Page 12 of The Royal Flame (The Royal Academy #3)

“The closet, probably,” he replies, crossing the room to the closet that’s in the far back corner. He flips on more lights and then begins sifting through boxes stacked on the shelves. I remain in the closet doorway, unsure if he wants me rummaging through his mother’s belongings.

Eventually, he pauses and glances up at me. “It’s okay if you look through stuff. It’ll make this go quicker.”

“I just wasn’t sure if you wanted me looking through your mother’s stuff.” I step past him, heading for a large trunk.

As I pass by him, he leans in and softly kisses me on the cheek.

I flit him a puzzled look. “What was that for?”

He shrugs. “I just wanted to kiss you.”

I bite down on my bottom lip then move past him and kneel onto the floor in front of the trunk.

I unlock it and open the lid, surprised to find that there are only a few items inside: a stack of family photos, some dried flowers, a few papers, and a dress—nothing of real importance.

I think back to the secret spot where I hid my money.

It was in a drawer with a false bottom. I’d dumped a bunch of nonsense items into the drawer to throw my mom off if she looked in it.

It's a total whim and I don’t expect it to lead anywhere, so when I tap on the bottom of the trunk, and it sounds hollow, I’m as surprised as hell. I trace my fingers along the wood, searching for a crack or a divot?—

“Jackpot,” I mumble as the bottom shifts, and I’m able to lift it out.

“What is it?” River asks as he steps up behind me. “Wait, does that have a false bottom?

“Yep.” I pick up the items inside: a few papers, photos, a key, a book, and what appears to be a journal.

I hand River the journal, book, and key. He opens the journal first, and then I sort through the papers.

“This is a deed to some property in Scotland,” I tell him. “It looks like there's a castle and land. Does your mom own a castle?”

“Not that I know of.” He skims through the journal, turning the page.

That’s when I note the name on the deed. “The owner of this property is listed as Ellie Clairford.”

His attention darts to me. “Is that your aunt—or mom, I mean.”

I nod, handing the papers to him, shock seeping through me.

He takes the deed and examines it while I sort through the photos. A group of women are in them, and Ellie is present in every single one.

“What the hell is going on?” Shaking my head, I push to my feet. “Ellie is in these photos. Is any of these women your mom?”

River sets the journal and deed down on a bench and takes the photos from me. As he looks through them, he grows even more confused.

“My mom’s in every single one of these,” he tells me as I open the book.

On the first page is written: The Royal Flame. For those who are tired of seeing innocent royals burn.

I open the book and skim-read the first few pages.

“So, did you know there was a secret rebellion society in the royal world?” I ask River as I glance up from the book.

“No… Is that what that book is?”

“I think so. And I also think our moms were part of it.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah, and apparently, this society has been around for decades, and their main goal is to end the corruption of the Royal world.”

He takes the book from me and begins to read while I return to looking through the photos. Upon first glance, they look like ordinary women, but each one has the same ring: gold with a flame-like crest.

“These are the photos of the women in the society,” I declare. “Do you know any more of them?”

He nods. “Most of them but not all.”

“Search their names and see if they’re missing too.”

“Good idea.” He gives me the book and then retrieves his phone from his pocket.

After a few minutes of searching, he sinks onto the bench. “Every single one of the women that I recognize is missing. Some aren’t labeled as missing with the police, but there’s articles about them being on,” he makes air quotes, “ ‘sabbaticals’ for months.”

My heart is pounding in my chest, and as my blood pressure spikes, my legs wobble.

I sink onto the floor. “That means either these women in this society were so terrified that they went into hiding. Or someone did something to them.”

Silence stretches between us.

“My mom said a war might be coming,” River says. “What if this is the start of it?”

“I—” My phone vibrates from inside the pocket of my pajama shorts. I startle but quickly fish it out only to wish I hadn’t.

The text message is from an unknown number, and what it says makes fear flood my body more potently than when I woke up in the woods.

Unknown: I know who you are, Maddison. I know what royal blood runs through your veins. The war has started and let the hunt begin.

“What is it?” River asks me.

I almost don’t want to show him the message out of fear he’ll freak out. But secrets have a way of biting their way out, so I hand him my phone. When he reads the message, he visibly pales.

“We need to find out who this is,” he says in a low tone.

Easier said than done.

I must have a panicked look on my face because he sets the phone down and cups my face between his hands.

“Hey.” He levels his gaze with mine. “Everything will be okay. I won’t let anything happen to you.” His voice rings with so much passion that I almost believe him.

But coming from where I am, I know nothing is as simply as a mere promise.

And whether we like it or not, we don’t have complete control over the situation.

Not until we figure out who’s hunting me.

I swallow hard at the reality.

I’m being hunted.

Part of me wishes I could just go back to being a nother sider, because I’m starting to learn that royal blood comes with a lot of danger.