CHAPTER 19
The faces were haunting me. Meredith's face would not leave my nightmares. The hands at her throat squeezing harder and harder until the color in her eyes faded. The next face was Mason's. His eyes were red, and they terrorized me to the core. Their faces haunted me, blurring the lines between nightmare and reality. I was tormented by the lack of answers. I was missing another piece between Mason and Liam. And a good Guardian had died because of my inability to find these answers.
But it was not just these two faces that tormented my thoughts. Ever since I had seen and spoken to Mason a few days ago, I was feeling uneasy about his "friendship" with Camille. It wasn't the idea of Mason being friends with people at Court that unnerved me, but the idea of him being friends with Camille specifically. There was something suspicious about it, something that my instincts were screaming at me to pay attention to. I couldn't shake off the feeling that Camille was somehow involved in all of this.
Her face was there. I had learned during my training with Bridgette, to follow my instincts and suspicions, but following this hunch caused a giant ball of anxiety to form within my chest.
I woke to Yuri holding me, his arms wrapped tight around me.
"Bells, it's okay." His words were soothing as he softly spoke them over and over. "You're safe."
As I fully recovered from the deep-rooted feeling of panic, I realized that I was cover in a cold sweat after my nightmare. I peeled myself away from Yuri's embrace, feeling the tangible warmth of his presence slowly dissipate. The remnants of the nightmare clung to me like a suffocating fog, making it hard to distinguish reality from the twisted visions of my unconscious mind. Gathering my thoughts, I focused on the lingering unease that had settled in the pit of my stomach. As I stood up, determination sparked within me, cutting through the haze of doubt and fear. I couldn't afford to remain stagnant, paralyzed by my own apprehensions.
The house was currently enveloped in a calm hush, save for the faint ticking of a clock echoing in the hallway. No footsteps disturbed the silence; the air felt still, as if the day was holding its breath before the onset of evening. My pacing began on the second floor, through my office and Jesse's. I made my way through the music room, the library, and the game rooms before descending the staircase, lost in my thoughts. I walked in and out of Yuri's office, through each of the security rooms, and finally through all four of the Guardian gyms. I was prepared to walk outside and start pacing through the outdoor gardens but stopped. Yuri was on his phone.
"Something is up with her. This is bad." He spoke to the person on the opposite end of the phone. "She has been overly pensive and solemn for hours. This isn't like her. She woke up screaming earlier." I listened to his version of events during my nightmares. "She hasn't said a word to me or anyone else since then. Dimitri, I'm worried." He was talking to Dimitri. "This shit with Ashford needs to stop. It is killing her mentally, and the Council still sees fit to push her into confronting and working with him." Yuri went quiet, listening to whatever calm words Dimitri might have to say about the situation. I had to agree with my husband. This predicament with Mason was no good, and the Guardian Council was not helping in any way.
A few minutes later Yuri ended his call with Dimitri and rounded the corner I'd been behind. I had since returned to my thoughts and suspicions, trying to add them all up. I could see the concern etched into Yuri's features as he approached me, his eyes searching mine for any sign of reassurance. I knew he was worried about me, about the toll that these recent events were taking on my well-being. As he drew closer, I could feel the weight of his unspoken questions hanging heavily in the air between us.
"Dimitri is on his way over." My husband informed me.
I nodded. "Good. I need to call in a few more Guardians to come over too."
"Bells, what's going on? Are you okay?"
I took him by the hand, leading him into his office. I closed the door and took a seat on his couch.
"I may need to tell the Queen about Aaron." I shocked him into silence.
My husband sat in stunned, bemused silence for a good while before finally questioning my statement. "Which part?"
"Everything." I answered, causing more caution in him.
"Okay. Why?"
This was a harder part of this conversation. I pulled my legs up over his lap.
"Because I think I know who helped Liam plant the swarm bomb, and who helped Mason kill Meredith."
Yuri turned to face me. "You think it was Drozdov?"
I laughed at his guess. "No. I think it was Camille Conta."
Knowing my full past with Aaron gave Yuri better insight than most, but he still was not completely caught up on every piece of information. "Walk me through this one Bells." His hands rubbed my calves as I shifted, preparing to explain my reasoning.
"All of this time I have been looking for a Guardian. A dhampir. I should've been less jaded in my search."
"You're looking at Camille for setting the bomb at Court." Yuri stood up abruptly, pacing the room as he processed the weight of my words. "If you're right about this…"
"I know," I whispered, feeling the weight of responsibility settling on my shoulders like a heavy cloak. "Earlier today, I stopped at Paolo's to pick up an order. When I got there, I saw Mason and Camille sitting in the corner, having what appeared to be a pretty tense conversation." I told Yuri. "Camille left as soon as she saw me."
"No surprise. "Yuri recognized. "You two don't exactly get on well."
I rolled my eyes at the obvious.
"Once she left, I sat down to talk to Mason."
"You did what? Why?"
"To get answers." Yuri knew that I wanted more answers about Mason— Answers that I was not getting from either Council, so my reasoning appeased him. "After I sat down, Mason started asking me very specific questions about Air. He wanted to know about my entire past with Aaron, in detail."
"You told him?"
"Indeed, I did." I smugly replied. "He gave me the answers I wanted about Meredith."
"Didn't you already know about her?" Yuri went on, attempting to take in and understand all of what I was telling him.
I nodded. "I knew most of my suspicions were valid, but now with the missing pieces Mason gave me, I've put it together."
"So where does Camille fit in?"
"Turns out, she and Mase have a common enemy of sorts."
"You?"
Again, I nodded. "Mason never would've thought to ask anything about Aaron if Camille hadn't planted the idea in his peabrain."
"Bells sweetheart, your instincts when it comes to stuff like this are usually spot on." Yuri understood. "I trust you, and we both know that the Queen will too. When will you inform her and the Councils about this?"
"Not yet." I thought about the idea of presenting my suspicions and the information I did have to the Queen and others. "I need to do a little more digging. I want to be one hundred percent sure about this before I risk my reputation and get us all into this shit, before jumping to the Head of command. I'm willing to follow the chain of command on this."
"Bellamy, you are the Head of Command on this."
He made a fair point.
"Still, I want this done by the book. No mistakes. If I am wrong, no real harm done. If I am right, then it is mission fucking accomplished. We can put all of this behind us and move on."
Along with making calls to several Court Guardians, I called Aaron. I was interrupting him, as there was some party being set up in the background. Despite any plans he had, he agreed to meet with me immediately, pulling up to the estate ten minutes later. Jesse and Sophie were already preparing to leave to attend a party, so I did not need to worry about the. Viktoria would be attending the part with them this evening. I needed my conversation with Aaron to remain private, so we chose to close ourselves off in my office to talk. As he took a seat, I handed him a bottle of water. He looked apprehensive about what I was going to say.
"Honey, I have a few Guardians coming over in a bit, but before they arrive, I need your permission to discuss you and me with them."
"What about us?"
"Our relationship at St. Vlad's, and after that too."
He looked nervous, hesitant, and skeptical about Guardians knowing exactly how "deep" our relationship went back then. I could see his concern for me turning to anxiety.
"You don't need to worry. I won't tell them absolutely everything, and I would never give them details, but they need to know that what happened between us, did so because…"
"Because of our bond."
"Sort of." I assured him. "It also happened because I gained an alliance I was not expecting."
His brow furrowed. "Bells, why do they need to know now? What happened?" Aaron was smart enough to know that this was all being brought up for good reason. "You would never give up private details about our relationship to others for no good reason."
"I can't tell you that yet."
"Yet?"
"I am sorry Air. I am duty bound to speak with Guardians about this first." His expression and posture changed again. He knew that whatever secrets I was keeping from him were serious if I made a point to go to Guardians first. "When I am certain of my suspicions, you have my word that I'll have that conversation with you. Until that time, I won't put you or others at Court at risk."
"I trust you Bellamy." He put his hand over mine.
"Good." I smiled sweetly.
"Do what you need to do."
As Aaron exited my office, I could hear Guardians gathering downstairs. I walked out of the room, locking the doors behind me as Aaron waited. I saw Dimitri staring up at me from the base of the staircase. His expression made me smile. I had been so focused on Mason that I had not taken a moment to see and catch up with my friends. I practically ran down the stairs into Dimitri's arms. He caught me, lifting me up into a hug.
"Yuri says that you have found the missing link between this Court and the bomb." His question made me want to break down and tell him everything right there in the foyer, but I kept quiet, needing everyone I had asked for to hear what I had to say. "He also mentioned that you want me to keep an open mind."
I grimaced, feeling my expression drop. "I need all of you to hear everything that I am about to say." I stated as a few other Guardians walked in to join us. I greeted Alberta Petrov, Stan Alto, and surprisingly Rose Hathaway-Belikov.
"Not here." I lowered my voice. With both Moroi and Guardians roaming the main house, Yuri and I showed our guests into our private gym, where we all had absolute privacy and security.
"Bells…" Alberta started, but I held up a hand to stop her.
"I need to start from the beginning to show cause for my knowledge and what is adding up to be more than suspicions." Alberta took a seat beside the others. Dimitri stayed standing off to the side with Yuri as I started.
"Several years ago, I made a good friend at the Academy. He and I bonded as friends as I helped him through some of his own trauma. He helped me deal with my own tough situations too."
"Aaron Drozdov?" Alberta interrupted.
I nodded.
"What does he have to do with the bomb at Court?"
"She's getting to that." Dimitri stated before I could. He smiled again.
"I will get to that." I confirmed. "But I need to establish my own proof. I don't often have a team of Court Guardians to bounce information off of like this, so please bear with me as I vocally work out the details in my head."
All five quieted and continued to listen to what I had to say.
"Aaron and I spent a lot of time together before Jesse and I left for St. Sebastian's. Not everyone was okay with Aaron and I being friends and spending so much time together." I took in a deep breath because this next part was going to make things either very difficult, or understandably easy. "One person in particular hated my friendship with Aaron. Still does."
"You're talking about Camille Conta." Alberta surmised, looking closer to shocked now.
"Are you accusing a royal of being behind the bomb?" Stan asked me, his facial expression clear at the idea of any Guardian accusing a royal of a crime like this.
In my defense, it was not completely out of the question for a royal to do something like this. Hell, Tasha Ozera had killed the last Queen, and royals had been behind the last attack on this Court and its Princess, who had died before Adrian Ivashkov brought her back with magic. But I stayed silent, keeping those points to myself.
"What's the motive here Bells?" Dimitri trusted me enough to ask.
"Me." I pointedly replied. He walked closer to me in support. "I'm not saying it makes perfect sense yet, but I am certain that the reason I've been going in circles looking for a Court accomplice is because I have been looking in the wrong places. We all know first-hand that it is not above bored or slighted royals to be complicit or fully involved in illicit activities within Court if it benefits them in some way."
"My wife is trained to see things that we cannot." Yuri reminded the others, and no one refuted the point.
"I never would've thought to connect these dots until I spotted them in a clearly confidential conversation at Paolo's the other night. Camille legged it out of there as soon as she spotted me."
"That doesn't make her guilty of anything." The argument was tossed to me, and I agreed. That part did not make her guilty.
"I sat down and talked to Mason after Camille left."
"You did?" Both Dimitri and Rose were chagrined that I would choose to have a conversation with Mason these days.
"I did. Some of the things he said and asked about made me think. It helped me put pieces of this together." I could see Dimitri was still pensive about this subject.
"Does Camille know about Switzerland?" He questioned me.
I shook my head. "Not the full extent. She knows that is where Aaron and I first became friends. But Switzerland is not the problem." I informed him. "It's St. Vladimir's."
"What happened at St. Vladimir's?" Everyone around me and Dimitri were wrapped up in our conversation. I needed to be careful about what I revealed, for Aaron's sake.
"More."
"Enough to elicit conspiracy between Camille and Mason?"
"Definitely."
Stan stood up. "Bellamy, you cannot just randomly accuse a royal of treason and sedition simply because she doesn't like you because you stole her boyfriend."
The fire within me raged briefly. My first instinct was to come back at Stan with the fact that I had not stolen Aaron from Camille, nor did I need to "steal" him, but that would've been childish. Instead, I settled on logic and professionalism.
"Do you honestly think I would go after Camille or any royal for that matter over something so trivial?"
"Bellamy doesn't just have Tracker training and skills; she is and always will be a Tracker." Dimitri added, quieting Stan's debate. "And she isn't just any Tracker. She is the Tracker. She is the one our Council goes to in situations like this because she doesn't just see things that we don't. She sees things that other Trackers can't see as well. She is still the best and most extensively trained Tracker in the ranks, despite her choice to guard a royal instead of being in the field."
I took a breath. "Thank you, Dimitri." I smiled at him. "Before I accuse anyone of anything, I want to go back to the security from that time." I returned to the matter at hand. "I think that we missed something in the security footage."
"Bellamy," Alberta argued, "I looked through all of that footage. If there was anything more there…"
"I trust you, Alberta. I'm not questioning you or your abilities, but if we did by some stretch of the imagination, miss something minuscule, I happen to know someone who can help."
"We are here to help Bellamy." Rose offered. "What do you need?"
"I need Eddie Castille and Mikhail Tanner to meet me at the Guardian Security building."
"I will contact Mikhail." Alberta pulled out her phone. "I'll see that he meets you within the hour."
"Great." I was already dialing Eddie on my own phone. "And I don't think it needs saying, but I will say it anyway. What was said in this room stays between us. I do not want anyone tipping Camille, her family, or others off before I find what we need."
Mikhail was waiting for me and Eddie when we arrived at the security building. His stoic expression gave nothing away as he greeted us.
"Mikhail, thank you for coming on such short notice," I began. "I need to review footage from these dates, during the day and night." I handed him a piece of paper with the specific dates and times I needed.
"Anything for you Bellamy."
"What exactly are we looking for, Bells?" Eddie asked me while he helped Mikhail set up the equipment we needed. Mikhail set me and Eddie up at two desks in a secure room.
"We're not looking for a what." I told my friends. "We are looking for a who. The person we are looking for is the one who placed the bomb here at Court. And as it turns out, this person is not a Dhampir." The shock on both faces was expected.
"Let's start by reviewing the perimeter camera footage first." Eddie suggested, sitting beside me. He entered in the dates and times that we needed, ready to begin our search.
"Let me know if there is anything more you need." Mikhail offered us. I was grateful for his help.
For hours, Eddie and I meticulously combed through the recordings, scrutinizing every frame and detail for anomalies that may have been overlooked, pausing and rewinding certain sections that caught our attention. As we delved deeper into the footage, frustration began to set in.
"Can you tell me who we are looking for?" Eddie asked a question that I could not answer yet. "What am I looking for specifically?" He leaned back in his chair, eyeing me with ambiguity.
"Anything strange or inconsistent." I was still being fairly vague with him, and I hated it as much as he did. "I suspect we will know when we see it."
Another hour passed with nothing to show. I was ready for a break until I saw Eddie straighten. He spent time looking closer, rewinding and reviewing a piece of footage he found.
"Huh." He breathed out. "That's strange." His voice had that tone that said there was something I needed to see.
I slid closer to him, sharing his computer.
"Take a look at this babe." He rewound the footage he had been looking at. "It's not exactly obvious, unless you are looking for it. There." He pointed out what appeared to be a skip, a split-second blip in the footage."
"That's it. Something was clearly erased." I felt excitement and apprehension bubbling inside of me. "We need to get that piece of video." I moved back to my computer space.
"Eddie was already on it. He and I were simultaneously digging into the Court systems. We tiptoed very carefully through several back doors and shifted through multiple algorithms.
"Here it is." Eddie found what we were looking for. "Someone went to a lot of trouble to hide this." He was able to pull it up. He enhanced the video and was in disbelief of who and what we saw.
"I was right." I felt my shoulders fall. A good part of me wanted to be wrong about my suspicions. The last thing we needed at Court was another royal scandal or attempt at another coup. I felt happy knowing that we had found what I was looking for, but again, I was right. That in itself was going to cause major debates and problems. A member of the royal community was to blame for placing that swarm bomb Dimitri and I had just barely diffused. I realized that I was going to have to be the one to publicly accuse Camille. This was going to hurt many others around me. Yuri was right when he said that I was Head of Command on this. That meant that it was my ass and my reputation on the line. I needed a plan.
"Bells." Eddie saw that I was falling deeper and deeper into my thoughts. "What do you want to do with this? Do we take it to the Queen? The royal Council will want to know."
"No." I had to make a decision about what step we'd take next. "I don't want the Court Council to know what we know yet." My friend made a face, but like me, he was well versed in Court politics, so he knew exactly why my position was to say nothing on the matter. "Let's keep this between us for now. I want a run at Camille on my own to see if she'll say anything first. If not, I will have proof."
"You do know that once you have her brought in, the Council and all twelve families are going to fight back."
"I know." I acknowledged. "But that is where the leg work and any irrefutable proof comes in. I'm not leaving an inch for her to wiggle through Eddie. She conspired with Mason and tried to kill our Court. I don't care if I have to face off with the Queen herself."
"Then I will stand with you the entire way."
I took a deep breath, realizing that I was not nearly finished. I still had more information to gather before I could go after Camille. With a newfound resolve burning in my veins, I set my sights on uncovering every piece of evidence that would lead to her downfall. The path ahead was treacherous, but I was prepared to walk it, no matter the cost. We continued to work late into the night, piecing together the puzzle of Camille's betrayal. As much as I dreaded the confrontation that lay ahead, I knew it was inevitable. The weight of responsibility pressed down on my shoulders, but I couldn't falter now. The safety of Court depended on me unraveling this conspiracy.
An hour later, Eddie and I decided to call in our big guns. Dimitri and Yuri met us in a discreet location of Court. The most difficult Guardian courses were rarely used these days, and if they were used, it was more often than not done during the day. The look on Yuri's face when he arrived through the gate told me just how many questions he had. I gave an almost imperceptible nod in response to his questions, confirming my suspicions with him and Dimitri. Eddie and I laid out the evidence we had uncovered, then detailed my plan to speak to Camille before every royal on the Council, Camille's father included, could use their power and influence to hide this woman.
"She placed that bomb here at Court herself." I maintained. "She knew what she was doing, and she knew who she was doing it for."
Dimitri looked torn briefly, clearly trying to reconcile the image of Camille he'd known before all of these new revelations.
"What now Bells?"
"Keep all of this quiet for now." I instructed. "Camille has allies of her own at Court. Tread carefully." I moved to the side, letting go of Yuri's hand, pulling Dimitri by the arm so that we could talk in private. "I need you to speak to Christian. Keep him away from Camille. If she is cornered, she may lash out I will not see Chris hurt because she wants to hurt me."
He agreed, still curious about my next step. "You said that Camille has allies here."
"Not for long." I guaranteed. "I am going to have Jesse help me on that front. He is good with royals, and now that he's taken the reins from Howard, he can combine my influence with his own."
Together with Eddie, Yuri, Dimitri, and Jesse, we formed a close-knit circle of trust within the Court. We continued to gather evidence against Camille, carefully navigating the intricate web of allegiances and power dynamics that governed our world. Every move had to be calculated; every word spoken with caution.
When I told Jesse about Camille, he was not as surprised as I'd expected him to be. He informed me that he was already aware of her motives.
"Aaron is still in love with you." He stated and I wanted to deny Aaron's feelings for me. Had he known more than I thought? Had Aaron said something to his friend. I gave him a look of contradiction. "Please Bells, he has been mad about you since you returned to St. Vlad's as a Guardian."
While I was not aware of Jesse's knowledge of me and Aaron, I was glad not to have the conversation with him.
"Camille is extremely jealous, spoiled, and has the highest sense of entitlement." Jesse pointed out the obvious.
"So, she's royal." I quipped.
He laughed but was still prepared to help me in any way that I asked.
"She threatened my family." He reasoned. "I will do what it takes to help you."
The first thing I needed him to do was to keep this information out of earshot of other Council members. I sent him off to discreetly find Camille's allies. I was going to talk to Camille myself.
She wasn't difficult to find. As I pulled up to the gates outside of the Conta estate, I was stopped briefly by two of the Conta team Guardians. I did not have an appointment, but that would not stop me. I told the two guards that I was on Council business, which was partially true. It got me through the gates without having to further explain myself. I was allowed unobstructed access but met by another Guardian as I parked a few feet from the front doors.
"Bells." Ryan Aylesworth greeted me. Ryan and I had known one another since our time at St. Vladimir's. He sounded equally happy and concerned by my unexpected arrival.
I was not all that surprised to see Ryan at the Conta residence. He would often take up position at Court as Camille's Guardian when he had time off from his other Guardian job. He and Camille had dated for a short time, but that too had not lasted.
"Hey Ry." I hugged my friend as he approached.
"I was told you are here on Council business."
"Wow, news travelled fast between Guardians. I am."
Ryan immediately led me inside, stopping in the middle of the grand foyer. The room, while dressed in warm tones, felt cold, metaphorically, filled with life size paintings of former Conta princes and princesses. The air felt thick with history and secrets, while the decor tried its hardest. The grand display of opulence, with its tapestries, the over-the-top chandeliers, and marble everywhere showed the Conta's trying to compete with families such as the Drozdov's and the Zeklos clan.
"Can I get you anything?" Ryan offered.
"I'm good." I assured him, needing to handle this quickly. "I am here to talk to Camille."
"About?"
"Council business." The half-truth felt slightly sour on my tongue.
Ryan appraised me, searching for a deeper intention, but nodded as he left the foyer. He like others, knew that my history with Camille was about as good and solid as our present. His footsteps echoed like distant thunder over polished wood. Reduced to impatience and nervous energy, I took in the room again. The ostentatious display reminded me of why Camille's sense of importance had always been so pronounced. She'd never been short on reminders.
Ryan returned. "I'm sorry Bells, but she is not seeing anyone this evening." He informed me with a line that sounded rehearsed.
I smiled as sweetly as I could manage. "She is going to see me. Please go and inform the spoiled brat Moroi that she does not have a choice in this matter.
Ryan clearly understood what I meant but remained reluctant to pass on my exact message. He left, returning a few minutes later with a message of his own.
"She says that she has nothing to say to you, and she very specifically will not see you."
I shifted my posture, moving in closer to Ryan as he stood on the last step of the staircase. My voice lowered in volume and tone.
"You will go back and inform Camille that if she does not come out to see me, I will ransack my way through this entire house to find her. "
Ryan stared at me, attempting to determine just how serious I was before walking away again. I made a short phone call while I waited longer than I wanted.
"Bellamy. I wasn't expecting you," she exclaimed, the picture of elegance and innocence as she glided down the sweeping staircase.
"It's Guardian." I tersely pointed out. "And I like to keep people on their toes." I watched for a flicker of something—guilt, fear, recognition—but her expression remained perfectly poised.
"Well Guardian, I can't imagine what might bring you here, to demand that I seed you. You certainly don't have the authority to…"
I held up a hand, stopping her next comment. "I have more authority than any Guardian, and most royals here at Court." I informed her.
Camille looked over to Ryan who nodded, confirming my statement.
"So, you can either talk to me here or I can escort you over to interrogation, and we can have a chat there."
"Bellamy!" Ryan rushed to protectively stand between me and Camille. "You have no right. Whatever reason brought you here, it's no excuse to threaten a royal with interrogation tactics."
"The hell it isn't." I returned. "You've been busy, Camille." My tone stayed level as I continued.
Camille rolled her eyes before regarding me with her usual arrogance and pithy demeanor.
"I'm sure I don't know what you're referring to." Her mask slipped for the briefest moment— a crack that left a glint of malice in its wake. Then it was gone.
"What is this about Bells?" Ryan still had questions.
"Here's a bit of advice Camille. The next time you want to decimate an entire Court of royals, Moroi, and Dhampir, you should cover your tracks better."
The woman raised an eyebrow, feigning innocence with an artistry that deserved its own gallery in her foyer.
"Wow. That is quite an accusation."
Ryan went silent after my accusation, unsure of what to say or whom to accuse of lying.
"Camile," He chose to question her, "what have you done?"
Camille did not hesitate. She no longer had Ryan on her side to manipulate. "Do you have any idea what sort of mistake you've just made Bellamy?" She shot back at me. "I am a royal at this Court. You cannot come into my home with threats and accusations." Her voice rose more than she intended, showing both her guilt and irritation. She was caught.
"While I waited for you to see me, I made a call. There are more Guardians waiting outside. You can come with me willingly or I can do something I have wanted to do for a very long time." I dared her to let me drag her out of here in cuffs. I dared her to push one single button.
"Bells, are you sure?" Ryan asked me, Guardian to Guardian. I saw the betrayal appearing in his eyes.
"Would I be here if I wasn't sure? Eddie and I found the footage of her placing the bomb at Court. I also have hours of footage of her and Mason meeting."
Camille's composure cracked like thin ice. She backed away, eyes darting between Ryan and me, weighing her odds. Her mouth tightened—biting back some scathing remark.
"I suggest you come with me while you still have the option to walk." My stare didn't waver.
I stepped closer, closing the space between us. Ryan remained silent, trying to process both Mason's betrayal and Camille's confession.
"Get her out of here," he finally said, disgust sharpening the edge of his voice.
I nodded, signaling to two Guardians who had entered and were standing just inside the main doors. Camille shifted back from me as I continued forward—she'd lost everything but still wanted the last word.
"This is not over." she hissed.
"Yes, it is." I told her before the Guardians took her away.
Ryan slumped to sit on the stairs, too furious or exhausted to pretend anything else. The grand room felt less suffocating now that Camille was gone, but it held new echoes: betrayal and disappointment.
Once Camille was in the back of an SUV, and on her way to an interrogation room, I called in the Guardian Council. The shock that went through them all was expected. What was not expected, was their insistence that I conduct the interrogation myself.
"Also," Guardian Jordan said before they finished, "conduct another interrogation on Mr. Ashford. If they were working together, he may tell you things that the royal won't."
I agreed, immediately calling my husband to assist. He would retrieve Mason while I spoke to Camille again.
I entered the chosen interrogation room to find Camille impatiently waiting. Three Guardians stood in the room with her.
"You again?" She looked up to see me walk into the room. "You're really going to regret this Bellamy." Her continued defiance was truly starting to provoke me.
"I'm really not." I sat down opposite her, crossing my arms, settling back into my chair. "Let's talk about Guardian Nikolai." I apathetically brought up the subject.
Camille's eyes narrowed, but I saw her jaw tighten. "You want to talk about Meredith Nikolai? She liked you even less than I do. From what I hear, she had every reason to dislike you."
"Meredith and I had a tempestuous history. She did not like me, and I disliked her more. That does not mean that I wanted to see a decent Guardian and person killed."
"That was not my doing."
I lifted one side of my mouth into a half smile. "I don't believe you." I told her. "You should understand something about me before we proceed any further Camille." I eyed the Guardians standing around us as I stood, placing my palms flat onto the table between us. "Before I chose to become a Zeklos Guardian, I trained as a Guardian Tracker." One of the Guardians made a noise, implying that he was either impressed or terrified by my admission. Maybe it was a bit of both. "One of the several areas I specialized in, is being able to know when someone is lying to me. The Guardian Council likes to refer to me as a walking lie detector. They insisted that I be the one to speak with you, so if you lie, I will know, and I will not be happy."
Camille looked nauseous.
"So again, tell me about Guardian Nikolai."
"They were together." She stated, but I needed more than what she was choosing to say.
"Who? Be specific."
"Mason and Meredith."
I had already known this. I had to assume Camille was throwing this bit of information at me, to make me feel bad. I didn't.
"When you brought him to Court, he and Meredith were together."
"I know that. And I don't care. I want to know why she was killed."
"How should I know?"
"You didn't kill Meredith, but you were there when Mason killed her." I saw her eyes widen ever so slightly and briefly. Anyone else might not have noticed the movement.
The crack in her composure widened. "Mason loved that woman."
"You're playing a losing game if you're trying to deflect and make this about an old affair." I pulled back slightly, gauging her reaction. "Do you think I'm jealous of anyone Mason is with? Do you think I would ever choose Mason over my husband?"
Camille rolled her shoulders, her eyes never leaving mine. She reminded me of a caged animal refusing to lose a fight, no matter how many fatal wounds they had.
"Meredith made a choice." I was getting somewhere. Her voice held a sinister edge to it now. "Her disloyalty came with a price."
"What price? Her death?" I questioned further. "What sort of disloyalty would cause her death?"
Camille shut down, refusing to say anything more on the subject.
"Alright, let's talk about Mase." I offered to change the subject.
"This is all just so sad, Bellamy." She didn't want to say anything more, but I could make her talk.
I motioned for the other Guardians. They left us alone.
"I wouldn't get too cozy," I said once they were gone. "Mason has been picked up as well."
This news unsettled her just enough for me to notice.
"Now imagine how convincing his side is going to sound when you refuse to say anything." I let her consider what I'd just said, leaving her to sit alone in the small sparce room.
I walked out of the room, keeping a close eye on Camille as I greeted Dimitri and Yuri, who'd both been watching me question the royal.
"You went easy on her." Yuri stated. He did like to see me work.
"We don't have Mason here to interrogate." Dimitri pointed out.
"We will." I said. "Guardians are picking him up on orders of the Guardian Council."
My brother moved in closer towards me, staring down at me. "Do you think talking to Mason will convince Camille to say more?"
"No." I told him honestly. "But it doesn't matter. I have what I need from Camille." The only thing I did not know was why Meredith had been killed. Camille mentioned disloyalty. Was she disloyal to Mason? I would be getting to the bottom of that with Mason as soon as he was brought in.
I made my way several doors down, ordering Guardians to stay with Camille as I entered a second interrogation room. This room looked the same as the other. Nothing on the white walls, bright lighting, a table, and three chairs this time.
"Join me?" I offered to Yuri.
He agreed, opening the door for me. Mason sat contemptuously in a chair, waiting as Yuri and I sat.
He sighed impatiently, looking over at my husband with veiled fear in his eyes. I chuckled.
"Understand this." I informed Mason. "Put one foot out of line, breathe wrong even once, or lie to me just one time, and Guardian Tverskaya will do what other Guardians won't."
"What's that?" Mason provoked us.
Yuri answered before I could. "I'll have you by the throat up against that wall." He casually threatened, pointing behind Mason, and I saw him swallow hard.
"What do you want to know now Bells?"
"I have Camille Conta in an interrogation room down the hall. I just finished speaking to her."
Mason shrugged.
"She said something interesting to me. She said that Meredith was killed because she was disloyal. Was she disloyal to you? To Liam?" Mason moved his hand shortly up to his shoulder. His jaw clicked just once. His actions revealed that Meredith did not know about Liam or his outside involvement. It clearly made Mason nervous to even put Liam and Meredith's names in the same sentence. Curiouser and curiouser. "Camille mentioned that Meredith's disloyalty came with a price. I assume that meant her death."
"I wasn't myself when I did that to Mere." Mason clearly felt some level of guilt and remorse for killing Meredith while he was without his soul.
"I want to know why." I pushed him, insisting on more answers than I had. "Why was Meredith killed?"
"She wavered." He tried not to shout, knowing that Yuri was looking for a reason to punish even the slightest infraction from him. "She found out about Camille's involvement and what I asked her to do." No use hiding information from me now. "She was coming to you. To the Council."
"Meredith was coming to me?" I laughed out loud. "That's bullshit! She hated me."
"Yes, but she respected you. And she knew the influence and authority you hold at this Court." Mason threw that last bit in. "She was going to tell you everything she knew."
"So, you killed her?"
"Yes." He sounded ashamed.
I felt fury rise up through me.
He stared back at me, searching for any sign that I was truly listening. I stared hard at him, making sure I took in every slight movement of his body, every twitch of his fingers or flinch of his jaw.
"I have nothing else to say Bells. Do what you want with that information."
I stood up quickly, gesturing for Yuri before walking out of the room faster than I should have. The Guardians posted outside the interrogation room followed behind Yuri and I like fledgling Guardian ducks. Dimitri paced in front of Camille's room, phone at his ear as he spoke quietly away from other Guardians standing nearby.
"Meredith coming to you… I did not see that one coming." said Yuri as we walked over to join Dimitri.
"I want the two of them locked up. I will talk to both Councils. The royal Council is going to scream when they find out about this."
"Maybe take Jesse with you when you tell them." Yuri suggested.
The three of us separated again. It took hours of conversation, video proof, and signed confessions, but both Councils finally knew every detail of what had occurred, and what Camille had done. The royal Council was just as angry as I had anticipated, wanting to know why they had not been informed beforehand. I was completely straightforward with them. I clarified that I did not want the Council or anyone at Court hiding, defending, or warning Camille before I got to her.
"Did you really think that any of us might do that?" Lucca Drozdov asked me from his chair.
I had a response ready, but was unable to give it as lord Conta, Camille's father threw his own question at me.
"What will happen to her?" He wanted to know in what way his only daughter would be punished, and I had no answer for that.
"She'll be detained until both Councils have come to an agreement." I finally said, refusing to let lord Conta see any semblance of my own uncertainty.
"Bellamy." Lucca stood off to the side, beckoning for me to join him in privy conversation. I moved to speak with him while Jesse fielded questions and comments from the rest of the Council members.
"Lucca, I am sorry." I began. "Trusting you or other members of this Council was not the concern. I could not allow Camille's family learn about her involvement or what was happening. I could not risk evidence going missing, or Camille herself going missing."
"I understand Bellamy. You were just doing your job." He assured me of his own trust. "I just wonder… What will this mean for the Conta family? Is their position at Court at risk? Do you know if her parents were complicit with her crimes?"
"Honestly," I sighed exhaustively, "that is your job. I have done what I needed to. The rest is up to you all. But you should know," I lowered my voice to a whisper, "the Guardian Council is considering exile." With that I was pulled away by Jesse. We left the royal Council to discuss what they now knew, how to handle it, and most importantly, how to bring it to the Queen's attention.
Hours later, after even more deliberating with an equally outraged Guardian Council, Yuri and I sat with Dimitri in our living room. It was just after sunrise, almost eerily silent, and although Guardians roamed the estate, a rare sense of privacy settled over us.
"I cannot believe it was Camille." Dimitri shook his head as we went through everything again.
"We have enough evidence to know she worked closely with Mason." I responded.
"And the royal Council?" He asked.
"They were shocked." I answered.
"But what about lord Conta?"
"He was angry he hadn't been informed sooner."
"They're going to fight this." Dimitri warned in a foreboding tone.
I stretched out on the couch exhaustedly, looking over at my husband and then at my brother.
"They will look for any way possible to get her out of this." I agreed.
"We still know nothing about Liam's involvement or his endgame." Yuri reminded us all.
"Without further information, Camille and Mason will not talk about him." Dimitri added.
"Or they do not even know themselves."
We let it fall to silence for a moment, each deep in thought before Yuri spoke up again.
"If the Guardian Council issues an exile there will be war between them and the royals."
"Let them have their war then." I said sharply.
AUTHOR NOTE TO READERS: Thank you all for reading Part II of this series. I did not wrap everything up yet. What fun would that be… I will do my best to wrap up each piece in Part III of this series (the final part). Until then.