CHAPTER 116: STRONG ALLIANCE.

Elias stood outside the boys’ dormitory room, his heart hammering against his ribs. The leather-bound book from the chapel pressed against his spine through his backpack, and Mallory’s folder felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. He had six hours until midnight—six hours to decide whether to join Maren’s conspiracy or become their enemy.

But he’d already decided. The prophecy about Isabella Rivers, the evidence of decades of Moonblood purges, the calculated manipulation, it all pointed to one truth. Bella wasn’t the monster. Maren was.

He knocked on the door with three sharp raps.

Then he heard movement inside, hushed voices, finally, footsteps approaching the door.

The door opened a crack, and Cassian’s face appeared suspicious and guarded. His eyes were bloodshot, dark circles underneath suggesting he hadn’t slept. "What do you want, Elias?"

"I need to talk to you. All of you. It’s about Bella Rivers."

Cassian’s expression hardened. "What about Bella Rivers? We don’t know what you’re talking about."

"Yes, you do." Elias kept his voice low. "And if you don’t let me in, you’re going to regret it. Because what I know could get all of you killed—or it could save your lives. Your choice."

Cassian studied him for a long moment. Behind him, Elias could see Rafe standing near one of the beds, his arms crossed, radiating hostility. Luca was by the window, a shadow in the dim light.

Finally, Cassian stepped aside. "You’ve got five minutes."

Elias entered quickly, and Cassian locked the door behind him, turning the deadbolt with a decisive click.

Rafe sat on his bed now, his arms still crossed. "You heard him Elias. Five minutes. Start talking."

Elias faced them, trying to project the confidence he didn’t feel. "I know you left campus last night. I know you didn’t come back until early this morning. And I know you went with Bella Rivers."

"You don’t know anything," Rafe said coldly.

"I also know you left Thursday night around 11:30 p.m." Elias pulled out his notebook, flipping to the marked page. "I heard you in the corridor. I tried to follow but you disappeared, probably through one of the secret exits you’ve been using. The basement door that leads to the groundskeeper’s path, maybe."

Cassian’s jaw tightened. "You’ve been spying on us?"

"I’ve been paying attention." Elias flipped through more pages. "I know the four of you have been meeting in secret for weeks. I know you’ve been talking about Bella, protecting her from something. The night before she was sent to the forest, I heard you outside the abandoned classroom. You were talking about a pact."

Luca spoke for the first time, his voice carefully neutral. "We already cleared that Elias. What are you driving at?"

"I don’t know exactly. But I know it involves Bella." Elias closed his notebook. "And I know you’re trying to protect her from something in this school. Something dangerous."

The three boys exchanged glances, a silent conversation passing between them.

"Why are you here?" Cassian asked carefully. "What do you want from us?"

"I want to help." Elias took a breath. "Because Bella’s not just being watched, she’s being hunted and will be attacked eventually. By people in this school."

Rafe stood abruptly. "That’s a serious accusation. You better have proof."

"I do." Elias pulled out the folder Mallory had given him and tossed it onto Cassian’s bed. "Three nights ago, I was approached by Mallory Woods, Mr. Thorne, and Mrs. Hendricks. They met me in the old greenhouse behind the east wing. They told me Bella was dangerous, that she’s a Moonblood who’ll become violent and uncontrollable. They wanted me to spy on her, document her movements, help them build evidence. So they can come against her physically."

Cassian picked up the folder, flipping through the pages. His expression darkened with each photo, each report. "Where did you get this?"

"Mallory gave it to me. She wanted me to add my own observations, to help them justify eliminating Bella." Elias watched as Rafe moved closer to look over Cassian’s shoulder. "They gave me twenty-four hours to decide whether to join them or refuse. That deadline is midnight tonight."

Luca pushed off from the wall. "And you’re telling us this because...?"

"Because after they gave me that folder, I started investigating on my own. I didn’t know if Bella was actually dangerous or if they were lying." Elias pulled his backpack off, setting it on the floor. "So I went to the library. Found books about Moonbloods in the restricted section. Learned about their history, their abilities, their persecution."

He knelt and pulled out the leather-bound book from the chapel. "Then I found this. In the old chapel basement, hidden behind a trapdoor."

Cassian set down the folder and took the book. He opened it carefully, he read the title page. "Moonblood Legacy."

"Turn to the marked page," Elias said.

Rafe and Luca crowded around him, reading over his shoulders. The sketch of a girl with silver eyes, the prophecy about a Moonblood who would "unite supernatural factions" and "challenge the old clans."

"This is why Maren wants her dead," Elias said quietly. "Not because Bella’s dangerous to students, but because Bella threatens Maren’s power. The prophecy says a Moonblood will rise to challenge the old clans. Maren is one of those old clans. She’s been eliminating Moonbloods for decades to prevent this prophecy from coming true."

Cassian looked up from the book. "How did you find this?"

"I followed leads. A note in Mallory’s folder mentioned Bella being seen near the chapel at 2am carrying a book. So I went there, broke in, found the trapdoor. This was in a hidden chamber underneath."

"You broke into the chapel?" Luca’s eyebrow raised. "That’s bold."

"I was followed," Elias admitted. "Mallory showed up while I was down there. I barely escaped."

Rafe studied him with narrow eyes. "Why risk yourself? You don’t even know Bella."

"Because I know now that she’s innocent." Elias met his gaze steadily. He pulled out his phone, scrolling to the photos he’d taken. "I talked to students who knew her. Jasmine, Leina, even Corrine, her roommate, who’s been protecting her."

"Corrine," Cassian said sharply. "What did she tell you?"

"Nothing useful. She warned me to stay away from the chapel, actually. Like she knew I was planning to go there." Elias showed them the photos on his phone. "But I kept digging.

He swiped to the next photo. "And this is from tonight. Mr. Thorne and the dorm housekeeper meeting near the administrative building. See the timestamp? 11:15pm. After students have retired to their beds"

Cassian took the phone, zooming in on the photo. "What were they discussing?"

"You four. Specifically how to separate you from Bella. Thorne said, ’We need to separate them from the girl. They’re making her stronger.’"

The three boys exchanged another look, this one longer and more significant.

"Let’s say we believe you," Cassian said carefully, handing back the phone. "Let’s say everything you’re telling us is true. What exactly do you expect us to do with this information?"

"I expect you to tell me the truth," Elias said. "I showed you mine, the folder, the book, the photos, everything I’ve discovered. Now you show me yours. What’s really going on with Bella? Why did you disappear for three nights? Where did you go?"

Silence stretched between them, thick with tension and calculation.

Rafe spoke first. "If we tell you, and you’re lying to us, you’ll get us all killed."

"I’m not lying."

"Prove it," Rafe challenged. "Give us something that shows you’re committed. Something that proves you’re on our side and not Maren’s."

Elias pulled out his phone again, but this time he opened his voice recorder app. "I recorded part of my conversation with Mallory’s group in the greenhouse. Listen."

He pressed play. Mallory’s voice came through, distorted but audible: "...Bella Rivers is a Moonblood. Do you know what that means?... She’s a threat to the order of this school, to Principal Maren’s authority..."

Then Mr. Thorne: "...We serve Principal Maren and her vision for maintaining order in the supernatural world. For decades, she’s kept dangerous elements under control..."

Elias stopped the recording. "I risked my life getting this. If they knew I recorded them, I’d already be dead."

Cassian’s expression had shifted from suspicion to respect. "You’re either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid."

"Probably both," Elias admitted. "But I’m also running out of time. In—" he checked his watch "—five hours and forty minutes, Mallory will be waiting for my answer in the greenhouse. If I don’t show up, she’ll know I’ve turned against them. If I do show up and refuse to cooperate, she’ll threaten me or worse."

He looked at each of them in turn. "So I need to know right now, are you going to help me, or am I on my own? Because either way, I’m not working for Maren. I’d rather die than help her hunt down an innocent girl."

The silence that followed felt eternal. Cassian looked at Rafe. Rafe looked at Luca. Luca looked back at Cassian. Some unspoken agreement passed between them.

Finally, Cassian spoke. "Killian’s in the infirmary. He got bitten by one of Maren’s enforcers last night when we were helping Bella. The bite’s infected with something supernatural, his fever won’t break, he’s getting weaker, and the nurse wants to transfer him to a hospital."

"Which would expose everything," Rafe added. "Human doctors would discover things that can’t be explained."

"We went to find Bella’s aunt Angela," Luca continued, his voice quiet but steady. "She had evidence about Maren, journals, photos, documentation of supernatural activity going back years. We got the evidence out, but Maren knows we left campus."

"How do you know she knows?" Elias asked.

"Because she came to find us," Cassian said grimly.

"So how about Bella?" Elias asked. "Where is she now?"

"Back on campus. In her dorm room, probably under the same surveillance we are." Cassian sat down heavily on his bed. "Maren’s scheduled her for twice-weekly ’counseling sessions.’ Which means Maren is getting closer to her, studying her, preparing for something."

"Preparing for what?"

The three boys exchanged one more glance. Then Cassian answered. "We think Maren is planning something big for Bella’s eighteenth birthday. That’s in less than three weeks. We don’t know exactly what, but everything points to that date being critical."

Elias felt his blood run cold. "The prophecy mentioned the eighteenth birthday. That’s when the True Silver fully awakens."

"True Silver?" Luca asked sharply.

"It’s in the book. The most powerful Moonblood ability, passed down through the bloodline. It awakens fully when the Moonblood turns eighteen." Elias picked up the leather-bound book from where Cassian had set it down. "That’s what Maren is waiting for. She wants Bella at full power before she makes her move."

"Why wait?" Rafe asked. "Why not just kill her now?"

"Because there are rules," Elias said, remembering Mallory’s words in the greenhouse. "Ancient laws that even Maren has to follow. She can’t just execute a Moonblood without cause.

Cassian stood abruptly. "Then we have less than three weeks to figure out how to stop her."

"We?" Elias asked carefully.

"You came here asking to help," Cassian said. "You brought us evidence, risked yourself getting information, and you’re about to become a target just like us. So yes, we. If you’re serious about this."

"I’m serious."

"Then we need to make a plan." Cassian pulled out a notebook and pen from his desk. "First priority: we need to help Killian. Whatever infected him from that bite, we need to figure out what it is and how to cure it before the nurse transfers him to a hospital."

"Second priority," Luca added, "we need to get this evidence to the Moonblood Council. Angela has the USB drive and journal, but she’s being hunted too. We need to make sure it reaches the right people."

"Third priority," Rafe said, "we need to protect Bella from Maren’s counseling sessions. Those aren’t therapy, they’re interrogations. Maren is going to try to break her, manipulate her, maybe even poison her like she did with the suppression powder her father used."

"What about midnight?" he asked. "What do I tell Mallory?"

Cassian looked at him thoughtfully. "You don’t tell her anything. You don’t show up."

"She’ll know I refused. She’ll come after me."

"Let her then," Rafe said with a cold smile. "We’ll be with you."