Chapter 34 - Chapter 34: Crown Prince's Perspective
The words felt like a bucket of ice water. My blood ran cold.
"Explain."
"She was at the church. But she and... the Master Priest are gone. He left a note."
The Master Priest. Even hearing the title made my skin crawl. Why was Rachel gone with him?
"A note?"
"Here it is."
Roger handed me a piece of paper. Please forgive me for throwing everything away for the sake of love.
"An elopement?" Cyril muttered behind me.
No. I touched the letter in my breast pocket. Rachel had denied any such relationship. She had said she had something to tell me when I returned. "That's impossible," I snapped.
"I agree," Cyril said.
"Then it's that priest."
The note wasn't in Rachel's handwriting. It was his. I felt the rage boiling over. Love? How dare he use that word. I could still see his face from the other day. The thought of him with Rachel made my blood boil. I tried to stay calm, but the irritation was overwhelming.
"What were you doing, Roger?"
"I... I was at the door. An orphan brought cookies. I remember eating one... then nothing. I woke up hours later on a sofa."
"Drugged."
The priest had used Roger's kindness against him. He knew Roger was an orphan and cared for the children. He used that. "I will accept any punishment," Roger said. I wanted to scream at him, but it wouldn't bring Rachel back.
"Punishment comes later. Find her."
My voice was cold. Roger looked up, a spark of determination returning to his eyes. "We go to the church immediately."
We reached the church at night. The sisters were in a panic. They hadn't seen them leave. The priest had told them Roger was just tired. We searched his room. Nothing on the desk but church business. I slammed my fist onto the wood. We were losing time.
"Your Highness, look. A false bottom."
Cyril found a stash of letters from the Watteau family. "I'll check these," Cyril said. I kept searching, tearing the room apart. I had to find her. I didn't know the area, didn't know where they could hide. Every second was agony.
"Wow, Louis. Did you switch professions to burglary?"
Theodore stood there, holding Kuro. "Not now, Theodore!" I snapped. He was grinning, which only made me angrier. "Listen to me," he said. "That case I was investigating? It's forbidden magic. A 'Spirit Killer' spell. They're after this cat. And the cat can lead us to Rachel."
I stared at the black cat. "Lead us."