Night had fallen nearly an hour ago when the Veyron estate finally returned to something resembling calm. A deceptive calm. The guards had been doubled throughout the corridors. The doors leading toward the gardens were being watched, the secondary entrances had been checked, and Black Raven knights were conducting regular patrols around the walls. No one wanted to risk another intrusion. Kael stood near a large window in a room located close to the eastern wing. He was watching the gardens, now swallowed by darkness. The greenhouse was barely visible in the distance. A few lanterns illuminated the paths, casting long shadows across the stone. Behind him, a door opened. Darius entered. “He's awake.” Kael turned. “The prisoner?” Darius nodded. “Yes. He refuses to speak.” Kael remained silent for a few seconds. “Where is he?” “The old guard room.” Kael immediately left the window. Darius followed him. They crossed several corridors before reaching a guarded door. Aldren was already there. The old commander stood in front of the door, arms crossed. “He doesn't look like an ordinary thief,” he said. Kael stopped. “Why?” “He hasn't asked for anything.” Darius added: “No water. No food. No healer. Nothing.” Kael frowned slightly. “He knows we need him alive.” “Probably.” Aldren opened the door. The room was small. A table, two chairs, and a lamp made up almost all of the furniture. The captured man was sitting on one of the chairs, his hands tied in front of him. His face was hidden beneath a dark hood. He slowly raised his head when Kael entered. His eyes immediately settled on him. For several seconds, neither of them spoke. Then the stranger smiled. “Finally.” Kael stopped a few steps away. “Finally what?” “The patriarch.” Darius positioned himself slightly to the side. The man looked at each of them. Then his gaze stopped on Aldren. A nearly imperceptible change crossed his face. “The old commander is still here.” Aldren narrowed his eyes. “Do we know each other?” “No.” “Then how do you know my title?” The stranger shrugged. “The archives speak.” Kael stepped toward the table. “The Veyron archives?” The man didn't answer. Kael slowly placed the piece of black fabric they had found in the forest on the table. The man's expression changed. Barely. But Kael noticed. So did Darius. “You know this symbol,” Kael said. The man looked at the fabric. “Everyone knows this symbol.” Aldren gave a short laugh. “Not one that was forgotten for decades.” The stranger turned his head toward him. “Forgotten?” He smiled. “That's what you believe.” Silence fell. Kael stared at the man. “Who sent you?” “No one.” “Why did you come to the estate?” “We didn't come to attack you.” Ethan, who had just entered the room, frowned. “Six armed men break through our wall and head straight for our greenhouse. What exactly do you call that?” The stranger looked at him. “A recovery.” Kael slowly turned. “A recovery of what?” The man didn't answer. Kael understood. The greenhouse. Something had been hidden there. Something they had not yet identified. “What did you take?” Kael asked. The prisoner smiled. “Too late.” Darius placed a hand on the back of the chair. “Answer.” The man didn't move. “You found V-17.” Kael's gaze hardened. “How do you know that?” “Because you weren't the first ones to return there.” This time, no one spoke. Aldren stepped closer. “Who went there before us?” The man lowered his eyes. “Someone who worked for your father.” Kael remained motionless. “My father?” “Yes.” Ethan took a step forward. “You knew our father?” “I never met him.” Kael frowned. “Then how do you know he was involved?” The stranger raised his eyes. “Because your father wasn't the only one searching.” Kael felt something tighten in his chest. He thought of the letter. If they discover what we found, they'll kill us. Then the office. The clock. The metal piece. The door. V-17. Everything seemed to belong to the same story. But someone had begun searching before them. And that person seemed to have known his father. “What did he find?” Kael asked. The prisoner smiled. “I don't know.” Kael didn't move. “You're lying.” “Perhaps.” Darius took a step toward him. But Kael raised a hand. “Leave it.” Darius stopped. Kael carefully studied the man. He wasn't trying to intimidate him. He was trying to understand him. “If you don't know what my father found, why did you come back here?” The man remained silent. Then he finally answered: “Because someone else found it before we did.” Kael froze. “Who?” The man raised his eyes toward him. “The one who opens the doors.” A cold silence settled over the room. Kael immediately thought of his father's words. And above all, Kael... if it ever starts working again, don't let anyone open the door in your place. His expression changed slightly. Darius noticed. “Kael?” Kael didn't answer. The prisoner smiled. He had understood that he had touched something important. “You found the door, didn't you?” Aldren straightened. “What door?” The man looked at Kael. “The one you left closed.” Kael stared at the stranger. No one in this room had mentioned the hidden door. No one. Except those who had discovered it. And yet this man knew. Kael stepped closer. “How do you know it exists?” The stranger remained silent. Then he whispered: “Because it won't stay closed for long.” At that moment, a dull sound echoed through the corridor. The knights outside the door immediately turned around. Darius drew his sword. Aldren did the same. Kael turned. A second later, the door opened abruptly. A knight entered. “Commander!” “What is it?” The knight was breathing quickly. “There is a problem in the gardens.” Kael moved toward him. “What kind of problem?” The knight hesitated. “The greenhouse.” Darius exchanged a glance with Aldren. “What happened?” “Part of the security system has activated on its own.” Kael stopped. “Where?” The knight hesitated. “Behind the greenhouse.” Kael immediately understood. The symbol. The compartment. The thing they had taken. Someone might have triggered something. He turned toward the prisoner. The man was smiling. “You see?” Kael stared at him. “What?” “You spent too much time searching the archives.” He tilted his head slightly. “Meanwhile, the house continued to remember.” Kael left the room. Darius followed immediately. Ethan and Aldren went after them. Lucian appeared in the corridor a few seconds later. “What’s happening?” Kael didn't slow down. “The greenhouse.” Lucian immediately understood. They crossed the estate at full speed. As they approached the gardens, a faint blue light appeared behind the trees. Kael stopped. The greenhouse was glowing. Not entirely. Only a small section of its structure. Exactly where they had discovered the symbol behind the flowers. Darius looked at Kael. “Are you thinking what I'm thinking?” Kael didn't answer. He was already moving. At the base of the old structure, a stone slab had shifted slightly. And beneath it... A faint light continued to pulse. Kael crouched. He placed his hand above the stone without touching it. A strange sensation traveled through his arm. A familiar feeling. As if he had been here before. Years ago. With his father. Kael closed his eyes. And for a fraction of a second, a voice echoed through his memory. “Not yet, Kael.” His eyes suddenly opened. Darius was watching him. “What did you see?” Kael remained silent. Then he looked at the stone slab. “My father showed me this place before.” Ethan's expression changed. “When?” Kael slowly stood. “I don't remember.” The light beneath the stone intensified. Then a small section of the ground unlocked with a click. Everyone stepped back. An opening had appeared. And in the darkness below, something was glowing. Not a weapon. Not a crystal. A small black box. Kael stared at it. He knew that box. He had seen it before. In a memory he still couldn't recover. Behind him, Aldren whispered: “Kael...” Kael didn't answer. He slowly stepped onto the first stair. And somewhere inside the house, the stopped clock began ticking again.

The Prisoner