Page 12 of The Light Within

“Okay, fine. But what was she doing for AP that got her killed? Did you ever investigate it? Do you even care that you’re the reason she’s dead?”

Julien bit into his tongue, the pain refocussing him. The last question had slipped out before he could tamp it down, and now L was taking a step back, shaking their head.

Putain. He’d gone too far, his temper ruining his chance for more information.

“Of course we care,” L retorted, their eyes narrowing to slits. “If you want to find her killer, I suggest you start by looking a little closer to home.”

Julien blinked at L, thrown off course. Before he could open his mouth to reply, a low whistle shot through the air, starting low and ending high.

“Let’s go!” barked L, and within seconds, the dozen cloaked figures were mobile, moving towards Caelum Hall.

Non!

Julien stepped into L’s path. “Wait! If you really were her friend, help me.”

“Look at this,” L said, gesturing to the crack. “Look at what we’re doing to the planet. How many people will have to die, innocent people who have no knowledge and do not benefit from the world of motecraft, before the consortium takes note? Before your father takes action?”

Julien raised his palms. “You don’t need to lecture me. I am not my father, believe me.”

They were alone now, the rest of AP was already out of sight.

L closed the space between them, grabbed Julien’s arm, and whispered a single name before passing him, to disappear into the shadows.

A single name.

“Eleanor Sinclair.”

Julien made no attempt to follow, remaining rooted to the spot.

Eleanor Sinclair.

Non.Julien laughed to himself, hollow and mirthless.L was mistaken.His mind refused to accept it.

He drifted towards the earth fissure, sinking to his knees to peer into the abyss of the jagged scar the quake had made upon the ground. The cool darkness of the gaping chasm, a touch larger than his arm, spun, beckoned him. Julien ran his finger over the edge of the crack, dislodging some dirt that tumbled to its demise. He peered into the depths, where darkness seemed to swallow the light, hinting at the size of the drop.

The crack ran all the way through Auri, and continued on for some length towards Talwacht.

The raw power of it pulsed through him. Followed by a sobering reflection.

Were AP right? Were motes—and the moteblessed that utilised them,reliedon them—really responsible for the increasing number of catastrophic disasters that were indeed killing people? The fact that this latest wave had hit many of the larger moteblessed hubs was surely not a coincidence.

“Julien?”

When he looked up, he almost fell into the crack.

“Eleanor?” It came out with a croak. What were the chances?

The lines on her forehead deepened as she adjusted her glasses. “What are you doing here? The Institute is locked down.”

Pounding footsteps approached. Elliot, plus six uniformed gendarmes, one of whom was their chief, Salvatore Gallo. The stout, burly Italian ran a hand through his short grey beard, nodding to Eleanor. “Madame. Pérez sounded the alarm that there had been a breach in the barrier.”

Eleanor frowned at Julien. Weighing up the cost of lying, he explained that they’d seen a group of suspected AP members break in and head to the fissure, but they’d been gone by the time he’d reached it himself. Throughout his tale, he couldn’t keep his eyes from boring into Eleanor. It was as if L had conjured her by saying her name. Was it possible L had sensed her coming, and that was the reason they’d said her name? Now he was being ridiculous. Julien shook his head, clearing it of nonsensical thoughts.

Salvatore Gallo unleashed rapid-fire instructions into a radio as his men fanned out, baton-shaped weapons at the ready, disappearing down various paths to locate AP members who had likely long since made their escape.

“Why are you here?” Julien asked Eleanor. “If nobody is meant to be here?”

Behind her, Elliot’s eyes widened at his blatant rudeness.

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