“There’s more,” Axel stated, and I shot him a look to continue. “I recognized the coding because it’s the same as the encrypted messages we get from the Remnant.”
“We need to get in touch with our contact here.”
Axel nodded as he tapped across the screens. “Once we’re back at the safe house, I should be able to tap into the systems and hopefully make contact.”
I nodded, noticing the female shifting in her seat more as her wings fully emerged.
Was she just waking? Or had she been awake for longer than we’d noticed?
“Do you want me to go ahead and head to the safe house now to start looking into these reports?”
“No, not yet. First, I think we need to pay a visit to the king.”
Axel tapped on the displays once more, leaving behind no trace that we’d been in here.
I turned, casting only a hesitating glance toward the female before I memorized her name—Kira—as she began to stir.
And then, just as silently as we had entered, we slipped from the room, slowly, making our way from the main chambers of the High Temple.
I couldn’t shake the feeling of disgust and disdain that crept through me as I realized how little Elion truly had been able to gather regarding the downfall of Solis Quarter. We had had our suspicions for the past few decades, especially when all communication outside of the Quarter failed to be received.
However, I never expectedthis.
I never expected that they were physically tampering with markings from Aeternus. That they were actively rebelling against the Eternal, and altering the marks on every one of thecitizens residing within the Solis Quarter. The reports we’d received from the Remnant hadn’t been this detailed, yet at the same time, most of the Remnant had been relocated decades ago.
To say the discovery was horrifying would be an understatement. My jaw tightened as we slipped from the temple grounds, unbeknownst to the high priestesses that resided within the temple walls, and headed toward the Solis Court in search of Lucanus.
7
RAELYNA
Every inchof me wanted to run, to flee, to put as much distance as I could between Lucanus and me. But the bargain mark burned on my inner wrist, the pain of the ink reminding me of the deal struck, of why my feet refused every command to flee.
I picked nervously at the thin threads of my clothing as I stood in the waiting room. Two RSG angels stood by the sliding doors leading into King Lucanus’s personal office. I studied the columns on either side of the door, my gaze tracing over the intricate patterns etched into the black marble. It was ironic, really. The longer you stared at the details carved into the columns, the more you began to see that every detail pointed toward our king. Not our gods and goddesses—the all-powerful beings who held our lives in their hands.
No.
The columns depicted praise and the power of our king.
I nearly scoffed, the noise on the edge of my lips when the golden doors slid open with an electronic whirl. The keypad began to beep incessantly, and one of the guards hurried toward it, furiously scanning his finger until the sensor deactivated.
Well, shit.
King Lucanus strode through the doorway, his eyes locked in a steely gaze, before his eyes collided with mine. I felt every inch of my body tensing as I froze in place, praying to the stars that he kept moving. His course altered and his footsteps brought him closer to where I still stood, leaving me ramrod straight—unable to move.
Dark brown orbs tracked over every inch of me, lingering across the exposed expanse of skin before finally flicking back up to my eyes as he grinned.
“Follow me,” Luc’s voice bit out, a glint of the harsh tone lingering as he turned on his heel and strode back through the open doorway.
Taking a deep breath, I counted.One. Two. Three. Four.Release.Out one. Two. Three. Four.
I forced my limbs to move, following behind Luc as I passed by his personal guard, feeling their eyes linger on me as I followed him into the space. The doors slid shut behind us with finality. Locking us in.
I watched as my childhood friend settled down on the couch, his head leaning back as he gazed up at me, watching and assessing, before he flicked his fingers toward a sofa across from him.
My eyes darted around the familiarity of his office, taking note of the towering stacks of documents strewn across his glass desk. The tablets lit up with classified notifications caught in my peripheral vision as my eyes roamed around the room. I spotted three cameras surveilling his office space, the small red dots blinking as they recorded our interaction.
I walked on command to the cream-colored sofa before sinking into the material, relishing in the softness of the fabric as I turned my focus toward the male before me.
