Page 104 of Kingdom of Aramis

“Wow, how does it feel to be replaced by Micah’s big weapon?” Gracelin sidles up to me, and we watch with amusement as Archie, completely distracted now, talks to Micah who just blinks, a little shell-shocked.

“Can’t say I wouldn’t mind seeing Micah’s big weapon either,” I mutter to her, and she giggles while Liam, who must have heard what I said, snorts with amusement.

“Getting greedy, are we?” he asks, pulling me down to sit next to him again.

“Archie, where did you get this ring?” Mia holds it in her hand, looking perplexed, unable to let go of the issue.

“Oh, Mr. Vallen told me I could have it if I helped him with a special task,” Archie tells us, and the table falls into a loaded silence. “There were lots of rings in the big room, and he let me pick which one I wanted. That one was so big and shiny.”

“What task did you help him with?” Lucas asks, standing up, his body tight with tension. Everyone else in the room instantly becomes on edge, and goosebumps erupt across my arms as my creature reacts in kind.

“Oh, he said if I was a very brave boy and let him cut my hand and put it on the lock and say the special words, the door would open, and we could see the treasure. He was right! It was just like magic, and I said the special words, and the door opened for me. Mr. Vallen says I’m very special, and not everyone can do what I did.” Archie’s chest puffs up with pride, but Lucas growls.

“That fucking bastard. How dare he use Archie to do his dirty work?”

“What’s going on?” I hear Violet whisper to Talon, who shrugs.

“I have no idea.”

“You think he got into the royal vault?” Bryson is also on his feet now, his hands clenched into fists. Gracelin hurries around to Archie and grabs his hand, pulling the bandage off it.

“I thought it was from playing pretend with Lucy,” she tells us, but when she holds up his hand, we see a large, slightly healed cut across his hand.

“It hurt, but I was brave and didn’t cry,” Archie says, tugging his hand away from his mother and crossing his arms defensively. “I was a hero. Mr. Vallen said so.”

Gracelin scoops Archie up, tears in her eyes. “Of course you were.”

“The royal vault is keyed to our bloodline. Only someone with our blood would have been able to get in,” Evie explains, looking sadly at Archie. “How dare he con a child into helping him break into the vault?”

“But Colbie is queen now. Surely it changed to her bloodline,” Gryffin argues.

“Not until she has been crowned.” Sable shakes her head. “But what could he have wanted from the vault? Unless he was helping himself to a bonus for years of service. It’s filled with highly valuable items, but all of them are recognizable as belonging to the crown.”

Something occurs to me, and I jump to my feet. “Didn’t you say the spell book that contains the spell for humans becoming shifters is in there?” I look at Lucas, and he pales and rushes from the dining room. I hurry after him, and I hear a lot of the others following as well.

I trail him through the palace and down a flight of stairs to a room I haven’t been to before. It contains a huge, barn-like door that has a locking mechanism with a control panel. Lucas shifts a finger, and a claw forms. He slices across his palm and slaps it against the biometric scanner. The light on the panel turns green, and there’s a loud click. Lucas grabs the handle and pulls.The door is large and heavy, and even with his strength, it takes a moment to open, but when it’s ajar enough, he slips through, and I follow him.

I stop just inside the door and gape at what I see.

This is like a pirate’s treasure trove or a dragon’s hoard. There are piles of gold coins and bars, jewels, paintings, and sculptures just to name a few things, but toward the back of the vault is a glass-covered display case, and that’s what Lucas makes a beeline for. When he gets there, he looks down, and I see his body sag for a moment.

“It’s gone. That bastard took the book. Bryson, bring me Vallen Tideman and his family now!” Lucas roars. Turning back toward the entrance, I find everyone there except for Violet and Hunter’s siblings.

“Right away, sire.” Bryson salutes the king before snapping his fingers.

“Boys, care to join me in tracking down a traitor?” I watch as my mates and Adam all stalk after the general and shudder. I wouldn’t want to be Councilman Tideman right now. The menace and air of violence coming off those men is enough to send the bravest man running and screaming.

“So is Tideman behind the ferals? Did he kidnap the children?” Gracelin has Archie on her hip, and she jiggles him slightly when he tries to climb down and touch all the pretty items.

“He could be, or someone could have paid him to get the book. I can’t believe he thought about using Archie to get it. It never occurred to me that it would be a possibility. I’m so sorry.” Lucas scrubs a hand through his hair. I still haven’t told them about my meeting with the goddess and that the book can fix the ferals.

“Let’s return to dinner. Tideman and his family can wallow in the cells for a few hours. There’s nothing like knowing you’regoing to be interrogated to make a person sweat,” Mia suggests, and the rest of us return to the dining room. The atmosphere is subdued as we continue our meal, but I want to wait for the others to return before I tell them everything I learned.

It’s Evie who breaks the silence. “Why would he want the book? He can’t use it. It’s less than useless for him without the royal power and he can't open it. Unlike the vault which opens to anyone in the royal family, the book will only open with a drop of Lucas’ blood,,”

“I might have an answer for that,” I tell them, putting down my fork, but before I can share my conversation with the goddess, the general, my mates, and Adam return, and none of them look happy.

“We searched the entire castle for him, but he’s gone, as are his wife and children. It looks like they left in a hurry though. They didn’t take many of their personal belongings,” Bryson grumbles as the rest of them retake their seats. “I’m going to send a team to track him.”