Chapter 22: Thorns and Roses

The next morning dawned gray and oppressive, the kind of sky that pressed low against the earth. Heavy clouds hung like bruises across the horizon, promising rain that never quite fell.

The estate was already stirring with the familiar rhythms of daily life—servants’ footsteps echoing faintly down the stone corridors, the distant clatter of breakfast preparations, the low murmur of guards changing shifts.

I sat on the edge of the mattress, my bare feet cold against the stone floor, staring across the room at Karl’s cloak where it lay draped over the back of a chair. The fabric was heavy and black. Even from this distance, I could catch faint traces of his scent.

I had meant to return it. The garment had been in my possession for nearly a week now, ever since that terrible night when Karl had covered my exposed body after Kael’s humiliation. Every morning I told myself today would be the day I finally returned what wasn’t