Chapter 25
Elara’s POV
The days after the poisoning passed in a haze of restless nights and suspicious days. Every plate of food, every cup of water, every servant’s gaze felt like a possible threat. She ate only sparingly and insisted on pouring her own wine, her own water, her own tea—though she knew even that could be tampered with before it reached her. Still, the act gave her control, however fragile.
But what disturbed her most was not the fear. It was the knowledge that someone in the palace—someone with access—had tried to kill her. She could not dismiss the shadow of betrayal that now hovered over everything.
So, she threw herself into study.
The palace library was cavernous, and though she had visited it before, she had never seen it as she did now: a fortress of knowledge,
