambition grows beyond reason. I no longer know if he is safe to stand beside.

Keegan’s breath caught. Rosa squeezed his hand tightly.

The advisor flipped to the next page.

If anything happens to me, it will not be by accident.

Keegan stepped back as if the words had pushed him. “He knew. He knew Kevin was dangerous.”

The advisor nodded. “Yes. And he tried to take precautions. But Kevin moved faster.”

Keegan felt anger rise in him. It warmed his face and made his hands shake. “Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?”

The old man lowered his eyes. “Because Kevin had already taken control. I waited for the right moment. And now, after watching everything he has done, I believe the moment has come.”

Rosa reached into her coat and pulled out a small box. “I found something too,” she said. “In an old storage room. It belonged to the king’s personal guard. The one who died suddenly.”

Inside the box were pieces of a broken seal.

Keegan recognized it. “This… this is the seal from the envelope the guard was carrying the night my father died.”

“Yes,” Rosa said. “And there was no reason for this seal to be broken unless someone wanted the envelope destroyed.”

The advisor added, “The guard tried to deliver the letter to your father. Kevin stopped him.”

Keegan felt a burning inside him. Everything pointed to one truth. Kevin killed their father. Kevin framed the guard. Kevin forced Keegan to confess.

Rosa touched his arm. “We have to keep going. We need more proof.”

Keegan nodded slowly. “We can’t do this alone.”

“That is why we are not alone,” the advisor said.

He stepped back and whistled once. Three warriors emerged from the shadows of the passage. Their armor was scratched, and their eyes looked tired, but they stood tall.

“We are loyal to the late king,” one warrior said. “And we no longer believe Kevin’s lies. We are with you.”

Keegan felt a small spark of hope.

“Thank you,” he said.

The advisor laid all the items out on the ground. The journal pages. The broken seal. A list of guards who had disappeared the week of the king’s death. A map showing which guards were removed from their posts the night the king died.

“Look at this,” the advisor said. “Kevin sent every guard away from the king’s door except one.”

Keegan nodded. “The guard who died right after.”

Rosa swallowed hard. “He was silenced.”

The room grew quiet.

Keegan looked at the map again. “This proves everything. Kevin planned it. He forced the transfer. Then he killed him.”

The advisor spoke calmly. “We need to gather more evidence to present to the council. Kevin will expect resistance, so we must move in secret.”

Rosa stepped forward. “I can talk to the palace maids. They know more than anyone realizes. They see everything.”

Keegan shook his head. “It’s too dangerous.”

“Keegan,” she said softly. “I can handle it.”

He looked at her, and he knew she was right. She had been strong through every moment of chaos. She never stepped back, not even once.

One warrior stepped forward. “My prince, we can check the guard towers. Some guards kept private notes. We might find something written down.”

Keegan nodded. “Good. Do it quietly.”

The advisor said, “I will search the king’s old rooms again. He hid things in strange places. We may find more.”

Rosa held up the broken seal. “And I will find whoever saw this last.”

The plan was forming, but the danger around them grew heavier by the second.

Keegan swallowed. “Kevin is watching everything and everyone. We must be careful.”

Rosa stepped closer. “We will be careful. But we cannot stop. Not now.”

Keegan looked around at the small group. They were tired. They were scared. But they were determined. He felt stronger seeing them.

“We do this for the kingdom,” Keegan said. “We do this for the truth.”

They all nodded.

Suddenly, a loud sound echoed above them. Heavy footsteps. Dozens of them. The group froze.

Rosa whispered, “He is checking the palace again.”

Keegan’s heart began pounding faster. “We have to move,” he said. “Now.”

The advisor and the warriors gathered the evidence quickly. Rosa tucked the broken seal into her dress. Keegan grabbed the journal pages and hid them inside his coat.

The footsteps grew louder.

“Go,” Keegan said. “Back through the side tunnel.”

The group slipped into the narrow passage just as the hidden door above shifted slightly. Someone was entering the hallway above them.

They moved quickly through the tunnel, their steps quick and quiet.

When they reached the end, Rosa grabbed Keegan’s arm.

“You did the right thing,” she said. “No more hiding.”

Keegan nodded, breathing hard. “We will finish this.”

They separated and slipped back into the palace from different entrances.

Above them, Kevin’s voice echoed in the hallway.

“Search everywhere. I want every corner checked.”

Keegan felt a chill run through him.