Chronicles of Mystery

A Tale of Helios and Knights

It had been several days since Alistair had isolated himself in his personal office, a small room that he rented in addition to the place where they all slept, located upstairs, under the attic, without letting anyone come up to see him. He didn't dare confront his two partners. Not after what he had just learned. He still had to get over it. It was his whole past that had jumped down his throat, attacking him by surprise, without mercy. He had to concentrate and get back on the same path he had abandoned, and that started by cutting all the unnecessary bonds he had formed.

There was no longer any possible doubt, the coincidences were too great. Or was it just his emotions playing tricks on him? Maybe he hoped things actually were like this. He would be, in any case, sure when they would consult Liora, as Henry had advised them. He could only hope deep down that he was wrong. He wished the past was dead and would stay that way forever but it seemed the ancient legends were immortal and what tormented him, unable to die for good.

His hand clenched on the wooden edge of his desk as a burning sensation ran through his palm, where he had been forever scarred. His fingers moved uncontrollably, while a certain feverishness took hold of him.

Besides, he still hadn't said anything to Lucy and Maude. He was going to have to confess to them the revelations that Henry had made to him. However, he still didn't feel enough will and courage to do it. He preferred to hide for a little more, not confront his problems immediately. They didn't need to know, it was his sole responsibility, the coward who had abandoned his mission.

Lucy and Maude often knocked at his door, to check on him and ask him to go out for a while. Every day, Maude brought him food. In vain. He couldn't break away from the comforting torpor into which he had fallen. At regular intervals during the day, Lucy would kick against the door, in the hope of motivating her companion to go out, in vain. If he stayed like this long enough, perhaps they would finally resign themselves. By leaving him alone. Alone, as he always should have been.

That day, Alistair knew that he had hidden long enough, he had no more time to waste because the past was no longer waiting for him. The White Lily had started moving, he had to catch up. He got up and arrived at his bedroom door. He stood in front of it contemplating it without doing anything for several minutes. He gathered his courage and finally opened it. In doing so, he encountered an obstacle and knocked Lucy to the ground, who had chosen this same moment to go see him.

She got up immediately, happy to see him.

"You've finally decided to go out! What was it with you?"

"I was a little unwell, nothing serious", he replied laconically.

Lucy frowned. She wasn't a detective for nothing and could easily see that he was lying. Anyone would have noticed that. However, she did not dare read his mind for fear of offending him, for fear of distancing him even further from her by thus intruding into his privacy. However, the desire to do it devoured her. She would have finally known what was bothering him since he didn't want to tell her. He looked even more tired than usual if that was possible. Dark circles surrounded his eyes and his complexion was even more sallow than before. His eyes narrowed as if seeing the light again hurt him. But she had sworn to herself never to violate his secrets in this way. How could he trust her if she acted like this towards him?

Lucy wanted to sigh. Alistair always tended to scold her and take care of her, but he seemed incapable of doing the same for himself. Fortunately, now they had Maude to assist them. Her presence naturally soothed them. She knew how to cook, unlike the other two detectives. Indeed, Alistair's abilities in this area were limited to what was strictly necessary, as for Lucy, in order to avoid natural disasters, one avoided leaving her alone for too long near an oven or any other device capable of fire. Whether she cooked or not, her mere presence seemed enough to disrupt any culinary project, to cause the milk to churn, to overcook dishes. To which Lucy always replied that she could only be brilliant in one area of ​​expertise, at the risk of making too many people jealous.