For Her

I swallowed hard, gripping the edges of the table.

"You and I are nothing to each other now." Her voice still haunted me. Cold. Final.

I tried to focus on the maps. On troop formations. On battle strategies.

But my mind kept slipping. Her blood had been on my hands. She had touched me, held me—saved me, even when she shouldn't have. And I had repaid her by breaking her.

"General."

Kaleb's voice cut through my haze. I exhaled slowly and lifted my head. The room had gone silent. Every gaze was on me. Expectant. Waiting.

I forced my voice to remain steady. "Tell me our options."

One of the commanders stepped forward. "We can send reinforcements to the southern border immediately, but they won't reach in time. Kaius' army is too close. We need to move now."

I nodded stiffly. "Then we ride at dawn."

The commanders exchanged glances. They knew what this meant. I wouldn't just be sending an army.

I was leading it.