The hidden passage behind Kaelira’s chamber changed everything.
She hadn’t slept.
Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the words carved into the stone.
I’ve been watching you since childhood.
Someone had known where she lived.
Someone had known who she was.
Someone had lived inside the palace walls long before she ever arrived.
By morning, Kaelira had reached one painful conclusion.
She could no longer rely on anyone else’s investigation.
If she wanted the truth…
She would have to uncover it herself.
So she sent four identical messages.
Each prince was to meet her alone in the Queen’s Solar.
No guards.
No advisors.
No brothers.
Just the two of them.
Darian arrived first.
He stood before her with his usual calm confidence, though she noticed the dark circles beneath his
