Chapter 6 - THE BLOODHOUND'S SCHEME
For two days, Winterborne Keep was placed under absolute lockdown. Gideon publicly announced that the southern merchants had been expelled due to suspected smuggling, hiding the fact that a massacre had taken place in the woods.
Meanwhile, inside the secret passages of the keep, Gideon hunted the traitor.
It did not take long. Lord Eamon, an elderly Northern noble who had long complained about the trade cutoffs with the South, was caught attempting to burn a stack of encrypted ravens. When dragged before Gideon in the underground dungeon, Eamon broke within minutes under the Alpha’s crushing pressure.
"Bastion promised me three silver mines in the Iron Valley!" Eamon wept, chained to the damp stone wall. "He said the girl would poison you, and in the chaos, his southern alliance would take the throne! I only opened the side gate for Kael!"
Gideon stood in the dark corridor, his face emotionless. "You sold your King for silver. And you used an innocent girl as a sacrifice."
"Mercy, Your Grace! Mercy!" Eamon begged.
"You will receive the same mercy you showed Adelaide," Gideon said coldly. He turned to Varick. "Keep him alive in this cell. Write a raven to Lord Bastion using Eamon’s private seal. Tell Bastion that the poison was successfully administered, that I am dying, and that the North is falling into chaos."
Varick grinned savagely. "A brilliant ploy, sire. Bastion will lower his guard completely."
Gideon walked back up to his chambers, where Adelaide was finally standing on her own feet. She was wearing a simple tunic and trousers, her face still pale but her eyes filled with newfound determination.
"You're going tonight," she said, it was not a question.
"Yes," Gideon replied, strapping a heavy iron broadsword to his waist. "Varick and twenty of my elite Shadow-Guard will ride with me through the secret mountain pass. We will reach Crestfall by midnight tomorrow."
"Take me with you," Adelaide demanded step forward.
Gideon stopped, frowning. "Absolutely not. You are still recovering, and Crestfall is dangerous."
"I know every hidden tunnel, every servant passage, and every dungeon grate in Crestfall!" Adelaide argued, her voice strong and unwavering. "I spent my entire childhood hiding in those walls from Bastion! You will get lost in the lower fortress without me, and Clara doesn't know you—she will scream if a giant stranger tries to grab her!"
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Gideon stared at her, stunned by the sheer fire burning in the once-broken Omega. The frail, terrified girl who couldn't look him in the eye three weeks ago was gone. In her place stood a woman ready to fight for her family.
Gideon chuckled softly, a low growl of pride rising in his chest. "Very well, my Queen. Pack your blade. We ride at dusk."
