Darius POV
The door clicked shut behind me. Carefully not to wake anyone in the hallway.
Beatrice was already awake. Sitting up in bed with the moonlight catching her hair. She smiled when she saw me.
"You're late," she said.
"Had to wait for Kaelen to finish his patrol." I crossed the room and sat on the edge of her bed. The mattress dipped under my weight. The floorboards had creaked twice on my way in. "He's more paranoid than usual."
"Can you blame him?" She reached for my hand, her fingers were cool. They wrapped around mine like they belonged there. "After what you told Theron today?"
I threaded my fingers through hers. Felt the calluses on her palms from years of servant work, they were fading now. Softening with time and care. But they were still there. A reminder of everythi
