Nefarious

C192 - The final decision

I probably should've experienced an epiphany after Jace's introduction to the final incident, but for some reason, I couldn't figure out the missing pieces. As a matter of fact, it didn't seem like anyone could. As Jace paused to bring out another paper, I saw Xylan tightening his grip on the edge of the table. His nails dug into the table, surely making permanent marks. "Xylan met up with Hayden Evanston to make a deal. It's a known fact that Hayden's always been terrified of Xylan, and so he fell into Xylan's trap easily. Xylan promised to leave Hayden's people at peace if Hayden simply killed Zane at a planned date and time. Seeing as Hayden agreed, Xylan took the opportunity to kill Raven and thereby Xylan framed it as a natural death caused by the murder of Raven's weakening person. Xylan had motive, and it's all been investigated thoroughly in England. We know you killed Raven to win the election. Raven admired Alex and would vote for him over anyone, you included. She was reaching a high level of respect by all of our people, meaning she could become like Kai in the future. You saw this as a threat and acted out of fear, Xylan. If anyone feels like defending his horrendous and immoral actions, then speak up now and lose everyone's respect. After all, if you want to keep your grass neat, then removing the roots of the weed makes it all easier."

The purpose of the meeting was to present the information gathered about Xylan. Seeing as Jace had succeeded, we were allowed to leave. Alaina, Blaze, Kai, Xylan and some others of high authority remained in the room. I figured Jace would want to be alone or find Xavier after such a meeting, so I got quite surprised once he called my name. "How was she?" he asked with a caring voice. I knew he meant Rain, and to be honest, I felt like he didn't dare to ask about his son. "She was caring toward him, but she lost track without you. In the end, she still cared about you despite the things she said and did. I know she would want you to know that," I answered. Jace nodded understandingly, moving his foot with a pondering facial expression. "Does he have a name yet? Does he look like her?" he asked, sounding somewhat hesitant. "Rain was unable to name him. I don't know if it was due to her struggle to think independently or the fact that he looks like you. You should go see him for yourself," I said, a faint smile appearing on my face. "Vera's with him at the moment. I know someone who needs me more right now," he sighed, clearly talking about Xavier.

As I went back to Alex's room, I repeated Jace's last sentence to me to remind myself of it. I couldn't forget it, yet I couldn't stop repeating it either. He'd told me not to talk about the topics presented at the meeting yet due to the chances of Alex getting overwhelmed. Besides, Jace wanted to speak to Alex in private about it later when the whole situation had calmed down, and Xylan had been taken out of sight. Frankly, I felt relieved that I didn't have to tell Alex. We'd both had enough and needed a break from everything. So, when I opened the door, I greeted him with a genuine smile instead of my concerned face. "The meeting's over, and it went as planned. All we can do now is hope for the best," I said. Alex snickered softly, nodding once at me before his ethereal smile came to view. Man, had I missed that smile.

-Eugene's point of view-

Dane returned seeming calm, which had everyone asking him questions. He said he couldn't speak of what had happened in the other castle yet, but he'd made his decision regarding Hayden. If there's one thing Dane can't stand, it's lying. Therefore, Dane decided to give Hayden two alternatives. Either he could stay as a prisoner amongst his own family and relatives, or he could cut ties with them all and never return. It had been discovered that Hayden served several smaller lies in the past and that he'd misused his power numerous times. As a result of this, he seemed filled with guilt and decided to cut ties with everyone as he saw that as reasonable. Thereby, Dane officially entered his position as a leader with no competitive and immoral siblings breathing down his neck anymore. "I just hope they'll see Xylan for who he really is this time. No one deserves being under his rule, and it's time for it to stop. We've been through enough now," Dane said. I smiled automatically, fiddling with a hair tie in my hands. "Yes, it's about damn time things changes," I answered in agreement.