The fire had burned out hours ago, leaving only the faint chill of stone. She had tried—closing her eyes, shifting onto her side, turning this way and that—but still, sleep refused to come. Instead, she lay in that quiet, staring at the ceiling until the light shifted across it, her heart aching with the weight of questions that had no answers.
At some point she rose, wrapping her shawl tighter around her shoulders, and crossed to the tall windows. The grounds below the castle stretched silent in the morning mist. It should have been peaceful. Instead, it felt like the world was holding its breath, waiting for her to step forward into it.
