I took the back servants' hallway back to the house, eyes sharp for shadows that didn’t belong.
My ears strained for footsteps, for whispers, for that same strange presence I’d felt earlier in the archives.
But the halls were empty.
Too empty.
By the time I stepped into the main hall again, the scent of the greenhouse clung to me, damp earth, brittle lavender, something old and wilting.
My thoughts were a blur, my heart a hammer in my chest. Every hallway felt narrower than before. Every creak underfoot like a countdown.
I just wanted to get back to the room.
I needed space. A moment to think. To breathe.
But as I rounded the corner, I stopped cold.
Aiden was standing there.
Right by the door to our chambers.
His back was to me at first, but when he sensed movement, he turned, a
