15 A Messenger
A Messenger
Vaelira held her breath as she passed through the gate and into the Noble Quarter, only exhaling once it thudded shut behind her. She pulled up her hood and kept to the edges of the streets, the sound of her boots striking stone too loud in her ears.
The buildings here were grander, the quiet streets darker, like even the shadows might judge her. The disc might have got her through the gate, but without the Royal Crest, her uniform was still a liability. One curious look could unravel everything.
When she’d come with Elijah, it hadn’t felt so daunting. Who could punish her with the Crown Prince at her side? Now it felt like a thousand eyes were watching her, waiting for the hood to slip so they could sink their teeth into her throat.
In her pouch, the moonstone sat beside the disc.
It hadn’t reacted when she’d seen the corpse.
She was getting tired of trying to understand it, why it flared one moment and lay dormant the next.
Why her palms sometimes prickled with energy, and other times felt dull and useless, worthless but for holding a sword.
Once she reached a familiar corner, finding Axel’s townhouse was easier than she’d expected. The sun dipped behind the wall, stretching shadows across the stone as she reached the door and knocked three quick, sharp raps.
Axel’s grey hair was tied back, a crease forming between his brows.
He stepped aside at the same moment Orphi bounded down the stairs, rasping out a strange hoarse sound that resembled a bark.
He circled Vaelira’s legs in frantic loops, his tail wagging wildly.
He was so large that Vaelira didn’t have to bend as she threaded her fingers through his thick fur. “Why can’t he bark properly?”
“He was a pup when we found him.” Axel said. “Dog fighting ring. They cut the vocal cords of all the dogs to keep them quiet.”
Vaelira stilled, her hand resting gently on the dog’s back. Orphi shifted beneath her touch, his entire body swaying like her arrival was the best part of his day. “That’s horrible.”
“It was. Why are you here Vaelira?”
They moved to the living room. The walls were lined with books, large bronze sofas and armchairs taking up the centre of the space.
Vaelira stood while she spoke, recounting what they had found in the alley.
She left out the part about the veins. She wasn’t ready to talk about that yet.
When she mentioned Erryn and the disc, Axel nodded, unsurprised.
“So, Elijah assigned her as your patrol partner,” he said once she’d finished. “Smart.”
Vaelira crossed her arms. “Why didn’t he tell me?”
Axel raised his brows. “Does he usually?”
She didn’t answer but the question gnawed at her. Elijah never told her anything, not at first anyway. Why did she expect him to do differently now?
Axel sank into one of the deep armchairs and Orphi dropped beside him on the rug. Vaelira sat in the other, letting her sore muscles relax into the cushions.
“Erryn’s in this with the rest of us,” Axel said. “As partners, you can act if you find something tied to all this. You won’t need to lie or unnecessarily raise suspicion. It makes it easier.”
“She’s respected,” Vaelira acknowledged. “Is that because of her family?”
Axel chuckled. “Not even close. I’m surprised she told you.”
“She didn’t. Some noble women did it for her. Dore-something?”
“Dorevanne,” Axel muttered. “They’re a special breed. That whole family’s as self-obsessed as they come.” There was no mistaking the ire there.
Vaelira tilted her head. “Why live in this quarter if you hate them all so much?”
Axel leaned back, dragging a hand through his hair.
His gaze found hers, as if deciding something.
“Wasn’t my first choice,” he said. “I was dismissed from the Guard. Insubordination.” He rolled his eyes.
“I was ready to move to New Town when Elijah showed up with the deed to this house. He said I’d made too many enemies to live so close to the edge of the city.
Told me we wouldn’t last six months.” He paused.
“He bought this place for me and Willem. Said it was an apology.”
A flicker of warmth stirred in Vaelira’s chest. “Generous of him.”
Axel’s jaw twitched. “He didn’t have to. It was my call. I only accepted this house because it spared Willem from having to move back to New Town.”
Her brow furrowed. “What call?”
“The dog fights,” he said. “The King ordered us to leave them alone. Too many nobles involved. Elijah pushed, but the decision was mine in the end.”
Vaelira stilled. “Jurah mentioned those rings. Elijah said he owed you.” She had forgotten.
Axel’s expression darkened. “Jurah’s the one who reported us.”
She blinked.
“He got my job for it,” Axel continued. “Made it sound like he helped, didn’t he?”
Vaelira’s mouth opened, but no sound came out. Her thoughts reeled. It didn’t fit. Jurah had always struck her as kind. On the road he had been patient with her, calm. Firm too, but in that principled, measured way that felt like guidance rather than malice. Like he was helping.
Now, that patience looked like distance. Like the careful restraint of a man who never let anyone get too close. A man who put his duty to the Crown over his duty to the people. It wasn’t betrayal, she didn’t know Jurah well enough for that, but it wasn’t the man she thought she knew either.
An uncomfortable heat rose in her chest. She had been so blind to what he was capable of.
She was surrounded by strangers, by people she had only known a handful of weeks. How many were still waiting to shatter the picture she’d painted of them?
She looked to where Orphi lay snoring on the rug. His tongue lolled as he rested his head on a paw. He was safe because of Axel, and that made the man in front of her seem less of a stranger, at least. “How did you keep going?” she asked quietly.
Axel looked at her for a long moment. “The fight didn’t stop when I was stripped of my title. And neither did the danger. Someone must step in where the Crown will not.”
Vaelira didn’t respond. The gravity of what she’d involved herself in descended like hammer to anvil.
She admired them for the good they were trying to do in this city, but what difference could they make in a place as large as this?
A place so full of political and social complexities that it made her head spin.
The door to the living room creaked open, and Willem’s head popped through the gap. “Drink?”
Vaelira was still curled in the armchair, drink in hand, when night fell and streetlamps sparked to life outside the window.
Axel had lit a fire in the grate, its warmth licking at her skin and lulling her deeper into the cushions.
She should have been back at the barracks hours ago, but her limbs felt heavy, and each time she thought about moving, the weight of the day dragged her back down.
Her arm ached faintly as she lifted the glass to her lips. Maybe if she returned late enough, no one would be awake to notice.
Axel sat opposite her, eyes on the small book in his hand. On one of the sofas, Willem lay sprawled with his eyes closed, humming softly to himself, the notes low and tuneless but oddly comforting. Just as she considered letting her own eyes close, footsteps sounded in the hallway.
The door opened, and Elijah stepped through, Erryn on his heels.
His hair was dishevelled, as if he’d run the whole way there.
His gaze landed on Vaelira, and the tension released from his shoulders.
He jerked his head towards the hall. She pushed herself up and crossed the room, nodding to Erryn as she passed.
Elijah closed the door behind them. “Are you okay?” he asked softly, placing a hand on her shoulder.
Vaelira nodded. She wanted to be angry, to shout at him for the way he had kept her in the dark, but the words felt small now, trivial compared to everything else.
“Erryn came to find me,” he continued. “I came as soon as I could.”
He stepped closer, his hand slipping to her waist. Fingers brushed bare skin where her shirt had ridden up, sending a sharp current through her. He squeezed gently, leaning in. His breath warmed her cheek.
All she had to do was rise on her toes and their lips would meet. She could forget the alley, forget all of it for a moment.
“We should go back in,” she said, breathless.
Elijah cleared his throat and stepped back. He dropped his hand from her waist, leaving her skin like ice where his fingers had been.
Everyone stilled when they returned, looking to Elijah as he took Vaelira’s seat by the fire. Vaelira sat next to Willem, who was upright now, a fresh drink clutched in hand.
Vaelira pulled the disc from her pouch and handed it to Erryn. “You were right. No questions asked.”
Axel gave a low whistle.
“That,” Elijah said, eyeing Erryn, “would grant you access to the palace. It’s not usually passed around.”
“You said she was with us,” Erryn said. “I presumed that means we can trust her.”
“Of course you can trust me.” Vaelira said.
Elijah frowned, but his lips tugged up. “All I meant was, be careful who else you hand it out to.”
Erryn met his gaze unflinching. “Outside this room, there is no one else.”
Willem perked up. “Can I borrow it sometime?”
Axel raised a brow. “What for?”
“Just… things.” Willem muttered, taking a long drink before flopping back against the cushions.
“What is it?” Vaelira asked.
“A Royal token,” Elijah said. “It’s given to families with the King’s favour. It grants access to nearly anywhere in the city.”
Vaelira’s breath caught. For a few hours, she had unknowingly held the key to the Royal Library. Not that she knew where it was, but with that, she would have been able to find out.
Elijah leaned forward, his forearms resting on his knees. “Erryn said you saw veins on the body?”
His gaze was so intense it scattered her thoughts. She looked away. “Yes.”
“Veins?” Axel asked.
“Black veins,” she said. “They appear when someone has been possessed by a demon.”