Chapter 400: Shadows Of Truth
Astrid's POV
The dungeon was cold, the air damp and heavy with the scent of mildew and rusted iron.
Shadows danced on the rough stone walls as the faint light flickered, casting a dim, suffocating glow.
Killian stood beside me, his jaw tight and his arms crossed, every line of his body radiating tension.
Across from us, Andros sat slumped against the wall of his cell, his hands loosely bound in front of him.
His face was a mask of indifference, his eyes distant and unfocused as if he were a world away. He didn't look at
us, didn't even flinch as we approached.
"Andros," | said, keeping my voice steady.
He didn't move. His breathing was even, his gaze fixed somewhere over my shoulder.
Killian took a step forward, his boots echoing on the stone floor. "Are you working with the rogues?" he
demanded, his voice hard, cutting through the silence like a blade.
Nothing. Not even a flicker of recognition.
Killian's fists clenched at his sides. "Answer me, Andros. Are you one of them?”
| studied Andros carefully, searching for any sign of reaction, but his face was an empty canvas. It was as if we
weren't even there.
Killian and | expected this, that he would refuse to cooperate. In the past, he would rather be killed than to ask
for forgiveness.
The silence stretched, growing heavier with each passing second. My patience frayed, but | forced myself to
remain calm.
"Your silence speaks for you," | said, taking a step closer to the iron bars. "If you won't deny it, then | can only
assit's true."
That caught his attention. Andros's eyes finally shifted, the faintest flicker of annoyance crossing his features.
He turned his head slightly, his gaze landing onfor the first time.
"And how long have you been working with them?" | pressed, keeping my voice sharp.
His lips twitched faintly, as if amused by the question. He leaned back against the wall, letting the silence hang
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtfor a moment longer before answering.
"The only t| worked with them," he said, his voice quiet but clear, "was when | made a deal with them.
Once."
Killian stiffened beside me, his breath audible in the silence. | swallowed, the weight of his words sinking in.
"A deal?" | asked, my tone colder now. "You mean the deal that ended with our father dead?"
The shift was immediate. Andros's composure cracked like a fragile mask dropped to the floor.
His distant gaze faltered, his lips twitching again, this tnot in amusement but in something that looked
painfully close to regret.
He blinked, his lashes fluttering against the faint sheen of moisture in his eyes.
His mouth opened as if to speak, but no sound cout. For a moment, he was
no longer the cold, indifferent brother who had stood over our father's body without a shred of remorse.
He was someone else entirely-someone who looked almost... broken.
But | couldn't let myself believe it.
If there's something | regret from what happened in the past, that would be trusting him.
Back then, | used to think that he was a kind man, a loving brother, and a filial son.
He welcomedentirely as his half sister, unlike Asha who had remained hostile to me.
Little did I know, it was all an act.
And this emotion that he is showing right now could be an act as well.
Andros is a better actor than Giselle. | had to be more vigilant against him.
| scoffed at the sliver of emotion that crossed his face, refusing to believe it. "It's too late for you to show
emotion, don't you think?"
Andros's gaze sharpened, his indifference slipping into something heavier as his dark eyes locked onto mine.
"Think what you want to think," he said, his voice steady, the faintest edge of defiance lacing his tone. "But what
I said earlier is the truth."
| narrowed my eyes, searching his expression for any sign of deceit. But Andros,
as always, was a fortress-his features gave away nothing concrete.
The flicker of emotion | had seen earlier was gone, replaced by that familiar wall of indifference.
Killian shifted beside me, his breath
unsteady "Since you refuse to tell us about your connection to the
rogues," he began, his voice colder now, then I'll ask a different
question."
| turned to him, noticing the way his jaw tensed, the muscle jumping beneath his
skin.
He looked as if he were wrestling with his own emotions, every word he spoke weighted with something more
than anger.
"Did you know about Rowena's
plans?" Killian's LogReTRlihd
Sapper eartbeat, the
rdom seemed to grow colder. The
content is on novelenglish.net! Read
the latest chapter there!
Andros tilted his head, his brows
lifting faintly, as if Killian's question
was unexpected: hee) curved into
alghdst of a smile-not mocking, but
resigned. "Yes." The content is on
novelenglish.net! Read the latest
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm
chapter there!
The single word echoed in the silence, strikinglike a physical blow. | stared at him, my breath hitching.
He didn't elaborate, didn't offer anything more. Just that one, damning word.
Killian stiffened, his hands curling
into fists at his RY (spute fedlithe
“ bréwing Bs) € him, the conflict
he'was trying so hard to suppress.
"When?" he asked, his voice rough, almost breaking. "When did you meet her?”
Andros leaned back against the wall,
his gaze sliding to Killian. "She found
me," he said simply, his tone flat,
devoid of any emotion. "She
approached me."
The air between us grew heavier, the weight of his words settling over all of us. |
glanced at Killian, his golden eyes dark with pain.
"She found you," Killian repeated "How long?"
Andros's lips twitched slightly, but there was no amusement in his expression. "A
few months after | was banished. She trackeddown."
Killian's breathing grew unsteady, his hands trembling as he stared at Andros. "Why?"
Andros tilted his head, his eyes narrowing slightly. "I never knew it at first until she introducedto the Rogue
King."