Page 24 of Crowned

We’ve taken residence in the queen’s personal wing, knowing that it’s been deserted since her disappearance and that we’ll be afforded privacy. Legally, we’re the only ones permitted to enter, even with her missing. I glance around, the opulence of the room feeling like a stark contrast to the turmoil we face.

Elder Halim, from what little I can remember, has always been more approachable, more willing to listen. I wonder if Reef is right and Kehinde has sent him to help us. If not, I can’t imagine what he wants.

“When is he coming?” Cove asks, his brow furrowed with concern.

“Now,” Reef replies, a note of urgency in his voice. “The urgency and short notice of his message is alarming, but I suspect it’s for security reasons. He obviously didn’t want anyone getting wind of his visit, which is why I suspect that your friend Kehinde might be behind this.”

“Shall we move to the study?” I ask, carefully getting to my feet. I feel a dull ache in my muscles, a reminder of the tension we’ve all been under. Healing from the Shikari attack has been slow, and I’m still not at full health, but I’m trying to hide that fact from the others. We have enough to worry about as it is.

Reef nods and leads the way, his shoulders squared with determination.

No sooner than we’re situated, there’s a knock at the door. Reef opens it, and Elder Halim enters, his expression grave. His eyes dart around the room before he closes the door behind him with a quiet click.

“Elder Halim,” Reef says respectfully, inclining his head. Cove and I bow our heads in unison, our movements stiff with anticipation.

“No time for pleasantries. Our mutual friend sent me. No one can know I was here. I fear there is more at play here than the Council is willing to admit,” Elder Halim says, his voice low and urgent. His eyes are sharp, glancing between us with intensity. “There may be a mole within the Council, someone working with the Shikari.”

The words hit like a thunderclap. A mole? Someone within our own ranks betraying us? I exchange a shocked glance with Cove, whose face pales visibly.

“How do you know?” I demand, leaning forward, my heart pounding.

Elder Halim sighs, rubbing his temples with a weary hand. “I’ve noticed discrepancies, missing ingredients needed to open portals, and the Shikari’s attacks becoming increasingly synchronised. It all points to someone feeding them information. Not to mention the Shadow Legion attacks. They’re too coordinated. Too powerful. They have to be getting help from the inside.”

Reef’s jaw tightens, his fists clenching at his sides. “Who do you suspect?”

Elder Halim shakes his head, frustration evident in his furrowed brow. “I don’t know yet, but I have my suspicions. Pretty much everyone outside of this room is a suspect. We need to act quickly before it’s too late. If they manage to open a portal directly into our world, we’re doomed.”

“Isn’t that why we sacrificed the star? To prevent that from happening? The wards should be strengthened, the gates sealed, surely?” Cove asks, his voice tinged with desperation. His hands grip the armrests of his chair, knuckles white.

Elder Halim shakes his head, his expression grim. “The Council believes that something went wrong with the ritual and that our defenses have not been fortified as they should.”

“What do you mean, something went wrong? We were there. We saw it with our own eyes. Malia died,” I say, my voice breaking slightly.

“The girl lives,” he says simply, oblivious to the bomb he’s just detonated on our lives.

“What?” My voice is a whisper, barely audible.

“That’s not possible,” Cove adds, shaking his head in disbelief.

“How? Where the hell is she then? I carried her body back here myself,” Reef says, his voice rough with emotion.

“It’s complicated. I don’t have much time?—”

“Make time,” I growl, stepping forward, my eyes locking onto Elder Halim’s. The urgency and threat in my voice is unmistakable.

“Please,” Reef adds, his tone softer but equally insistent. “This is important.”

“She’s in the hospital. In a coma. And Vance’s body is in the morgue.”

“How did she survive?” I ask, my mind racing.

“We don’t know,” Elder Halim admits, his face etched with worry. “She’s guarded by the highest council members, and access is restricted. There’s something going on that isn’t even being shared with the rest of us Elders, and I think she’s the key to all of this. Is there any chance that she wasn’t the star? Could you have got it wrong?”

A chill runs down my spine at the thought of Malia being unprotected. I don’t trust the Council at all. Not even Halim.

“I don’t know. We…we were pretty sure at the time, but she should have died,” Cove relies after a moment. “If she hasn’t, what’s going on?”

Surely that’s a conversation for another time? There are more pressing matters, even if I have a hundred questions myself.

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