A Most Dangerous Weapon

Chapter 3: The Sound of Silence

I'm standing in front of the Doctore's door, trying to summon up the courage to knock. I knew Hadrien was in there despite the lack of sound; there were two guards posted in the hallway to negate escape.

"Do you want me to do it?" Arlo asks.

I take a deep breath to calm my nerves. I wasn't afraid of the man himself, but rather what he was about to confirm for me.

Instead of knocking I just push the door open without ceremony. Arlo and Kilgorian take their positions just outside the door before I close it on them. I needed to do this on my own.

Hadrien is curled up on the floor in the corner of the room. He straightens into a sitting position once he realizes who I am, but remains on edge. I look to the unoccupied bed and chair in the room, wondering how he could prefer the floor to these small comforts. Perhaps it was just more familiar after years in a palace cell.

I take a few steps closer to close the gap between us before joining him on the floor to remain level with him. I sit in front of him so he can't avoid my gaze.

"I think you know why I'm here, Hadrien."

He gives me a hard look.

"I have some questions."

After weighing his options, he finally gestures for me to proceed.

"You were helping Emrys, correct?"

He nods.

"Did you know that she wasn't the real Princess?"

He nods.

I take a deep breath to check my anger. "Why?"

He looks away and shrugs.

"Why?"

He gives me a sad look as he taps his chest before pointing out the small barred window in the Doctore's quarters.

"She offered you freedom."

He nods in confirmation.

I couldn't fault him for his motives. I knew better than anyone what Maximus was capable of.

"Did the fake Princess ever tell you her real name?"

He shook his head.

"Did she tell you she was working for Gaius?"

He nodded. He chose to trust the Galacian Empire after the way the Romallian Empire had treated him. Again, I couldn't entirely fault him for that.

"Why did she choose you?"

He put his pointer finger to his lips in gesture.

"Silence?"

He cups his ear in a listening motion, and then puts his finger back to his lips.

"Secrets."

He smiles.

"After years of being a prisoner here, you've obtained an abundant amount of priceless secrets. I guess people feel safe talking around a man who can't say a word himself." I don't need him to confirm this statement; it's fairly obvious at this point. "So Emrys came to you to see what you knew..."

He hangs his head in shame.

I pull out the parchment from my dress, then unfold it and hold it up for him to see.

"Tell me what this is."

He analyzes the list carefully before sliding his thumb across his neck menacingly.

"Did you give the girl these names?"

He nods before laying a finger on at least half of the names.

I give him a hard look. "Did you know that these were children?"