The saloon had been designed to look effortless.
Open air, warm lantern light, low music that bled into the night without becoming intrusive, enough to make conversations feel private even when they weren't.
Andrew sat with his back to a carved wooden pillar, a position that let him watch the entrance, the bar, and the terrace without looking like he was doing any of that. Old habits didn't leave simply because you'd been handed a title and told to smile.
His phone buzzed against the table.
Andrew glanced down, expecting a staff update or one of Milo's carefully worded reminders about appearances, and instead found Chris.
A simple message.
'Tomorrow. We'll be in the capital.'
Andrew stared at it for a second longer than necessary, because his chest always tightened whenever Chris reached out like this, casually, like he hadn't spent most of his life surviving other people's decisions.
'Tomorrow.'
Which meant Dax would be in Palatine's capital tomorrow as well.
