The secret she kept
1348 Words
THE FOURTH BEARER
Chapter Fifteen
Elara couldn't sleep.
The palace was quiet around her, but sleep refused to come.
She lay staring at the ceiling, listening to the faint sounds of movement beyond her door.
Caelan was back.
After disappearing for weeks, he had returned carrying records about the Bearers and a warning that someone wanted to keep Elara away from the truth.
And now they were leaving for the capital at dawn.
Elara turned onto her side.
Her thoughts returned to the parchment Caelan had shown them.
The symbol.
The same shape as the mark on her palm.
She closed her eyes.
Immediately, the image returned.
Seraphine.
The ancient chamber.
And the man standing beside her.
Silver eyes.
Elara opened her eyes again.
She sat up.
“No.”
She pressed her palms against her face.
It didn't make sense.
She had never seen that man before.
At least, she didn't think she had.
But the moment she'd seen his eyes, she'd thought of Evren.
Not because they looked exactly alike.
Because there had been something familiar about him.
Something she couldn't explain.
A knock sounded at the door.
Elara froze.
Another knock.
“Who is it?”
No answer.
She reached for the dagger beside her bed.
The door opened.
Kael stepped inside.
Elara lowered the dagger.
“You could knock louder.”
“I did.”
“You could wait for an answer.”
“I did.”
“You could also not walk into people's rooms in the middle of the night.”
Kael leaned against the doorframe.
“You're awake.”
“So are you.”
“I didn't say I was smart.”
Elara narrowed her eyes.
“What do you want?”
“To talk.”
“About?”
“You.”
She immediately became defensive.
“That's vague.”
“You've been avoiding me.”
“I've been busy.”
“That's not what I said.”
Elara looked away.
Kael stepped farther into the room.
“You've been avoiding me since the First Kingdom.”
“I haven't.”
“You have.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
She sighed.
“You're impossible.”
“And you're a terrible liar.”
Elara's expression hardened.
“I don't lie.”
Kael raised an eyebrow.
“You told Evren you were fine when your hand was bleeding.”
“That isn't lying.”
“You told Caelan you trusted him.”
“I never said that.”
“Exactly.”
Elara stared at him.
Kael's expression softened slightly.
“There's something you're not telling us.”
Silence.
Elara looked toward the window.
The moonlight cast pale shadows across the floor.
“I don't know what you're talking about.”
Kael studied her.
“You reacted when Caelan mentioned the previous Bearers.”
“So did everyone.”
“Not like you.”
Elara's heart beat faster.
Kael noticed.
Of course he did.
“You're doing it again.”
“Doing what?”
“Pretending nothing is wrong.”
She stood.
“Maybe nothing is wrong.”
Kael didn't move.
“Then tell me why you keep looking at Evren like you're trying to remember something.”
Elara froze.
The room suddenly felt smaller.
“I don't.”
“You do.”
“No.”
Kael's voice softened.
“You don't have to tell me.”
Elara looked at him.
“Then why are you here?”
“Because whatever you're hiding is getting heavier.”
She swallowed.
Kael continued.
“And because I think you're afraid of what the answer might be.”
Elara looked down at her hands.
She wanted to deny it.
She wanted to tell him he was wrong.
Instead, she whispered,
“I saw someone.”
Kael didn't interrupt.
“In one of my visions.”
“When?”
“Before the battle.”
His expression sharpened.
“Who?”
Elara hesitated.
“A man.”
Kael waited.
“He was standing beside Seraphine.”
Kael's eyes narrowed.
“Did you know him?”
“No.”
“Then why does that matter?”
“Because…”
She struggled to find the words.
“He looked like Evren.”
Kael went completely still.
Elara watched his face.
“You see why I didn't tell anyone?”
“Yes.”
For once, there was no sarcasm in his voice.
“No one would understand.”
“I don't.”
She looked at him.
“But I believe you.”
Elara's chest tightened.
“Why?”
“Because you've been looking at Evren differently ever since.”
She sat back down on the edge of the bed.
“I don't know what it means.”
“Neither do I.”
“You're not going to tell me I'm imagining it?”
“No.”
Kael moved closer.
“I've seen records describing people with silver eyes.”
Elara looked up.
“Silver eyes?”
“Yes.”
“How old?”
“Older than the Eight Kingdoms.”
She frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“The kingdoms weren't always divided.”
“I know.”
“No.”
Kael shook his head.
“You know they were once connected. That's different.”
Elara waited.
“The silver-eyed bloodline existed before the kingdoms divided.”
Her heart began beating faster.
“So Evren…”
“I didn't say that.”
“But you think there could be a connection.”
“I think there are too many coincidences.”
Elara stared at him.
“Why haven't you told Evren?”
“Because I don't know enough.”
“And Caelan?”
Kael's expression changed.
“Especially not Caelan.”
“Why?”
“Because Caelan knows things.”
Elara frowned.
“You don't trust him.”
“I don't trust anyone who disappears for weeks and returns with answers he refuses to explain.”
“That sounds fair.”
Kael gave her a small smile.
“See? We're making progress.”
She rolled her eyes.
Then his expression became serious again.
“There is something you need to understand.”
“What?”
“The silver-eyed bloodline isn't a story people tell anymore.”
“Why?”
“Because someone wanted it forgotten.”
Elara felt a chill.
“Who?”
“I don't know.”
“And you're sure it has something to do with me?”
“No.”
He paused.
“But I think it has something to do with why you were brought here.”
Elara stared at him.
“I wasn't brought here.”
Kael's eyes remained on hers.
“You're certain?”
“Yes.”
“Then why did the portal open for you?”
She had no answer.
Kael stepped back.
“That's what we need to find out.”
Elara looked at her palm.
The mark was faint beneath her skin.
“What if I don't like the answer?”
Kael's expression softened.
“Then we'll deal with it when we find it.”
“We?”
He shrugged.
“Someone has to stop you from making terrible decisions.”
Elara smiled despite herself.
“You really are annoying.”
“I've been told.”
Kael turned toward the door.
“Get some sleep.”
She looked at him.
“Kael?”
He stopped.
“Thank you.”
He glanced back.
“For believing me.”
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Kael nodded.
“Always.”
He left.
Elara remained sitting on the edge of the bed.
The room was quiet again.
But this time, the silence felt different.
She had finally told someone.
Not everything.
Not even close.
But enough.
She looked down at her palm.
The mark glowed faintly.
And somewhere deep inside her memory, a pair of silver eyes opened.
Elara closed her fingers over the mark.
She still didn't know who the man beside Seraphine had been.
She didn't know why he looked like Evren.
And she didn't know why the sight of him felt less like a vision...
and more like a memory.
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