Agatha
The night was silent when I slipped from the manor, Sooj close at my heels. The moon lay half-hidden in clouds, weak and timid, as though it knew better than to witness where I was going. I pulled the hood tighter over my swollen face. The bruises still ached from where those barbaric Fiato twins had struck me, but pain was a small thing. Pain could be hidden. What mattered now was power, and power demanded that I act quickly.
Sooj carried the satchel, his eyes darting nervously to every corner.
“Are you certain, my lady?” He whispered. “If we are caught…”
“Do not be foolish,” I snapped, keeping my voice low but sharp enough to cut. “They are too busy licking Mia’s feet to notice I am gone.” The name dripped like poison from my tongue. Mia. That cursed girl. Every step she took
