Valerie’s POV
The air was thick with the scent of dusk and rising tension. I moved quickly across my room, the soft rustle of my silk dress brushing my thighs as I rushed to apply the last strokes of eyeliner. The powder puff danced across my cheekbones, but my heart wasn’t in it. My fingers trembled. Not because of nerves, but urgency.
Alaric hadn’t spoken to me.. in days. Thalia had come between us and I was going to make her pay.
I glanced toward the window. The sky was a mix of fading lavender and bruised gray. Clouds loomed, slow and threatening. I padded over, heels clicking softly on the polished stone floor, and pulled the curtain aside to check again.
Still no rain, but the pressure in the air warned otherwise.
“Come on, come on,” I mumbled, tossing the curtain back in place
