The crisp night air of the palace gardens offered a welcome relief from the suffocating heat and heavy perfume of the royal gala. Fountains carved from white marble trickled softly into stone basins, their waters reflecting the pale light of the silver moon. Hedge mazes sculpted into intricate geometric shapes cast long, dark shadows across the gravel pathways, screening the secluded corners of the estate from the prying eyes of the high court.
Evelyn walked with quiet, measured grace, the heavy midnight-velvet of her dress rustling softly against the neatly trimmed boxwood.
She had slipped away from the reception hall the moment the noble council’s attention turned to the annual trade reports. She knew where Alexander would go. A warrior accustomed to open battlefields and northern s
