THE HIDDEN ARCHIVE
1140 Words
Harel barely slept that night.
His father's final letter remained hidden beneath his pillow, but the words seemed to have followed him into his dreams.
Look for the document dated seven days before my death.
He had read the sentence so many times that he could almost see it whenever he closed his eyes.
There was only one problem.
He had no idea where the document was.
The next morning, Harel woke before sunrise.
He dressed quietly and left his chambers without informing anyone.
He did not go to the training grounds.
He did not go to the council room.
Instead, he walked toward the oldest section of Blackthorn Castle.
The royal archive.
Few people were permitted inside.
The archive contained hundreds of years of records belonging to the Blackthorn Pack—treaties, succession documents, financial reports, military agreements, royal orders, and confidential correspondence.
If his father's missing document existed, Harel believed it would be there.
Two guards stood outside the enormous wooden doors.
When they saw him approaching, they immediately bowed.
“Good morning, Alpha.”
“Open the archive.”
The guards exchanged a nervous glance.
“Alpha, the archive requires ministerial authorization.”
Harel looked at them.
“I am the Alpha.”
“Yes, Alpha, but—”
“No.”
His voice remained calm.
“But?”
The older guard swallowed.
“The royal family placed restrictions on the archive after your father's death.”
Harel's eyes narrowed.
“Who ordered the restrictions?”
The guard hesitated.
“Minister Damon.”
Of course.
Harel said nothing for a moment.
Then he smiled.
“Very well.”
He turned away.
The guards looked relieved.
But Harel had no intention of giving up.
He walked around the eastern side of the building and entered a narrow passage.
His father had once shown him the castle's older tunnels when he was a child.
There were several entrances that had been forgotten over the years.
One of them connected to the archive.
Harel found the hidden entrance behind an old stone pillar.
He pushed it aside.
A narrow staircase descended into darkness.
He lit a small lantern and began walking.
The air became colder as he descended.
Dust covered the stone walls.
At the bottom, another door stood before him.
Harel pressed his hand against it.
The lock clicked.
He froze.
The door had already been unlocked.
Someone had been here recently.
He slowly opened it.
Rows of shelves stretched into the darkness.
Thousands of documents filled the archive.
Harel entered.
He knew exactly what he was looking for.
Seven days before his father's death.
He found the section containing the previous month's records.
Then he began searching.
One document.
Two.
Three.
Nothing.
He continued.
After almost an hour, he finally found the correct date.
But the document was missing.
Harel stared at the empty space between two files.
Someone had deliberately removed it.
His father's warning had been correct.
He stepped back.
Then he noticed something beneath the shelf.
A small piece of parchment.
He picked it up.
There was writing on it.
Only three words.
Meet me tonight.
Harel's eyes narrowed.
There was no name.
No location.
Nothing else.
He folded the parchment and placed it inside his coat.
A sound suddenly came from the other end of the archive.
Harel extinguished his lantern.
Footsteps.
Someone was coming.
He moved silently between the shelves.
The footsteps grew closer.
Harel pressed himself against the wall.
A figure appeared.
It was one of the castle guards.
The guard looked around.
“Alpha?”
Harel remained silent.
The guard walked deeper into the archive.
“Alpha Harel, if you're here, you need to leave.”
Harel stepped out of the shadows.
The guard nearly jumped.
“How did you know I was here?”
The guard lowered his head.
“I saw you enter the passage.”
“Who sent you?”
“No one.”
Harel stared at him.
“That's not true.”
The guard swallowed.
“Minister Damon ordered us to watch the archive.”
Harel's expression hardened.
“Why?”
“I don't know.”
Harel stepped closer.
“Think carefully.”
The guard looked frightened.
“He said nobody was allowed to access the records concerning the late Alpha without his permission.”
Harel understood.
Damon was hiding something.
“Leave.”
The guard bowed and disappeared.
Harel remained in the archive.
He searched the shelves again.
This time, he noticed something else.
The documents around the missing file were arranged incorrectly.
Someone had removed more than one document.
He pulled out the neighboring files.
Several pages were missing.
Then he found a sealed royal envelope.
The seal had been broken.
Inside was a list of names.
Harel recognized several of them.
Ministers.
Warriors.
Royal officials.
And at the bottom was a name he had never expected to see.
Damon Ravencroft.
Harel's heart sank.
He stared at the name.
Could Damon be the traitor his father had warned him about?
Before he could read further, the sound of footsteps returned.
Harel quickly returned the envelope to its place.
This time, he did not wait.
He slipped through the hidden passage and returned to his chambers.
When he arrived, someone was waiting outside his door.
Damon.
“Alpha.”
Harel stopped.
“Minister.”
“I was looking for you.”
“For what?”
“The council meeting begins shortly.”
“I know.”
Damon studied him.
“You seem distracted.”
“I have a lot on my mind.”
“Your father's death must still be difficult.”
“It is.”
Damon nodded.
Then his eyes moved toward Harel's coat.
For a brief moment, his expression changed.
Harel noticed.
“Is there something you want to say?”
“No.”
Damon smiled.
“Then I will see you at the council meeting.”
He walked away.
Harel watched him disappear down the corridor.
Then he entered his room and locked the door.
He removed the parchment from his coat.
Meet me tonight.
Harel turned it over.
There was a small symbol on the back.
A black crescent.
He recognized it.
It was the same symbol he had seen on one of his father's confidential documents.
His father's investigation had been connected to this symbol.
And now someone had sent it to him.
Harel looked toward the window.
Night was still several hours away.
Whoever had written the message wanted to meet him.
The question was whether it was an ally…
or a trap.
Harel folded the parchment.
He would go.
But he would not go unprepared.
For the first time since his father's death, Harel felt certain of one thing.
Someone inside Blackthorn Castle knew the truth about Dominic Blackthorn's final days.
And tonight, Harel intended to find out who.
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