Erick
The moment we stepped out of my mother’s chambers, I didn’t slow down. My strides were long, sharp, cutting through the silent hallway like a blade.
Behind me, I could hear Caleb’s footsteps uneven, nervous, struggling to keep up.
Good.
Let him sweat.
I didn’t stop until we reached the open terrace overlooking the eastern courtyard. The morning sun was bright, glimmering off the stone pillars, but it did nothing to warm the tightness in my chest.
Caleb visibly hesitated before joining me outside, as though unsure if walking beside me might get him killed.
He wasn’t wrong to wonder.
He drew in a breath, his voice shaky.
“Your Majesty… I…I know how it must have looked back there. I wasn’t intending to overstep and I wasn’t….”
“I didn’t ask you to explain.”
He flinched.
I
