A Queen's Wrath

Melody.

The world seemed to freeze when I heard Julia's voice. There was no mistaking it—her command echoed in the town square, sharp, unforgiving. My blood ran cold, the weight of the moment pressing down on me like a crushing weight. I turned slowly, hoping against hope that I had misunderstood, that I could somehow twist the truth and make everything okay again.

But her eyes—those cold, crimson eyes—locked onto mine from across the street. They were darker than I remembered, filled with something twisted and alien, a hatred that burned with an intensity I had never seen before. She knew. She knew exactly what I had done.