Heirs of the Gods

Ch 41.2: Puzzles

The silence that enveloped the room was like a whirlpool. It sucked the air out of its surroundings, leaving a heavy, laden tension in its wake. It was enough to make Ella's spine stiffen like a bow.

For a moment, no one spoke. They only stared at each other, at the spot where the hooded spy had been seconds before.

The eye of the storm.

It was Valren who broke the deadlock. "What was that?" she stared at Ella and Aedion wide-eyed. "Did I just see..?"

"Yes, that's exactly what you saw." It was Blaise this time. His usually fine, disinterested features twisted into an almost snarl. "It's what you think it is. These two had a spy inside the castle." He didn't need to raise his voice or use coarse words to make his statement snap like an insult, just the ire coating his tongue was enough to have Ella's ears reddening.

Aedion stood, hand raised in one of his placating, nonchalant gestures. "Oh, come now, there's no need to kick up such a fuss. We were going to tell you—"

"Tell us what, Aedion?" Blaise's tone was enough for Aedion to stop in his tracks. "You were going to tell us you two decided to go behind our backs and hire a disreputable spy? Do you even know what you did? What am I saying, of course you don't." Blaise scoffed, the sound a bark of a laugh, harsh like a slap. Even Aedion was taken aback.

"Blaise..." Valren tried to reach for her brother, but he shrugged her hand off his shoulder.

"You represent this court and yet, you broke enough laws to have us all put in an inner Kingdom trial if you'd been found out. Again," he threw his hand up, each word making his voice rise higher and higher. "We just had an interrogation, one we barely scraped by, I'll remind you. Do you think the Council would let us go so easily if they found out about this?"

Ella winced and bit the inside of her cheek. Blaise's words and scathing glare were enough to make her feel as small as a scolded child. But what really hammered in his acidic tone was the bare truth behind his words. This wasn't just an empty berating, this was solid truth.

It was difficult to argue when they had broken countless laws. They'd knowingly kept it a secret as well. Perhaps because they'd known it was wrong, despite it all. What's more, it had been a unanimous decision. A natural course of action.

In Ella's mind, it had made sense at the time. The valuable information had been enough for her to dismiss the gravity of seeking illegal services from a black market town and the dangers that came with this. It had been enough to justify the lying, the sneaking about, the rule-breaking, the consequences.

As was often the case, she tended to rationalise any strategies necessary if they got her to her goals. No price was grave enough to stand in her path. Aedion's own lax morality had only served to reassure her that it was correct. In a way, they'd both reassured each other that it was perfectly reasonable, really. Didn't they have the most notorious spy on their side now? It was well worth the cost.

But now, listening to Blaise's caustic words and the truth of them... It was enough for her to question the weight of her decisions. Doubt crept into her bones, making a home in the pit of her stomach. It came with the mortifying sensation of stupidity.

Perhaps they'd been too rash? Too reckless. They'd not only gambled with their own luck, but they'd also gambled with the Kingdom's as well.

Still, despite the niggling sensation of doubt, she couldn't help but buckle down on her choice. It had been a risk, but it was necessary. They'd done what was needed in order to gain ground. Why was that so difficult to understand?