Beneath the Surface

Seraphine remained still long after Kaelith had left.

Her breath was steady, her posture composed—but inside, her mind was racing.

Kaelith was testing her, pushing her, searching for cracks in her carefully built walls.

And tonight, she had given him something.

Not a confession. Not yet.

But she had reacted.

Damn him.

Seraphine turned to the mirror, pressing her fingers to the spot where his hand had lingered against her collarbone. The warmth of his touch still burned there, an unspoken challenge.

She had spent years mastering the art of deception—but Kaelith was a different kind of opponent.

He did not simply interrogate. He seduced.

Not for pleasure. For control.

And for the first time, Seraphine wondered—had she underestimated him?

A knock at the door pulled her from her thoughts.

Lyria slipped inside, her expression tight with worry. "The prince's spies… they're moving more aggressively."

Seraphine's pulse quickened. "How do you know?"

"One of them approached one of our contacts outside the palace." Lyria hesitated. "He disappeared an hour later."

Seraphine's stomach turned cold.

Kaelith wasn't just watching anymore.

He was eliminating obstacles.

She clenched her fists.

The game between them had shifted.

And if she did not move carefully, she would be the next piece to fall.