Seraphine’s POV
The room was finally quiet. No council voices. No soft performances. No careful smiles.
Just silence.
I stood in front of the mirror near the edge of my chambers and slowly removed the earrings from my ears one after the other, dropping them onto the vanity table harder than necessary.
The sound echoed sharply through the room.
Everything inside me felt sharp tonight. Cassian had not returned. That alone told me enough.
I stared at my reflection for a long moment before laughing softly under my breath.
Of course it had gone wrong. Nothing stayed controlled anymore. Not Darius, the council not even Ironfang and not definitely Kaelira.
My jaw tightened at the thought of her.
Weeks ago, she was still easy to manage. Quiet. Isolated. Easy to speak over during council
