CHAPTER 104
The next day, Grace walked slowly in the corridor, her steps echoing, her breath shallow. She had been unable to sleep. The recent announcement of an heir had momentarily shifted the kingdom's attention.
She pressed a hand against the cold wall, willing herself forward. It was then that she saw him.
At first, she thought it was a trick of the firelight. The outline of a man standing at the far end of the hallway, unmoving. But as she drew closer, her chest tightened. She recognized the set of his shoulders, the tilt of his head. Even in the flicker of flame, she knew that face.
Commander Robert.
Her breath hitched, and she staggered back, gripping the wall as though it were the only thing keeping her upright.
"No" she whispered, her voice a thin strand of air. "You are gone, I buried you. I made sure of that".
But he said nothing. He only stood, his eyes fixed on her, hollow yet piercing, as if all the weight of his death rested inside that silent stare.
