Chapter 131
~ NYSSA
Of all the things I thought he would say, that was not in the top ten.
I vaguely remembered him trying to explain the day I found out. He told me they were involved in something and that there was evidence to prove it. I could not remember most of what he said, I was too pissed to pay too much attention.
He took a slow step towards me, hands folded behind him. “I don’t expect you to believe me… or even forgive me for it, but if you will let me explain… if you will let me show you p>
“Show me?” I asked and he nodded.
“All of it. Every piece of evidence I gathered on them. It’s all here in the palace. I never got rid of it. I can take you there right now p>
I folded my hands over my chest. I wasn’t sure if it was to appear brave or as a defense mechanism. A part of me wanted to hear his reasoning, another part of me wanted to shut this up in a part of my brain and never think about it again.
“Okay” I said finally.
Nothing he would show me could be worse than anything I had already gone through and perhaps it would give me some sort of closure or comfort if I could understand his thoughts behind things.
“You should get dressed,” he said, his eyes trailing down to my exposed legs. “I’ll wait for you p>
I dashed into the room immediately, pulling on the first pair of pants I grabbed which so happened to be a pair of dark sweatpants. I tied my hair up into a messy ponytail before stepping out once more.
Rowan stood exactly where I left him; leaning against his door with his hands shoved into his pockets. His lips were pressed firmly into a thin line, his eyes trailing over me silently.
“Are you sure about this?” he asked. “You might see things that you do not like p>
“I know my parents,” I said firmly. “And I trust them p>
He sighed, gesturing for me to come with him.
We walked side by side, through the palace halls and past the curiouis stares of guards and maids alike. I almost didn’t want to believe that I had only returned to the palace less than twelve hours ago. It felt like a lifetime had passed.
Rowan led me up the stairs, past his study and towards a floor I had never been to. Sometimes I forgot just how fucking massive the palace was and how much shit went on in the walls.
We stopped in front of a pair of large wooden doors and Rowan pushed it open to reveal a massive library with ceiling high shelves and attendants moving around in long grey robes.
“This is… wow,” I gasped, taking in the sight. I had never seen so many books in a single place.
“You can come here whenever you want,” he said, his voice a bit off as he turned towards the right.
I followed him towards what looked to be a small wooden door. He took a key out of his pocket and slipped it in the lock, turning once.
“I have the only key,” he explained to me. “This is where I keep all of the information obtained from searches and raids. It’s where the bulk of evidence from old cases end up p>
The room was larger than I expected with rows upon rows of large boxes, each one carefully labelled with a date and a series of numbers. There had to be hundreds of boxes in here but Rowan seemed to know exactly where he was going,
He walked through the rows quietly, eyes scanning the boxes until he stopped in front of one.
It looked exactly like the others; faded brown and sealed. He pulled it off the shelf, his expression grim as he walked through the room once more, settling in front of a small desk and a wooden chair.
“I’ll leave you alone to go through it at your pace,” he said softly. “Once again, I need to know that you are ready for this. It may not be wise to jump into something so serious after everything p>
“Henry is dead,” I said firmly trying not to think of what he looked like when I left him. “That Chapter is done with. I want to know what happened to my parents and I want to know why they were targeted p>
Rowan sighed, running his hands through his hair as he stepped back from the desk. “I hope you know what you’re walking into, Nyssa. It’s not going to be pretty but it is all in there; every search, every piece of evidence, and the report of their deaths p>
I swallowed thickly, palms growing clammy with each word.
A part of me wanted to call this off. I had never seen Rowan look so grim and worried before. It set off alarm bells in my brain. However, I’d come too far to go back now.
“I’ll be fine,” I murmured, slowly resting in the wooden chair. “I can do this p>
The box in front of me was large and as I lifted the lid, I was met with stacks upon stacks of documents.
“I’ll be in my study when you finish p>
He paused for a moment, staring at me intently after speaking. I thought he would try to convince me once again to stop but to my surprise, he grabbed my chin in a firm grip and lowered his lips to mine in a soft, lingering kiss.
“Just in case I don’t get to do that again for a while,” he mumbled, pulling back from me. “Good luck, Nyssa p>
Without another word, he walked out of the room, hands folded behind his back. I heard the door click shut leaving me with a box full of answers and budding worry in my chest.
With a sigh, I reached for the first stack of papers and began reading.