Secrets of the Crown Assassins

57

ARIELLE

I was staring at Xavier's door.

The night was dark, basking the plain door in shadow. I couldn't quite tell what he was doing, or if he was even in his room at all. There were no sounds, no sign of movement besides the slight ruffles of fabric. His balcony door was certainly open.

He wasn't at the infirmary earlier and when I asked the center desk, the nurse said he was discharged and allowed to go back to his room. I checked the library on my way here—it was completely empty. Where else could he be?

Maybe he was with Damien. I should check Damien's room.

You're stalling.

Or maybe I could knock first and then try looking elsewhere if he actually doesn't answer. That would be the more logical and sane thing to do.

I took a deep breath and knocked.

"Nexus," a raspy voice called. "Let her in."

How did he know it was me?

Why was I even asking?

I stepped into his room, letting the door shut behind me. It was dark, with only a desk lamp on in the corner. His room was quite modest compared to mine. Most of it was taken up by his raised king-sized bed, whose bed sheets were currently rumpled and strewn haphazardly off the edge. The only other things in the room were a nightstand and a little desk in the corner. There were two doors along the far wall—one shut tight which led to his bathroom and closet, the other wide open, exposing his office.

There was a large, sleek desk in the center of the office along with multiple Tab monitors. The tall walls were lined with bookshelves which were filled to the brim. Most of them had tabs, notes, poking out along the top of the books. There were a few crevices in the ceiling all around the room where extra screens and detailed maps and charts could be pulled down. There were two armchairs in the corners where Xavier often completed his casual or light reading. The coffee table was clean. In fact, the whole room was spotless. His work areas usually were, unlike his bed which he didn't care much for.

I turned to look at the left side of the room. The glass balcony doors were wide open, the dark blue curtains snapping against the breeze as they glistened in the moonlight. Standing beyond the door, in the center of the balcony, leaning against the glass railing, was Xavier. His shadow cut against the city below him as he stood unmoving, facing the night.

I crossed the room and stepped out onto the balcony. In its center was a shallow, dark pool of sorts with stone square steps leading across it to the other side. I crossed the pool, careful not to fall into the water as I reached the railing, stepping to Xavier's side. He was still dead silent, as if in anticipation. He was waiting.

He already knows what I'm going to do.

I hadn't even known until I was in the Raven base, fighting for my life as the speakers blared my father's curses. And I hadn't decided that I would do it today until only about an hour ago. But he had already known.

Maybe he realized when he saw me before we confronted the Raven Lieutenant. Or perhaps he had known this day would come eventually. Perhaps he had wanted to do it himself, but waited until I was ready. How long had he waited?

Best not to keep him waiting even longer then.

I opened my mouth only to realize how dry it was. Why was it so dry? I swallowed, but it did nothing to help.

We were still standing in silence. I really should start talking.

"I've been thinking a lot in the past few days and..." I trailed off. I had forgotten the words. I tried again. "Well, I just wanted to make some changes that..."