Book 2. Liam - The sewers 2

Book 2. Liam - The sewers 2
It surprised him how well she could navigate the place, especially through the pitch-black tunnels. He wondered if she had grown up there, but the thought of her spending her childhood in such a place sent a bolt of anger through him.
Eventually, he asked, “How do you know your way around here so well?”
“My kind have keen senses of hearing, smell, and sight,” she replied.
Her kind.
She wasn’t human, and it surprised him that she had revealed it, given the hatred most people in Athea held toward those of other races.
Liam couldn’t say he had met many non-humans. Only a handful. Even his father had been wary of them, but Liam never had. His greatest dream was to make Nodor a place where humans and non-humans could live together in peace.
He probably shouldn’t ask, but curiosity got the better of him.
They left another dark tunnel behind when he asked, “What race are you?”
Kara’s steps faltered for a moment. “I’m a Daughter of the Land.”
Many races called themselves that, but Liam didn’t press her for more answers. They would come in her own time.
Eventually, they reached a tunnel leading to the port, and from there Kara guided Liam to a half-burned warehouse. Beneath a layer of ash and charred wood lay a trapdoor. Liam opened it for her, revealing a flight of stairs descending beneath the ruined building.
“Careful,” he warned as she started down the stairs.
He followed close behind.
“Don’t worry,” she tried to reassure him. “I’m just pregnant, not clumsy.” 
He still worried.
The stairs led to a narrow hallway, and at the end of it stood a heavy metal door. Kara knocked three times, waited two seconds, then knocked five more times.
“Who?” a voice called from the other side.
“Kara.”
A moment later, the door swung open with a loud creak. “In you go. Quickly.”
Kara and Liam entered, the door quickly closing behind them. They were in an underground hideout, from what Liam could tell. 
“You weren’t supposed to bring anyone here,” the voice said from behind them.
The voice had belonged to a woman, but when Liam turned around, he found himself face-to-face with a man wearing clothes unlike anything he had ever seen before. He wore a long robe that wrapped around his body and fell all the way to his ankles. A wide sash tied into a large bow at his back held it in place. The sleeves were wide, reaching almost to his wrists. On his feet were flat sandals fastened with cloth straps. His face was delicately painted, his lips tinted, and his eyes carefully lined. 
The sight took Liam by surprise, and for a moment, he was at a loss for words.
But Kara quickly said, “I trust Elyon. And he’s going to help us save Ivy and Essy.”
“Hugo won’t be happy.” 
Kara sighed. “I’ll deal with him.”
Whatever this place was, Hugo was part of it, and Kara had taken Liam right to him. Liam wasn’t sure what to make of Kara, and of her trust in him. It filled him with joy, and he hadn’t felt joy for a long while. 
He was glad that despite his heart having been broken by Rosalyn, he could still believe in people, especially in someone who was a complete stranger. 
His hand found Kara’s, and he gave it a little squeeze, silently thanking her for bringing him to Hugo.
The man—or perhaps he was a woman, but he couldn’t be entirely sure—noticed Liam’s lingering stare and asked, “What? Haven’t you ever seen a lady before?” sounding quite offended.
“Not one so... elegant,” Liam replied, making the stranger smile.
The strange woman—Liam decided the person before him was indeed a woman—extended her right hand while covering the lower half of her face with a fan. “Elyon.”
She held her hand out expectantly, leaving Liam little choice but to take it and press a kiss to her knuckles.
“And what’s your name, handsome?”
Before Liam could answer, Kara grabbed his arm and pulled him aside with an exasperated huff.
“He has a wife.”
“Pity,” Elyon replied in a flirtatious tone.
Kara kept pulling Liam along while he took in their surroundings. The spacious underground room had been divided into several chambers. Men and women of different races occupied every corner; some gathered around tables covered in maps and parchment, others cleaning weapons or quietly talking among themselves. A few stood guard near the doors, their hands never straying far from the hilts of their swords.
Their arrival didn’t go unnoticed. One by one, conversations died, and every gaze turned toward Liam. Some looked at him with curiosity, others with open suspicion, but no one tried to stop them.
The place was unlike anything Liam had ever seen beneath Athea. Whatever it was, it had been carefully organized, and everyone seemed to know exactly what they were supposed to be doing.
Kara led Liam to one of the chambers.
“Hugo is not here,” she told him. “And even if he were, we didn’t come here to see him.”
Before Liam could ask what she meant, Kara pushed the door open without bothering to knock, revealing a tiny yet cozy chamber.
Two armchairs sat in the middle of the room. An elderly woman occupied one, while a man sat in the other. A cat was on her lap, and she was lazily stroking its fur.
Liam recognized the woman immediately.
It was Lady Cordelia—Mina, Rosalyn, and Hugo’s grandmother.
She recognized him as well.
“Your Highness,” she greeted with a faint smile. “Fancy meeting you here. Hiding as well?”
“Not really,” Liam replied.
Kara blinked. “Your Highness?”
Liam tilted his head to the side in confusion. “You don’t know who I am?”
“Should I?” Kara asked.
“He’s the King of Nodor, silly girl,” Lady Cordelia revealed.
Kara’s expression hardened, her gaze turning cold.
“Of course you are.”

The next chapter will be Mina's - I will update in a couple of days.