Chapter 27: Chapter 27

The study was warm. The heat was very intense. Two guards flanked Kaelen, and he was positioned near the door. His hands were secured in front of him, and a dull throb radiated from his arm.

He felt pain in his chest. Dark brown streaks of blood had dried on his shirt.

In the center of the room, Elara was on her knees. Her wrists were tied behind her.

Her face was bruised. Her lip was split. But her eyes were steady. She looked at Alden like he was nothing. Like he was some piece of shit soon to be discarded. Alden didn't mind. He still thinks the empire was in his hands.

Alden sat behind his desk. His jacket was dark. His hair was combed to the back. His face was calm. He held a cup of tea in his hand. He took a slow sip graciously.

He said "You've been helping the Greyman for weeks. Feeding him information. Hiding him. Giving him names."

Elara looked at him and gave him steady eyes.

Alden set his cup down. "I want to know who else is helping him. Who else knows about our arrangement."

Elara smiled. It was not a nice smile. "Our arrangement you say? You mean the arrangement where you kill anyone who gets in your way? The arrangement where you pay men to do your dirty work?"

Alden's face did not change. "I'm asking you nicely. So tell me now that you still have the chance."

Elara said "And I'm telling you nothing. I don't owe you that information. Oh, are you scared now? The Valerius boy is yet to touch you. But when he does, you will feel it. This same system will be the one to hunt you down."

Alden stood up. He walked around his desk. He stood in front of Elara. He looked down at her. His hands were clasped behind his back.

He said, a smile still playing on his lips, "You've got some nerve, I have to admit."

You have a reputation. The Lamplighter. The woman who knows everything. The woman who sells secrets to anyone with enough coin."

Elara said "That's right."

Alden said "I've bought from you before. You never asked questions. You never took sides."

Elara said "Well, I'm taking sides now."

Alden said "Why?"

Elara looked at him. Her face was hard. "Because I'm tired of watching men like you burn the city down and call it progress."

Alden stared at her for a long moment. Then he walked back to his desk. He sat down. He picked up his cup. He drank his tea

He said "You think the Greyman can win. You think he can topple me. Vane. Crest."

Elara said "He already has. Vane is hiding in his empty tavern with no men and no money. Crest hasn't slept in weeks. She sees ghosts in every shadow."

Alden's hand tightened on his cup.

Elara saw it. She smiled again. "Your empire is crumbling, Theron. You just don't want to see it."

Alden set his cup down hard. The tea splashed. He looked at the guards behind Kaelen.

He said "Take her to the cellar."

The guards moved. One grabbed Elara's arm. The other grabbed her shoulder. They pulled her up. Her face tightened but she did not cry out.

She looked at Kaelen as they passed. Her eyes met his. She nodded once.

Then she was gone.

The door closed behind her.

Alden sat behind his desk. He looked at Kaelen. His face was calm but his jaw was tight.

He said "You've caused me a great deal of trouble. I have been warned that you wish to end me. Is that true?"

Kaelen said nothing.

Alden said "My merchants are gone. My partners are leaving. Vane is useless. Crest is hiding in her office like a frightened child."

Kaelen still said nothing.

Alden stood up. He walked to the window. He looked out at the dark street.

He said "You're the Valerius boy. The one who hid under the floorboards. The one they left fkr death itself"

Alden turned. "Do you know why they left you alive?"

Kaelen said "They thought I was nothing."

Alden nodded. "Good. You are still that nothing. A pup with no den. The city would eat you. That's what they said.

Kaelen said "I remember."

Alden walked back to his desk. He sat down. He picked up his cup. It was empty. He set it down.

He said "You should have stayed dead. Better still, you should have just died when you had the chance. Now you are truly going to be dead. What a pity."

Kaelen said "I won't die. You don't get to decide that. I decide if I live or die. I let your men capture me because I have a message for you. Your time is near. Sip enough tea now that you still can."

Alden looked at him. His eyes were cold “Hmmm. Is that so Valerius boy? We will see about that"

He rang the bell on his desk. The door opened. Marik came in. His face was still bruised from where Kaelen had hit him. His lip was still split.

Alden said "Take him to the cellar. With the woman. I'll deal with them in the morning."

Marik grabbed Kaelen's arm. His grip was tight. He pulled Kaelen toward the door.

Kaelen did not resist.

The cellar was cold, dark, and wet. The stairs were stone. Kaelen's feet slipped on them. Marik pulled him down. They passed a door. Kaelen heard Elara's voice behind it. She was not speaking. She was humming. A slow tune. Old.

Marik stopped at the bottom. There was another door. Wooden. Heavy. He opened it. It was a small room. Stone walls. No windows. A bucket in the corner. Nothing else.

Marik pushed Kaelen inside. Kaelen fell to his knees. His chest screamed. His arm throbbed.

Marik stood in the doorway. He looked down at Kaelen. His face was hard.

He said "You should have stayed dead."

Kaelen gave him a wicked laugh

Marik said "In the morning, Alden will kill you. Slow. He likes it slow."

Kaelen looked up at him. "I know. That is why I am going to take everything he owns slowly. Just the way he likes it."

Marik stared at him for a moment. Then he closed the door. The lock clicked.

Kaelen sat in the dark. His arm hurt. His chest hurt. His head pounded. He could hear Elara humming through the wall.

He leaned his head back against the cold stone. His eyes were open but he could not see anything. The dark was thick. Heavy.

He thought about Rook. About Sparrow. About Mira. He hoped they got away. He hoped they found somewhere safe.

He thought about the old theater where they had been hiding. About Elara's map spread out on the floor. About the plan they had made to hit Alden's house. The plan that had gone wrong.

He should have known it was a trap. He should have seen it coming. Mira had been followed. He knew that. He knew and he still went to the theater. He still led them there.

His hands clenched into fists. The rope bit into his wrists.

He heard footsteps above. Voices. The guards talking. Laughing. They were not worried. They had him. They had Elara. They thought it was over.

Kaelen closed his eyes. He could feel the echoes in the walls. Old echoes. Men who had been in this room before. Men who had waited for morning. Men who had not seen the sun again.

He opened his eyes. His hands were shaking. He pressed the

m flat on the floor.

He said to himself, “You need to get out. Before morning, I need to show Alden a little of what I am capable of.”