The hammering of the water still thrummed in the glass when Sera turned away.
She did not check the stars webbing the panes again, did not spare the harbor a last look. She faced the men instead, dry-eyed, voice flat and steady as a line.
"There are rooms set up for all of you. Try to get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to come soon enough."
It wasn't a suggestion.
She left them standing with that and disappeared down the hall like a switch had been flipped. The door to the master suite closed without fuss. Whatever the ocean decided to do next, it could decide without her.
They didn't argue.
Zubair stayed a breath longer than the others, shoulders squared toward the stairwell door as if expecting it to breathe.
When Sera's look cut across him—brief and unimpressed—he inclined his head once and followed.
