Morning did not arrive gently.
It crept in through the narrow windows, pale and uncertain, as though even the sun hesitated to witness what had shifted between us. I woke before the bells, before the servants, before the weight of the world could settle fully back onto my chest.
Cassian lay beside me, awake.
He was on his back, one arm folded beneath his head, eyes fixed on the ceiling as if he were bracing himself for something unseen. The closeness of him felt different now. Not softer. Not easier. Sharper, like the edge of a blade newly revealed.
"So this is what comes after truth," I thought. "Silence that is heavier than lies."
Neither of us spoke.
The kiss lingered in my body like an echo. Not the heat of it, but the restraint. The way he had stopped himself. The way I had let him.
I turned onto my side, studying his profile. In sleep he looked younger. Less carved by expectation. His lashes cast shadows against his cheek, his mouth set in a line that no longer seemed cruel, only tired.
"You look like a man who does not know what he has done," I thought.
He shifted slightly, sensing my gaze. His eyes met mine at once.
The room still carried the echo of everything we had not said.
Cassian stood up and neared the window, armor half fastened, the early light carving him into sharp edges and shadow. I watched him move, precise and distant, as though closeness had been a momentary lapse he was already correcting.
My chest tightened.
"If I do not ask now," I thought, "I never will."
"Why did you kill Rowan," I said.
He stilled.
The silence that followed was not angered, not defensive. It was heavy, as though the truth weighed enough to require preparation.
"You should not speak his name lightly," he said at last.
"I am already living with its consequences," I replied. "So I will speak it."
He turned slowly. His expression was unreadable, but something raw flickered beneath the surface.
"I did not kill him for politics," he said. "Nor for war."
My breath caught.
"Then why."
His jaw tightened. "Because he was trying to become too close to you."
The words struck harder than any shout.
"You killed a prince," I whispered, "because of me."
"No," he said firmly. "Because of myself."
I searched his face, shaken.
"I saw how easily you listened to him," he continued. "How naturally he spoke to you. And I realized that if I allowed that closeness to continue, I would lose something before I had even decided whether it was mine to want."
"You were jealous," I said softly.
"Yes."
The admission stunned me more than the act itself.
"I am not proud of it," he added. "But I will not lie to you."
The air between us felt tight, charged with something dangerous and intimate.
"I feel trapped," I said suddenly.
He frowned.
"The walls," I said. "The eyes. The silence. I feel like I am disappearing inside this place."
My fingers curled into the fabric of my gown.
"May I step outside the castle. Just once."
"No."
The word came sharp and immediate.
I flinched.
"I said please," I whispered.
He stepped closer, his voice lowering. "And I said no."
Anger flared in my chest. "You cannot keep me locked away like a threat."
His eyes hardened. "The outside is not safe."
"For whom," I demanded. "Me or your control."
He inhaled slowly, as if forcing himself to temper his tone. "For you. There are whispers. Enemies. If harm comes to you, it will not be forgiven."
I looked away, swallowing the ache in my throat.
Silence fell again.
This one was heavier.
"I hate this," I thought. "I hate that I understand him."
In the quiet, his gaze lingered on me longer than necessary. Something unreadable passed through his eyes. Something almost tender, quickly buried.
Cassian's Pov
"I should take her out when I return this evening," he thought, though he did not say it aloud. "Where no one watches. Where you can breathe."
I turned away before the thought softened me further.
A knock interrupted us.
A guard entered, bowing deeply. "Your Highness. The King summons you. Immediately."
Cassian's shoulders squared.
"I will come," I said quickly.
The guard withdrew.
For a moment, I hesitated, then crossed the room toward her. I stopped close, close enough that I could feel her warmth.
"Stay put, wife," I said quietly. "I will be back this evening."
Before she could answer, I leaned down and pressed a brief kiss to my forehead. Not possessive. Not demanding. Almost reverent.
Then I turned to leave.
Elowen's pov continued
I stood alone in the quiet chamber, heart pounding.
"He is beginning to love me," I thought. "And that may be the most dangerous thing of all."