“How was your mum?” Axel asked as soon as the escort left and closed the door behind him.
“Good.” Gabriel beamed. “Surprised to see me. I should probably send word next time.”
“There’s going to be a next time?” I asked, smiling. Embracing his fae side could only be a good thing, as far as I was concerned.
“Yes. Definitely.” He ran a hand through his hair, glancing at the door. “She’s going to ask the high court for permission to teach me the fae language and help me discover my magic.”
“That’s fabulous news.” Axel walked over to him, pulling him into a hug that seemed to take him by surprise. But I knew how Axel felt, because my own smile was huge. “I’ll ask if I can do the same if you like? That way we can work on it when we’re in the human realm too. If I suggest only doing it at my house, then they might go for it.”
“That would be amazing,” Gabriel whispered, voice suspiciously rough.
I was about to offer the same, but then realised with a jolt that I wouldn’t be there to follow it through.
The words died on my tongue, leaving an unpleasant taste behind.
“What did you find out from Blake?” Gabriel asked, letting go of Axel and taking the chair opposite me.
Axel joined me on the sofa, and I let him explain. After all, it was his magic that got us the information.
“We found the fae who helped Blake go through the gateway undetected.”
Gabriel scrunched his nose. “I really want to ask how you did that, but I won’t. Obviously.”
Good. Because neither Axel nor I could tell him.
“Who is it?” He asked instead.
“Gren Melhak. A member of the fae guard.”
I winced because this part hurt. I didn’t know him, but he was afae guard.
Like me.
We took an oath to protect our realm and those in it, not take one of our most deadly substances and farm it out to the highest bidder.
“What do we know about him?” Gabriel sat forward, all business.
Lady Sarhin had given us his personnel file before she left. Axel slid the tablet across the table.
As Gabriel opened the file and began to read, Axel summarised the main points. “He worked at the prison here for five years before transferring to work at the high court buildings.” He paused and I knew what was coming next. “Part of his duties include escorting new arrivals from the gateway.”
Gabriel looked up. “He’d know who was due to come through the gateway and when they’d be arriving.”
“Exactly.” Axel tapped the edge of the table. “We believe that Melhak smuggled Blake through the gateway when Axel was meeting with the high court.”
And thank the Goddess for that.
Knowing Axel’s mind hadn’t been tampered with was a huge relief.
The high court would require proof other than Axel’s word that the information he’d collected from Blake’s memories was the truth, but it gave us a starting point. Somewhere to work from that we hadn’t had before.
“Where’s Melhak now?” Gabriel said, closing the file.
“Lady Sarhin’s taken a team of guards to bring him in for questioning.”
“He’s not going to tell us anything, is he?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know him personally, but I doubt it. Smuggling a prohibited substance out of our realm will carry a heavy sentence if he’s convicted. At the minute, we don’t have tangible evidence to take to the high court.”
