The moonlight spilled through the stained glass windows of the empty war room, casting fractured patterns across the marble floor. I sat alone in the high-backed chair, the same one I used to command with pride. Now, the silence mocked me. No guards. No allies. Just the weight of my own decisions pressing like a stone against my chest.
I leaned forward, elbows on the table, staring at the decanter of whiskey I hadn’t touched. I didn’t need its warmth. I needed her.
“Lena,” I murmured her name like a curse and a prayer.
The last time I saw her, her eyes weren’t pleading anymore. They were fierce, glowing with a strength I never expected from her. It should’ve made me turn away. Instead, it burned into my soul.
“Regretting it finally?”
I turned my head. Vivienne stood in the doorway, ar
