Chapter 71. Always

Lotus’s POV

The palace is quiet tonight. Too quiet.

After the attack, silence feels endless, as if the air itself is waiting for another attack. The healers have gone to rest, the guards have doubled their shifts, and yet the halls still hum with tension. Every shadow looks like a threat and I feel on edge.

I can’t sleep.

The walls of my room press against my mind, and I have to get out of here. So, I do. I wrap my cloak around myself and leave my room.

The corridors are dim, lit only by the moonlight shining through the windows. My footsteps echo faintly. I pass the shattered window in the east hall, the one where Alister first appeared. The glass has been swept away, but the scorch marks remain. My stomach twists, remembering his smile, his voice. The man who killed my father. The man who claims to own my blood.

I walk until the muscles in my legs burn, and by the time the sun climbs over the ridge, the Winter Palace is stirring again. Th