THE REST of the day was spent inside the office, trying to figure out what in the world that clue could mean.
Within the first three hours, Queen Aria had left to attend to some work she had put off. Even though she was gone she made sure to send us refreshments every hour or two, as well as food when the time came.
After dinner time rolled around, the office was completely destroyed. Books and papers were littered all over the floor and nearby tables. Kingsley had taken a spot at the edge of the desk, her legs crossed gracefully and she silently flipped through the pages of a book.
Mèabh had left the room for a bathroom break. Willow was pacing back and forth, muttering incoherent words to himself while violently flipping through books.
Even Prince Koa decided to join our search party and he sat in the wooden chair behind the desk, searching as well.
I sat by the window, looking over the training yard. I watched the army of men spar and practice. Leland took over leading them while I was stuck in here. I should be flipping through books as well, looking for the answers, but I can tell you right now it would do nothing. The answer wasn't in books, it was in my head...but where?
Read between the lines: there are two sides to every story.
What does that even mean? I groaned internally. For kidnappers, they are really making this a lot more difficult than it needs to be.
One thing is for sure; the King was not their final target. If it had been one of the rebel alliances bartering for supplies, they would have asked for a ransom by now. They never would have been able to send us to Calflalm. They wanted something more, but what?
Read between the l-
That's when it hit me.
I sprang up so fast that it startled everyone, their eyes shifting to me immediately.
"I got it!" I exclaimed. They looked at me with alarmed looks and everyone stood up. I sped to the doors and forced them open. The guards looked startled by the sudden interruption of their peace.
"Get Evander! Now!" I ordered. They nodded as they shuffled off to find him.
Mèabh appeared as they sprinted past her. Confusion written on her face as she looked back at us, "What's going on?"
"I figured it out! I don't know why it took so long to figure it out!" I exclaimed, "It makes perfect sense and absolutely no sense at all at the same time."
"Care to share?" Koa asked just as Evander jogged into the room with the guards panting behind him.
"What is it?" he asked worriedly.
I turned to him and spoke frantically, "At the beginning of this whole thing, when Queen Aria got the first clue, who was on the top of the suspect list?"
"Umm..Well the letter was in Greek so it was assumed to be one of the four rebel groups that still spoke it in out area. Xemteki, Gladpon, Glahmeel and Thrinfexe." He answered, "What does this have to do with anything?"
I ignored his question and kept talking, "This whole thing is way too complicated for the kidnappers to just want a ransom for the King, and if they did, we'd have him back already. They would have to have beef with someone else, most likely me. So we have to read between the lines."
Turning to Blakely-Rose I asked, "Which of these groups have I had head to head battles with?"
Her eyebrows furrowed as she thought, "Um I'm not sure."
Then Willow froze and his eyes widened, "The Battle of Ruby."
"What the heck is the Battle of Ruby?" Evander asked.
"It was much less a battle and more of an execution," Mèabh started, looking dazed, "It was brutal and essentially a blood bath. The fields were covered in blood, hence the name Ruby."
"The battle was between us and...Thrinfexe." Kingsley finished.
I nodded, "Exactly. Only they would be ruthless enough to do something like this, and they want revenge against me anyway."
"Why?" Evander asked.
"Because I killed their leader," I answered.
"Okay but who would go this far to get revenge for him? Thrinfexe may be powerful but without a leader, they are nothing." Blakely-Rose asked.
"He had a daughter." I remembered.
"Yeah, I remember too. He had a daughter who practically begged you not to kill him, correct?" Willow asked. I nodded.
"Okay. Then what did she look like? If you can remember then we can send out a search party for her." Koa explained with a hopeful look.
I shook my head, "No I don't remember what she looked like. I was too blinded by anger to really even care about her existence, if I'm being honest."
Evander scoffed and shook his head, "Well not that this little realization isn't a good thing, but what does it have to do with my father?"
His question seemed to hang in the air.
The tension in the room grew by the millisecond and I found myself hesitant to answer him.
Kingsley came beside me and nudged my side, "It's time you told them."
"I heard that." Evander sneered, "Tell us what?"
"Brother. Calm down." Koa stated, walking towards him.
"How dare you tell me to calm down! She is keeping things from us, can't you see? This is why I don't work with women! They are sly foxes! Our fathers life on the line and s-"
The sound of the slap echoed through the stunned audience. Mèabh stood in front of Evander, infuriated. Her palm was beet red from the force she hit him with.
She wrapped her hand around his collar and brought his face down to her 5'2 level, "You listen here, you little gargoyle! If you would shut up for a few minutes and actually go an hour without having a tantrum, you might get some answers! None of us have done anything to put you in harm's way, especially not Aislin. That woman has put your needs before her own, to ensure your father gets home safely so you can be happy. Before you start accusing her, I suggest you listen to her."
Mèabh turned to me and nodded, signaling me to continue, still holding Evanders collar while he held the side of his face which was growing increasingly red and swollen.
I cleared my throat, "I've known your father for a very long time. We all have," I gestured to everyone in the syndicate, "Kole is a student of mine as well. Just like Mèabh, Kingsley, Willow and little Blakely-Rose. He came to me asking me to teach him, teach him my ways so that he could protect his kingdom in more ways than one. He is a part of our family as well, and we all love him as such. Which is why he is a big target."
"The only thing that doesn't make sense, is why him?" Willow spoke, "He could have gone for any of us, but why King Kole?"
"I agree. There has to be an underlying motive we aren't aware of yet." Blakely-Rose voiced.
"Well until then, let's focus on what we do know," Kingsley began as she crossed her arms over her chest, "The people who kidnapped Kole are from the Thrinfexe alliance, and the daughter, whoever she is, kidnapped him to get revenge on Aislin for killing her dad."
"Talk about daddy issues." Mèabh mumbled.
"So now that we know who and mostly why, we need to know where. Any clue on where they might be?" Koa asked, leaning against the desk.
I shook my head, "No but Evander might."
His eyebrows furrowed, "Why me?"
"You work with the maps don't you?"
He scratched the back of his neck, "No, I mean yeah, but I deal with kingdom territories."
Willow shrugged, "That's all we really need. Thrinfexe came from the fallen city of Laventhrope. If we can locate it's ruins, we can see how much territory is abandoned and if someone has claimed it or not yet."
"If there is unclaimed land, it could mean that they could be hiding there." I explained, "Willow and Blakely-Rose will join you."
Evander opened his mouth to protest but snapped it shut once Mèabh shot him with one of her deadly glares. He gave in and Mèabh finally released him from her hold.
"I can help too." Koa volunteered, "As future King, I have resources and connections I can use to find out what people know about Thrinfexe."
I nodded and thanked him. I then turned to the girls, "Okay, I need to explain everything to everyone else. For now, help Prince Koa or Evander wherever needed."
They both nodded and walked away, but not before Kingsley came up to me with a hard look, "Do you need any help explaining?"
I shook my head, "No, I got it."
She nodded and began to walk to the others but something about her posture and shift in attitude rattled my core.
"Kingsley, come back here."
She turned around and came back to my side, "Yes, sensi?"
"What's wrong? You seem uneasy all of the sudden?" I asked her softly in Japanese.
She stared at me in my eyes for a couple seconds, fiddling with her fingers then she answered me, "I don't trust Koa. I know he hasn't done anything that should make me suspicious of him, but my gut tells me that something is fishy about him."
I nodded. If there is something that I've learned in all my years, it's that you never discard a warning,no matter how baseless. You trust your gut, because it's more correct more often than not, "Okay. I shall heed your warning. Watch him and if something strikes you as odd, let me know immediately." She nodded, bowed and walked off
×××××××××××××
Author Note!
Hello hoomans!
Thoughts >
Feelings >
Predictions >
Random >
How is your day today? Was it bad? Good? In between?
QOTD: Your favorite Kid shows?
I MISS MY OLD KID TV SHOWS! (I still watch most of these)
Blues Clues, The Backyardigans, Bubble Guppies, Littlest Pet Shop, Magic school bus, Rugrats, Yo gabba gabba and so so many more!