Tobi’s POV
The castle had a heartbeat tonight, and it wasn’t mine.
A knock came at the door like a gunshot. I was already standing. A footman handed me the message tube with trembling hands—no words, just wide eyes. I knew before I cracked the seal that it had something to do with her.
Princess Lila has exited her chambers. She is alone. The fountain. Appears calm. Observing from distance. —A.
I vaulted down the staircase, taking three steps at a time. The palace corridors blurred around me as my mind filled with images I couldn’t stop: Lila pale and unconscious in the water. Her delicate body limp in my arms. That moment of almost losing her—again.
I would not lose her. Not tonight. Not ever.
I burst through the east courtyard doors into the night air, feet pounding across the garde
