Chapter 339

DEREK’S POV The corridors were silent when I carried her back — the kind of silence that wasn’t peace, but the aftermath of chaos. Blood, soot, and smoke still clung faintly to the air. Outside, the healers were tending to the wounded, the sound of quiet sobs and the occasional groan breaking through the night. Inside, I could only hear the sound of her breathing. Aurelia had insisted she could walk, but I wasn’t taking chances. She didn’t fight me, though. Maybe she was too exhausted. Maybe she was thinking of everything that had just happened — the attack, the rogues, the shadows that had obeyed her command as though they were an extension of her will. When we reached her chamber, I set her gently on the bed. She looked pale, drained, but her eyes — gods, her eyes — were sharper than ever. There was a storm brewing behind them. For a long moment, neither of us spoke. I leaned against the edge of the desk, folding my arms, watching her. She looked so small and yet… so vast. Like someo