Chrysantha's POV
The night air was damp, and heavy with the scent of rain-soaked earth. I slipped out of the packhouse long after the halls had gone quiet, and my cloak was pulled tight around my shoulders. Every step away from Henry’s chambers felt like a betrayal, but also a liberation.
He had chosen me once for power and for alliance but Elara’s return had cracked that fragile bond. His silence, his hesitation, the way he defended that woman… it replayed in my mind like an open wound.
The vial of the wolfsbane extension pressed against my hip. I needed something stronger. Something irreversible.
The forest swallowed me as I moved deeper into the shadows. Branches clawed at my cloak, and owls hooted overhead, but I pressed on, guided by memory and hunger. At last, the trees opened i
