Chapter 94: No, we're not

Eloise

Every fiber in my body wants to go back there and drag Byron away from his father, but I knew I had to keep going. I wasn't going to waste this opening he gave us.

I found Carden first. He was coming from the opposite direction holding a plate of cake and a fork between his lips.

“Seriously?” I shook my head. I can't believe he found a way to enjoy cake while we were about to be in crisis.

“What? You want some?” He stretched out the plate towards me with a wide grin on his face.

“The first phase of the plan is ongoing. Byron is distracting his father.” I said quickly.

And just like that, the plate in his hand vanished. I blinked to make sure I hadn't imagine it.

“Don't worry, it's a simple cloaking spell. We should find the others quickly.” He crossed the distance between us with two long strides. “Find your friends and gather at the archives. Aeron or Tina will show you to the place. I'll go find Aidas and Byron and we'll meet you there.”

I nodded and quickly walked to the ballroom. I found Aeron dancing with a maiden.

Ah Great!

After trying to get his attention for a few seconds with no success, I decided to cut in. With my heart pounding in my chest, I walked over to them with a smile.

“Mind if I cut in?” I said and they both turned to me. The girl all but scowled at me as Aeron gently let go of her hand and took mine.

I threw her an apologetic look that she didn't acknowledge before taking Aeron's hand. We waltzed on the dance floor for a few seconds. I didn't want us to leave quickly to avoid suspicion.

“Sorry for cutting your dance short. She seems like a really nice girl.”

“I thought so too, until a few minutes into our dance, I realised she just wanted to get in with my uncle through me.” He shook his head.

A strange feeling coursed through my veins when I heard that and I started having thoughts that would usually terrify me, like how to murder someone for trying to seduce my mate through his nephew.

I blinked and the murderous thoughts cleared out of my head. I didn't understand where the crazy jealousy just came from but I knew I shouldn't let it affect the mission. Speaking of which…

“We have to go find Raihn and Lidia. It's time.” I said.

“What about Tina?” He asked.

I blinked in surprise. “She isn't here?”

“No, she left with that handsome… Ah! There she is.” He gestured torwards the entrance where Tina walked into the ballroom with a stern look in her.

“I think she already figured it out.” I muttered while Aeron nodded slowly. “Let's go find Raihn and Lidia.”

The three of us walked out of the ballroom and hurried down the hall to the front yard.

“Let's check Raihn's rooms first. I have a feeling that's where they'll be.” Tina said.

“No, I don't think so. Just come with me.” Aeron said.

The three of us changed directions and went after Aeron. We walked down the hallways until we were threading what looked like a garden with decorations all over the place.

Despite the urgency of the situation, I found myself looking around and enjoying the view of place. It was a beautiful sight.

“There they are.” Aeron called my attention back towards the reason we were here. I looked towards the direction he pointed and saw Raihn and Lidia sitting by a dark lake and laughing at something. Lidia seem to be blushing hard.

“They look so cute together.” Tina muttered and pouted her lips.

“Yeah well, party is over.” Aeron said, his voice sounding a little strained. He took a few steps forward and called, “Hey, lovebirds.”

That got both their attention.

“Time to go.” he gestured.

As soon as he said that, Raihn and Lidia quickly got to their feet. And just like that, the playful and romantic atmosphere in the air vanished.

They approached us with a stern look on your faces. Lidia's expression had gone from relaxed to the murderous one she wore almost every day back in the academy.

“Where are the heirs?” Raihn asked.

“Gathering up, they'll meet us there.”

For the rest of the trip to the archives no one said anything. We were all very tensed, some more than others. I could literally feel the tension coming out from Aeron in waves.

I took long strdes to catch up with him she gently brushed a hand over his shoulder.

It seems I wasn't the only one that noticed his tensed state. Raihn took his other side and patted his back slightly. Tina and Lidia did the same, silently reassuring him that he wasn't alone and we were with him every step of the way.

A sound shield snapped into place a moment before Tina said, “does everyone remember the plan?”

Raihn was the one who responded, “Tina and I hang around in the archives close to the entrance. Since we live here, it wouldn’t immediately raise alarms if we're in the archive. We'll alert the rest of the group if anyone comes in.”

“I stay outside the archives, close enough to be on the look out and far enough that if anyone caught me, I'll just say I wandered too far from the ball.” Lidia said.

“I'm going to be inside the archives searching scrolls and books for anything that might be of additional use aside from the Princess Tatia’s research.” I said.

They had put me on that duty because I was the only one who talked to Aubrey Vega directly. If, by some terrible stroke of luck, they didn't find the research, we were hoping we would at least find something else that will be useful.

The Princess had definitely gotten the idea for the research somewhere. Maybe that place is here.

“And I will go with the heirs into the royal vault to use my blood to unlock the safe where her belongings was kept.” Aeron added. He seem to tense a little bit more.

“Okay, everyone knows their role. This should be fun.” Tina snorted. No one else shared her amusement.

We walked in silence until we got to the archives. Under different circumstances, I would have stopped to admire the structure of the entrance or the thought of going to a place filled with books.

The heirs were already standing at the entrance when we got there. My eyes went straight to Byron and my heart nearly leapt out of my chest. He looked so drained but somehow still managed to keep a stern expression on his face.

It took everything inside me to restrain myself from running towards him and throwing my arms around his neck. I didn't need to know what happened between him and his father to figure out that it had gone badly.

“Okay, that's my cue. I'm going to find a place to hide. Good luck everyone.” Lidia did a small salute before turning around and walking away.

Raihn trailed her with his sight until she hid behind a huge pillar in the hallway. He let out a sigh.

“The rest of us are going in now. The archivees are empty, I confirmed it.” Aidas said and pushed the doors opened.

If I thought I was mesmerized by the design outside, I wasn't prepared with what await me inside. That feeling of being surrounded with books once again.

“Okay so, Tina and Raihn, you stay here.” Aidas gestured at a large shelf close to the entrance exactly as we originally planned.

Tina and Raihn nodded and immediately took their positions. It was remaining just the five of us, the heirs, Aeron, and me.

“So where am I beginning my search?” I asked.

“You and Aeron can start anywhere, but preferably deeper into the archives. This place sit on an entire plot of land. There's so much ground to cover.” Byron said and the three of them began to walk away.

“Wait… what?”

“Is their a problem?” Aidas asked, half turning towards us.

“Yes, you said ‘you and Aeron’, I thought I was coming with you guys. You need my blood to open her vault.” Aeron said.

“Well, now we say you're not coming with us anymore. You stay here with Eloise.” Byron said in a firm tone.

“But you need me to…”

“I'm quite certain that the same blood ran through mine and my sister's veins. I can open the safe. You're staying.”

“But…”

“Aeron!” Byron called sternly. “Stay here and wait for us.”

Then the three of them began walking deeper into the archives, leaving us behind.

“What just happened?”

“They just left us behind.” Aeron said through gritted teeth.

I glanced at his face and saw the determination in it. “But we're not staying behind, are we?”

Aeron shook his head, “No, we are not.”