EVERYTHING had happened in the blink of an eye. Thalia now sat on the divan in her chamber, her posture stiff as Selia and the other maids hurried to wipe away the remnants of rotten tomatoes and eggs from her body. The stench clung stubbornly to her skin and hair, but she barely flinched. Her mind was somewhere else entirely, suspended in a haze of shame and exhaustion. Without protest, she allowed them to guide her to the bath. The cold water dripped onto her skin, sending small shivers down her spine, but she didn’t complain. The day had worn her thin, mentally and emotionally, to the point where all she wanted now was to shut her mind off and disappear into silence. Then, as if drawn by some cruel twist of fate, the image of the Emperor surfaced in her thoughts. Emperor Kallixto. Of al
