Destined for Greatness ✔️

Chapter 30

"They have done what?" Aaron asked. It might have been the fact that he hadn't closed an eye all night, or that Jade was getting worse by the minute, but Alder wasn't making any sense at all.

"They cleared out the archive," Alder said, talking a bit more slowly, as though it was the speed of his words that had Aaron confused, and not their meaning. "I am not sure how they did it, but last night the Shadow Walkers broke into the castle, emptied the archive, and made off without anyone even knowing they were here."

They were standing near the entrance of the infirmary, far enough away not to bother Jade – not that she was noticing anything happening around her – but close enough that Aaron could keep an eye on her. Not that watching her made any difference. There wasn't anything he could do for her except ease her pain by using the mate bond and praying to the Goddess, neither of which seemed to have much effect.

He rubbed his forehead, trying to puzzle it together. "How do you know it was them, if no one saw them?"

"They are the only ones who could have pulled this off without being detected. I wish I understood their motive. They could have killed any or all of us while they were here, and yet they merely stole paperwork. It makes no sense."

Aaron could tell how annoyed Alder was. If there was one thing his father couldn't stand, it was feeling like he wasn't in control. Not knowing was his worst nightmare, which means that the Shadow Walkers and their out of the box thinking were his worst nightmare.

"I suppose they changed their plans since Jade figured out their initial approach," Aaron said. "Was anything else taken?"

"Not that we know of. Just the archive."

"What use do they have for the archives?"

"I can only speculate," Alder said. "I imagine they know about the treaty we signed to keep records of every decision and to make those records public. Most people have forgotten all about it, so it beats me how Corbin knew about them."

"So what? They will use the records to make us look bad?"

Alder nodded. "And they can. Over the years, my predecessors have gotten rather good at hiding the more sensitive information underneath layers of cryptic languages and between all sorts of irrelevant information, but if they really put their minds to it, and I imagine they will, they can dig up a lot of dirt."

They were quiet for a moment, both contemplating the repercussions of this theft.

"I always wondered when that treaty was going to come back to haunt us," Alder said, almost muttering the words, which was quite unlike him. He shrugged – which was also unlike him – and changed the topic. "We know a teleporter was involved, because three guards were found unconscious far away from their stations. They reported being hit by someone they didn't see coming. Could be someone invisible, or perhaps Corbin mind-controlled them. Who knows. They were guarding one of the tunnels, so that is how they got in. I just fail to understand how they could have moved through the castle without notice. Especially since they have emptied dozens of book cases, which must have taken them a significant amount of time." Alder shook his head and tugged at the collar of his jacket as though the entire thing was making it hard for him to breathe. Aaron was almost inclined to link Corinne so she could come put her mate at ease. He wasn't used to seeing Alder like this – at a loss – and he definitely didn't like it.

He shot a glance at Jade. She was lying motionless in bed, apart from the occasional squirming or the feverish mutterings she was expelling. Her skin was more silver than white at that point, and her fever was so high no amount of cooling her down had any effect. It wouldn't be long now.