Aiden's legs still shook when the guards shoved him through the heavy door into the Empress's private war room.
Blood and dust caked his white hair. New fracture lines glowed faintly under the skin of his jaw and neck. His golden eyes had gone flat after the cathedral fight.
The door slammed shut behind him. The harem women stayed outside in the antechamber. He heard their low voices through the wood before the room sealed.
The Empress waited alone. Amber hair pinned tight, red eyes unblinking. A single lamp burned on the map table. She poured dark wine into a metal cup and slid it across the scarred wood.
"Drink," she said. Her voice carried no softness. She stayed on her feet while he dropped into the chair. She leaned over the table, close enough that her sleeve brushed his shoulder.
