Chapter 75. Ashes and Allegiances

Soft sunlight filtered through slender blinds, painting parallel lines across Harper’s face. She lay half-naked in Knox’s arms, the afterglow of intimacy scattered across their bodies like embers. He slept with one arm draped over her waist, warm and steady. For a moment, the world outside—Ledger, the Council, Elira, the Nightmarket—seemed distant, inconsequential.

Harper closed her eyes, trying to prolong the illusion. But her chest tightened. Memories of the file she’d discovered flickered: assassination planning, Councilor Gage’s disappearance, Elira’s tenuous hold on truth. Trust had been currency, betrayal was bankruptcy. She’d made them pay—but they hadn’t paid enough.

She sat up, tracing Knox’s silhouette in the morning light. His chest rose and fell rhythmically, the rise of a man who believed in something bigger than codes. She brushed her lips across his shoulder, whispering, “I have to go back.”

He didn’t awaken. Good. She eased out of bed and pulled on