POV: ALESSIA DE LUCA VOLKOV
The fortress smelled like smoke.
Even two days after the attack, the scent lingered everywhere, burned stone, burned wood, burned blood.
Workers moved constantly throughout the estate, repairing damaged walls, replacing shattered windows, rebuilding sections of the eastern defenses.
Nobody spoke loudly anymore, not after what had happened, not after Kozlov, not after the battlefield and definitely not after Cassian’s declaration.
Anyone who wants her declares war on me.
The words had spread through the empire faster than the attack itself. Every soldier knew them, every council member knew them, every rival family knew them. Including me.
I stood in front of the mirror inside my room, adjusting the sleeves of a black fitted dress. Simple, elegant, powerfu
