Clouds concealed much of the moonlight, leaving the grounds cloaked in shadows. A cool breeze rustled through the trees as the small group moved silently across the landscape. Torben led them confidently, relying on knowledge no outsider possessed. He knew the old side passage hidden behind the eastern wall and the concealed servants' door that had once allowed him to sneak out of the castle during his youth for midnight adventures.
Now he returned not as a prince, but as an intruder.
The irony never occurred to him.
The group moved carefully to avoid the patrolling guards. Torben guided them through the narrow passage and concealed entrance without making a sound. The familiar halls stretched before him, illuminated only by scattered sconces that bathed the path ahead with light.
Once inside, he split the group.
Three loyalists moved off to keep watch and alert the others if anything went wrong. Torben took the remaining two men with him and went in search of the nursery.
