The heavy iron gates of Ravenswatch slammed shut behind them.
The sound echoed through the fortress like a prison door closing.
Evadne looked back instinctively.
The bridge they had crossed moments ago now seemed impossibly far away.
This place wasn’t built to welcome visitors.
It was built to keep someone inside.
Or…
To keep everyone else out.
⸻
The captain of the Council Guard led them through long stone corridors lit by iron braziers.
Unlike Castle Blackthorn, Ravenswatch felt lifeless.
No servants hurried through the halls.
No noble voices echoed from distant chambers.
Only guards.
Every twenty paces.
Watching.
Waiting.
Their hands never strayed far from their swords.
⸻
Finally, the captain stopped before two enormous oak doors bound with black iron.
“The Royal Coun
