Interlude [h.s]

forty-six

If he's trapped her in his tower of dark omens and shattered dreams, Elijah fears there's nothing he can do. That would be the end of the game. But that moment still hasn't come, because the evil king would be gloating in every newspaper of his empire, and yet he's eerily quiet. That means there are still some moves he can do.

A deadly idea forms in his mind. He handles it carefully, observes it grow and spread to every corner of his brain but doesn't say a word, in fear it'd shatter like a wish.

"I'm scared," Amina admits.

"You don't have to be," Elodie interjects. "I'm sure everything is just fine and Allie will be back soon."

"She'll come back," Elijah says quietly, more to himself than anyone else. "She'll find a way." And if she doesn't, I will, he completes the sentence inside his mind. It feels like trouble, electrifying yet deadly. It's better than doing nothing.

He can sense Ezra has come back in the instant a man walks inside the dining hall. He reaches someone and whispers something in their ear, and all of a sudden the entire room is silent.

Elijah shoots to his feet. "I'll be back."

"Don't." Elodie grabs his wrist, a pleading look in her eyes. "Don't go to him. Please."

"I have to," he replies, and then he frees himself from her hold and storms out of the room.

Elijah runs down the corridors, either crashing against people that give him sharp glares and cold warnings or against the walls in hopes of avoiding others. He almost falls from the stairs in his rushed attempt to make it out of the building and soon after he's running into the main building. He gets to Ezra even before he can make it into his office.

He stops and he's breathing so heavily that his body folds in half, and Ezra stops as well and waves the soldiers around him away as he waits for him to catch his breath.

"I knew you'd come," he tells him when they're alone in the corridor.

"Where's Alouette?" Elijah shoots back, having no intention to waste time in idle chats.

"We lost her," Ezra replies. "We lost them all."

Elijah looks up, anger burning in his eyes. "What do you mean, you lost them?! How could you lose them?! They're people, not objects you forgot where you put."

The gaze on Ezra's face grows cold. "I suggest you watch your tone," he hisses. "The guard we had in the lower levels of the Palace was found dead. The car we left for them was destroyed."

"Where is—"

"The President is nowhere to be found, and so is Miss Ivenhart. We do not know what happened."

Elijah pales. "She's alone with that monster?!"

"All we know is that the President didn't come back to the Palace yesterday night, and neither did Miss Ivenhart," Ezra continues. "We have reasons to believe the assassination attempt failed and the President caused the car accident. We are still trying to figure out what happened after."

"Is she—"

"As far as we know, she is alive."

Alouette's alive.

Elijah can taste his relief on his tongue. But something's wrong. If the President freed himself, why didn't he go back to the Palace?

"Where is he taking her?!" He hisses.

"It's still unclear whether he's taking her somewhere or she's escaping," Ezra says. "We have no idea of what happened."

Elijah frowns. Alouette would never escape. He's known her for years, and she isn't the kind of person that runs away. But she also isn't the kind of person that breaks promises, and she'd told him she would be back after the attack. If she isn't coming back to the Revolution, it means something terrible has happened. The President could be threatening her. She could be followed. She could be in danger.