Keepers of the Moon

Chapter 13. The King (2)

He made no sense.

‘What do you mean Mo Bhean's missing? Who took her?’ I put Abi down, but still held her hand tightly in mine. Ben only realised at this moment that she was really gone and he let out an agonising scream, before sinking to his knees. What was up with him and Mo Bhean? Was she really his mother? He at least seemed very worried about her. I shared some of that worry, though Mo Bhean didn't feel like a demsel in distress. I felt that she could fend for herself.

‘We don’t know. There was security out her door the entire time, the windows were unbroken, it’s like she just… vanished.’ King Domhnall looked scared, his beard was unkempt and he had stains all over his shirt, like he hadn’t showered or changed in days. I felt guilty for seeing Hlér behind their backs. 

Caledonia was ripping at the seams and I was betraying them with the enemy.

‘What?’ I shook my head, that didn’t make any sense.

‘Have you seen her? Do you know who did this?’ Ben’s voice was full of emotion and I could still hear his fear and panic. Macintosh now looked at me, more intensely than he’d ever done before. There was something in his eyes that I couldn’t place. Almost as if he knew something.

But he couldn’t know about my past.

I truly believed that.

‘You seem just as lost as we feel. Do you have something to tell us?’ He sounded clear, yet strained. Tension was visible in his shoulders, though he looked better than the King. His eyes were focussed and he was wearing a tight, dark blue jumper which made him look broader than he was.

‘Y-yes… I did… do.’ Now that I was about to tell them about Hlér it suddenly seemed like a really bad idea. What if they blamed me? What if they thought I betrayed them? I would lose my job, I would lose my future. We would wind up back on the street.

‘You’ve been seeing Prince Hlér, I know. What did you find out?’

Words were taken out of my mouth and the floor seemed to collapse beneath my feet. I looked at him in silent embarrassment and surprise. How did they know?

‘We had him followed as soon as he and his father arrived here. We knew from the very start, now you can prove your worth. What did you find out?’ His look was intense and I had to look away. My mouth was dry and my heart was hammering inside my chest. Abi felt that something was happening and clamped to my leg for some emotional support. Feeling her tiny hands squeezing the fabric around my legs gave me some support. Abi was the constant that I needed, the unwavering love that I so much craved, she was part of the reason I was doing all this.

But how could I be so stupid to think that the royal family from Nordlys would be able to roam freely through Caledonia? They were on the brink of war! Of course there were people following them! And they never told me, because they didn’t know they could trust me. They thought that I could spy against them. The King certainly thought this and he obviously hadn’t been told about my adventures, because he looked at me in astonishment. I could see the wheels in his head turning and saw that his surprise turned into anger. He felt betrayed.

I couldn't blame him.

‘What do you mean, Sir Macintosh? She was in direct contact with the Prince? Do you mean that she could’ve told him all our secrets? You allowed all this to happen?’ He then turned to me, an odd look in his eyes.

A crazy stare.

I took a step back and swirled Abi around so that she was standing behind me as if I needed to protect her from the King. I heard about his erratic behaviour at times, this was the first time I could see it for myself. His sudden outburst of anger, even though justified, could not reach Abi. She had nothing to do with this. She didn't deserve this.

‘She couldn’t have told him anything that the Prince wouldn’t have found out on his own. We never gave her any information regarding security measures or you specifically. She doesn’t even know about Mo Bhean. We allowed it to happen so that we had an eye on Hlér, she could give us information that could only be told in moments of weakness. In moments of trust. Hlér was at his weakest with her, we saw that he trusts her up to a point. He is at ease with her, dropped his guard more than once. Though with his bodyguards always nearby, we had no chance of interfering. She was an opportunity we exploited.’ His words sounded eerily cold and I felt used. For them I was just a puppet in a game. It was like I was back on the streets in Nova, fighting for my place in the world. Anger flared inside me, I wanted to hit something. Preferably Sir Macintosh’s face.

‘But you weren’t even sure you could trust her!’ Domhnall now turned his anger toward his advisor, who looked very serene in this situation. He wasn’t even intimidated by his words. Even through my anger, I admired his composure.

‘Now we do.’

The way he said those words and his apologetic smile that followed sapped away my anger. He was right, I knew it in my bones, I had reacted unfairly. They didn’t have a choice, they tried to protect their country. And they didn’t know me, I never told them anything about my past. They didn’t even ask, they felt that my actions would prove my worth. And now that I was standing here, with important information they knew that I would do what was right. I hád proven my worth. A warm feeling of purpose filled my heart. For once in my life I had made the right decision. A decision that could save lives.

‘Maybe it’s nothing, but Hlér just showed up at my house. He was acting odd…’ The King looked at me in astonishment and was about to say something, but Sir Macintosh cut him off.

‘Go on… what happened exactly? Every detail could be important.’ I nodded and shot a glance toward Ben who barely took notice of everything that was happening around him. He looked like he needed a hug.

‘We had agreed on taking a stroll tomorrow, because I had to work this afternoon. But there he was, suddenly on my doorstep. He was agitated and jumpy, didn’t dare to look me in the eye. He urged me to come with him, right now. He full on pleaded for me to come with him. It was odd. Then Tane showed up – his bodyguard, the one who danced with Mo Bhean – and he pretty much threw Hlér out of the building. They were arguing and Tane told me that it was none of my concern. Right before he left he told me to stay at home.’

Silence followed, Sir Macintosh was thinking, Domhnall still looked mortified. He didn’t understand a word of what I’d said.

‘What did you make of this?’ Macintosh was looking at me. I wasn’t sure what kind of answer he expected or wanted. I just told him the truth.

‘I really hope I’m overreacting, but I fear something is about to happen, right here, right now. That something was enough to send Hlér into a panic who tried to safe me or warn me, without giving anything away.’ I bit my lip and my mouth was dry. Now that I said it out loud, I knew it to be true. This was exactly what was happening, we were all in danger.

‘My thoughts exactly. With Mo Bhean out of the way, they will have free reign, we are now weakened.’ Sir Macintosh pulled Ben back to his feet, who reluctantly obeyed. The man that was standing opposite of me, was not the man that had ran after Ben. He was calm, composed and alert. That calm washed over me just by even looking at him. He knew exactly what needed to be done, he was in full control of his emotions and his actions. This was the man that I’d heard so many things about, this was a man ready for war.

A soldier.

‘We need to evacuate the castle, no time to lose. Ben you go and find Meav, start rounding up the staff and send them running home. If you see something suspicious, you can reach me at channel four. Indigo you go and find Miss Wells, she’ll talk you through the evacuation and she’ll also need you help rounding up the school. King Domhnall, you come with me, we need to get you off the premises as quiet as possible.’ He shoved a slightly dishevelled Ben out the door and then grabbed my arm and pushed me toward the cantina. I only had time to look back once to see a very fearful look on King Domhnall’s face. Our eyes met for just one second and I nodded to him. Tried to tell him that everything would be alright, because now that the world was turning into chaos, my heart slowed down and my mind was clear.

This I knew.

This I had done before.

Now I could truly help those who had helped me.