Chapter 90

Chapter 90
Alexander's POV

The urgent letter arrived just as I was discussing border fortifications with Father in his private study. The royal seal on the envelope immediately caught my attention—this wasn't ordinary correspondence.

"Excuse me, Father," I said, breaking the wax seal with practiced efficiency.

As I read Sloane's words, my blood turned to ice. The snake ring dagger. Shadow organization. Vincent on the loose. Each line made the situation more dire.

The snake ring dagger brought back memories I'd tried to forget. I'd seen that symbol before, carved into the bodies of assassins who'd tried to kill members of the royal family. If Sloane had encountered them, she was in more danger than she could possibly understand.

"Alexander? You look like you've seen a ghost," Father observed, setting down his military reports.

"I need to leave immediately," I said, already moving toward the door. "There's been a development in the Stewart investigation that requires my personal attention."

I can't tell him about Sloane yet. Not until I know she's safe.

Within minutes, I was striding through the palace corridors toward Sir Raymond's office, the intelligence chief who'd served our family for over two decades. If anyone knew about the Shadow organization, it would be him.

I burst into Sir Raymond's office without ceremony, causing the elderly man to look up from his documents with surprise.

"Your Highness! I wasn't expecting—"

"Sir Raymond, what do you know about an organization called the Shadow?" I demanded, placing Sloane's letter on his desk.

His weathered face paled as he read through the contents. "The Shadow... we suspected they still existed, but we haven't had confirmed activity in years."

"Tell me everything."

Sir Raymond stood and moved to a locked cabinet, retrieving a thick file marked with red warning seals. "The Shadow is an ancient organization that predates our kingdom by centuries. They specialize in political destabilization and targeted assassination."

My hands clenched into fists. "How extensive is their reach?"

"They operate in all major kingdoms, Your Highness. Their members are recruited from the desperate and the ambitious—people with nothing to lose or everything to gain." He flipped through pages of intelligence reports. "They've been linked to at least three royal assassinations in neighboring kingdoms over the past decade."

This is worse than I thought.

"What about here? In our kingdom?"

Sir Raymond's expression darkened. "We've suspected several noble families of having connections, but proof has been... elusive. They're extremely careful about maintaining their cover."

"Which families?" I pressed.

"The Howards have shown suspicious activity recently. Several meetings at unusual hours, unexplained financial transactions. There have been subtle changes in the political positions of certain council members over the past few months."

The pieces were starting to fit together. Stewart's case wasn't just about one family's secrets—it was part of something much larger.

"If Sophia Stewart has truly encountered them," Sir Raymond continued, "she's stumbled onto something they've been planning for a long time. The timing suggests this might be connected to the upcoming succession discussions."

My jaw tightened. "They're trying to destabilize the monarchy."

"It's possible, Your Highness. And if this Vincent character has information about their moon operation, Miss Stewart is in immediate mortal danger."

I left Sir Raymond's office with my mind racing. Sloane wasn't just in danger—she was at the center of a conspiracy that could threaten the entire kingdom. I needed my best people on this immediately.

I headed straight to the secure training facility beneath the palace, where my most elite operatives conducted their exercises. These weren't ordinary guards—they were shadows, ghosts who could move unseen through any environment.

"Nico! Elena!" I called as I entered the practice hall.

Two figures materialized from the darkness as if they'd never been there at all. Nico was tall and lean with unremarkable features that made him perfectly forgettable—exactly what made him so effective. Elena appeared to be a young woman in her early twenties, but I knew she could kill a man twice her size without making a sound.

"Your Highness," they said in unison, dropping to one knee.

"I need you both for an emergency assignment. Maximum priority."

Two more shadows emerged—Phoenix, a master of surveillance and tracking, and Shadow, whose real name I'd never learned and whose face I'd seen perhaps three times in five years of service.

"The four of you will be deployed to the Stewart estate immediately," I began, pacing as I laid out the mission parameters. "Our intelligence suggests the Shadow organization has infiltrated the household and is planning something called a 'moon operation.'"

I handed them each a detailed file. "Nico, you'll take the identity of a new stable hand. Your primary objective is the personal protection of Sophia Stewart. She must never be alone, never be vulnerable."

Nico nodded curtly. "Understood. Any specific threats to watch for?"

"Assassination, kidnapping, poisoning—assume everything is a potential weapon. This organization specializes in making deaths look accidental."

I turned to Elena. "You'll infiltrate as a housemaid with specific assignment to care for the young girl, Saskia. The child may also be a target, and more importantly, she might have information we need."

"How deep should my cover be?" Elena asked.

"Complete immersion. These people are professionals—any slip will result in immediate elimination, not just mission failure."

Phoenix and Shadow received their assignments next: establishing a perimeter surveillance network around the estate, tracking all movement within a two-mile radius, and identifying any Shadow operatives who might already be in position.

"Your equipment," I said, gesturing to a case of specialized gear. "Communication devices that can't be traced or intercepted. Antidotes for seventeen different poisons commonly used by assassins. Weapons that won't show up on any scan."

I pulled out a small device that looked like an ordinary pocket watch. "This contains a emergency beacon. If the situation becomes critical, activate it and every available resource will be deployed to your location within minutes."

After briefing my operatives, I returned to my private chambers to craft a response to Sloane. This letter needed to convey the seriousness of the situation while also providing her with the information she needed to stay alive.

My dearest Sloane,

The situation you've uncovered is more dangerous than either of us initially realized. The snake ring dagger is the symbol of an organization called the Shadow—a group of assassins and political manipulators who have been operating for centuries.

They don't just kill for money. They destabilize entire kingdoms, eliminate bloodlines, and reshape the political landscape according to their own agenda. If you've truly encountered them, you've stumbled onto something that could affect the entire royal succession.

I've deployed four of my most elite operatives to protect you:

- Your new stable hand, who will call himself Marcus, is actually Nico—one of the deadliest men in the kingdom. He can kill with his bare hands or disappear into a crowd without trace.

- Elena will arrive as a young housemaid seeking work. She specializes in information gathering and close protection. She'll volunteer to care for Saskia.

- Two others will establish a protective perimeter around the estate. You'll never see them unless something goes wrong.

Your communication method: the old oak tree in the garden has a hollow at chest height on the side facing the house. Check it twice daily—morning and evening. Emergency code phrase: if you say "The moon is beautiful tonight" to any of my people, they'll know you need immediate extraction.

What you must do: Never go anywhere alone. Never eat or drink anything that hasn't been tasted by someone else first. Trust no one except my operatives until this is resolved.

Most importantly, Sloane—Vincent must be captured alive if possible. If he truly knows the details of their moon operation, he's the key to preventing something catastrophic.

I'm mobilizing additional resources to investigate the Shadow's presence in the capital. This conspiracy goes deeper than just the Stewart family, and I suspect we're running out of time to stop whatever they're planning.

Stay alive. Stay safe. I'm coming for you.

Forever yours,
Louis

I sealed the letter with my personal wax seal and called for my fastest courier.