Sonia’s POV
Alexander arrived less than sixty seconds later.
I felt his presence before I saw him.
The sudden stillness in the guards.
The way the air tightened.
His gaze found me.
Not angry.
Not cold.
Afraid.
A deeper, harder fear than I had ever seen in him.
“Sonia,” he said.
Just my name.
But it carried a question that was too heavy to speak aloud.
I looked at the space behind the hedge.
Then back at him.
“I didn’t leave the property,” I said quietly. “I just stepped where your eyes couldn’t see me for a moment.”
His chest rose slowly.
“And why did you want to be somewhere I couldn’t protect you?”
The question cut deeper than an accusation would have.
“Because I needed to know if I was still allowed to be unseen,” I replied softly.
Silence fell hard between us.
The
