Page 42 of King's Reckoning
Understanding dawned in King's eyes. "Collaboration," he breathed. "Elena used to talk about the importance of shared knowledge. Said no one group was meant to control the entire historical record."
"Exactly." Rowan pulled out her mother's journal, finding relevant passages with ease. "Look at these notes about the founding families. Each one was entrusted with different parts of the puzzle. But together..."
"They complete the picture," Barbara finished, studying the documents. "A network of keepers, each protecting their piece of a larger historical truth."
"Until someone decided they wanted more control," Reed added grimly. "Started pushing for dominance instead of cooperation."
"Which is exactly what's happening now," Rowan said. "Blackwood and his employers, they're trying to force this evidence to serve their purposes. To control something that was meant to be shared."
Before anyone could respond, distant sounds of activity reached them—vehicles above, people entering the outer tunnels. Barbara checked her instruments, expression grim.
"They're breaching the outer defenses," she reported. "Multiple entry points. And these readings... Someone's using sophisticated tracking technology to find us."
"Darkness," King growled. "He knows enough about these tunnels to help them find us."
Rowan studied the map carved into the stone table, seeing connections and possibilities she hadn't before. There was something important here, a solution her mother had prepared for this very scenario.
"We need to call a meeting," she said firmly. "All the founding families. Show them the truth about what's really happening here."
"They'll attack us on sight," Reed protested.
"Not if we prove we're all being manipulated," Rowan countered. "Not if we can show them what Blackwood and his people really want. What Darkness has been helping them do."
King studied her face. So much like Elena's when she was pursuing an idea that seemed impossible. "How?"
Rowan smiled determinedly. "By giving them exactly what they want. By letting them find us...in the one place where the truth can't be denied."
Understanding dawned in King's eyes. "The central chamber," he breathed. "Where all the tunnel networks converge. Where the historical evidence is most complete."
"And where Mom left her final documentation," Rowan added. "The records she knew would only be found when the time was right. When all the interested parties were gathered."
More sounds from above indicated their pursuers were getting closer. Time was running out.
"It's risky," Reed said quietly. But his tone held admiration rather than doubt.
"Maybe," Rowan agreed. "Or maybe it's exactly what these records have been waiting for. The founding families reuniting, choosingcooperation over conflict." She met King's eyes. "Isn't that what Mom was really preparing us for? Not just to fight, but to lead? To show a better way?"
King was silent for a long moment, weighing options. Finally, he nodded. "Elena always said the truth would come out when the time was right. When people were ready to understand what these artifacts really represented."
"And if we're wrong?" Reed asked. "If they're not ready?"
Rowan thought about everything they'd learned about her mother's careful planning and her father's unwavering support. About Reed's steadfast presence and the truth that had brought them all together.
"Then we face that outcome knowing we tried," she said simply. "But I don't think we're wrong. Mom saw this coming, prepared for it. All these tunnels, all these hidden chambers...they're not just about keeping people out. They're about bringing the right people together when the time was right."
Barbara looked thoughtful. "How do we get all the founding families to the central chamber? Even if we could contact every group..."
"We don't have to," Rowan said. "They're already coming. All we have to do is make sure they follow us to the right place. And I know exactly how to do that."
She returned to the stone table, this time with purpose. The map carved into its surface showed aclear path to the central chamber—a route that connected to all the major tunnel networks.
"Mom documented how these tunnels connect to territories controlled by each founding family," she explained, tracing the pathways with her finger. "Each group has their own access point, their own connection to the central chamber. If we can get there first, prepare what she left behind..."
"They'll all converge in one place," Reed realized. "Where we can show them everything."
"Along with everyone trying to kill us," King pointed out.
"Yes," Rowan agreed. "But they'll be following us on our terms. Through tunnels that we understand better than they do, thanks to Mom's research."
