SERAPHINA’S POV
Sleep had become…unreliable.
Not absent—my body still gave in to exhaustion when it had to—but fractured in a way that left me more uneasy than rested, anxiety constantly humming beneath my skin.
It made me miss the bracelet Lucian had given me. And missing the bracelet made me think of Lucian.
And thinking of Lucian added to the restlessness I was already feeling with everything else.
Because it wasn’t bad enough that the days were long and arduous, filled with planning and strategy meetings, my nights were also plagued by dreams that refused to be ignored.
Tonight’s own might have been the worst.
***
I was standing in a corridor I did not recognize.
White walls rose on both sides, and it had the kind of sterile brightness that swallowed shadows instead of casting them, making everything feel flat and disorienting.
A stifling blend of salt and metal filled the air, forcing me to breathe shallowly.
