Nefarious

C191 - Inaccurate timing

I'd never seen Xylan stand frozen in his position, but he sure didn't seem to be able to move once he saw Jace's face before him. "How in the hell did you get in here?" Xylan asked through gritted teeth. "The real question is how the hell do you plan on keeping your position now?" Jace scoffed, his eyes not leaving Xylan for a second. In a quick movement, Xylan reached for Jace roughly, but his arm never touched Jace. The man beside Jace held a firm grip on Xylan's arm, and Jace's face went stern. The other hood dropped down, exposing Kai's annoyed face. "That's how I got in," Jace said, his voice dropping cold. "You truly messed up this time," Kai said, barely being able to contain his anger. Seeing as Kai was usually calm and controlled, I soon realized that whatever they'd found out about Xylan must've been beyond shocking.

Kai called for guards to come to get Xylan, and once I saw them bringing him out of the room, I let out a loud sigh of relief. My shoulders felt as light as a feather, and ultimately I felt a bit dizzy. I'd only been in the room for minutes, yet it felt like ages. Standing before Xylan, knowing all that I love hung by a thin thread, I felt my heart dropping second by second. My attempts at thinking clearly were heavily weighed down by the reality I was forced to face. Without the smallest ray of hope, I aimed to do one thing and one thing only; refuse to give him the reaction he deeply desired to get. I knew we had a lot more hardships to go through, but at that moment, I could not help but feel free. After all, only moments earlier, I was transfixed, feeling spellbound entirely by Xylan.

Shrugging my shoulders, I tried finding my way back to reality. Jace had gone over to Vera, expressing great concerns for her current condition. She didn't tell him that Xylan had planned to kill her, so I figured she wanted to enjoy the moment. As I watched them, Alex's arms embraced me from behind, holding onto me with such a grip that I could practically feel his relief. His hands were steady, but I knew that he was still shaken up and paranoid. "That killer will never get close to anyone again," Alex said. I leaned my head back carefully, nodding faintly as my response.

The second Jace mentioned Xylan losing his position; I knew the pleasant feeling of freedom would be temporary. I didn't think so because he would lose his position, but rather the reason for it. Xylan had hurt countless people over a long time, and I couldn't begin to imagine what he could've done this time. I feared for who it would affect, but ultimately I knew it wouldn't be me. That might sound like a relief, but in all honesty, I felt disgusted by the thought of it being one of my loved ones. Realistically thinking, I knew it had to be one of them. Xylan would come to shatter a part of our life one more time, and I had to somehow prepare myself for it this final time.

Since it was a severe matter, the meeting regarding Xylan had to be held immediately. Jace practically forbid Xavier from attending, and he didn't plan to see him before it either. What surprised me, even more, was Kai's decision to forbid Alex from attending as well. The reasoning behind it was the requirement of emotional stability needed to complete the meeting effectively. Jace said Xavier and Alex didn't deserve to be told the news formally and without the chances of taking time to process it. Furthermore, Jace pointed out that he'd had plenty of time to prepare himself for the meeting, and that I would be the most suitable representative for Alex and him for Xavier. I agreed despite struggling with an icky feeling of fear building up. I knew I hadn't taken in a lot from that day yet, and it terrified me thinking of how far I was pushing my limits. I kept telling myself to do it for Alex, and all the others, but I couldn't deny that it was harder than anything I'd done before.

Before the meeting started, I made sure to get in contact with Jace in private. He looked at me the same way now as he did before he left the castle, not seeming to have changed for the worse, thankfully. "I should tell you something that happened today since it's important for the meeting, but I don't know how you'll take it. Something horrible happened, and I think it'll affect you deeply," I said hesitatingly. "What could possibly have happened? I sent someone to check on Xavier and the others," he started, "but I didn't send someone to-" he stopped. "I sent Vera to my son. Where's Rain though?" he asked, his eyebrows drawing together. I had a bad habit of biting the inside of my lip whenever I got stressed, and Jace knew that very well. His eyebrows went back to their natural position, his tensed face went blank and his mouth closed, indicating he slowly caught on. "I'm sorry, Jace, I-" I stuttered. "When?" he asked sternly, his eyes lowering. "I can't remember the time precisely, but she's gone, Jace. We were too late," I answered carefully. "We?" he repeated, a flicker of worry crossing his face. My lips slightly pouted as my eyebrows drew together, not wanting even to mention Xavier taking part in yet another tragic event. "I'll get the documents ready, just hand over the note and enter the meeting room," he said, not further questioning me. "But I-" I stammered. "Valerie," he sighed, reaching out his hand for the note. I was in no position to tell him what to do, and so I gave him the note unhesitatingly.