CHAPTER EIGHT: THE SILENT WITNESS
489 Words
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*Chapter 8 – The Silent Witness*
Liana froze, clutching the document as the footsteps grew louder—slow, deliberate, like a predator in no rush. She ducked into a shadowed aisle between record shelves, her breath shallow.
The footsteps stopped just beyond the corner. Silence stretched, unbearable.
Then, a low voice:
*“You shouldn’t be here.”*
She knew that voice.
Lieutenant Varek—her father's aide. Sharp-eyed. Loyal to a fault. Dangerous.
Liana stepped out slowly, keeping calm. “I could say the same to you.”
Varek’s lips curved in the slightest smirk. “You used Mara’s clearance, didn’t you? She’ll be reprimanded.”
“Only if you report me,” she said, tucking the report into her cloak.
He stared at her, eyes flickering to the document. “You found something. I always wondered how much of the rumors were true.”
Her heart skipped. “Rumors?”
“That Kael Idran was silenced for disobedience. That the orders didn’t come from the top, but somewhere in between.” He took a step closer. “I saw the aftermath in Varnholm, Liana. It wasn’t war. It was slaughter.”
Her chest tightened. “Then why stay silent?”
“Because some truths burn everyone, not just the guilty. You expose this, and it’s not just your father who falls—it’s the entire chain of command. Careers. Reputations. Peace.”
“But what about justice?” she whispered.
Varek’s face darkened. “Justice and survival rarely hold hands.”
He turned away, but paused. “You have until midnight. After that, the archive logs will flag your access. Erase your trace. And… be careful. Someone else has been watching Kael too. Not all of them want the truth out.”
With that, he vanished into the shadows.
Liana’s hands trembled as she made her way out, the weight of the file heavy against her ribs. The quiet night air offered no comfort. Only questions.
Back home, she locked herself in her room and spread the contents of the file on her desk. The names of soldiers, signed memos, one altered map—it was enough to destroy a man.
But was it enough to redeem one?
Her mind raced. Kael hadn’t lied. But why had he risked telling her?
Suddenly, a knock on her door.
“Liana,” her mother called softly, “Lucien has arrived.”
Her stomach dropped.
Of course. Lucien—charming, well-placed, ambitious. Her father’s perfect heir. And possibly the last person she could trust with this.
She gathered the documents quickly and hid them beneath her mattress.
Then she straightened her cloak, schooled her face into calm, and opened the door.
Lucien stood there, smiling warmly, arms open.
But behind the smile… something unreadable stirred in his eyes.
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*Next: Chapter 9 – Beneath the Mask*
Lucien returns—with secrets of his own. Ready for Chapter 9?
- Writer
