#Chapter 34 Splinters

Routine helps. Or at least it should. I throw myself into it anyway. I wake before dawn, eat quickly, and lose myself in drills. I revise the guard logs and walk patrol routes I’ve already cleared. I recheck the reports we’ve compiled on Lady Chantarelle and review the known holdings tied to the estate. There’s nothing new, but repetition numbs the thoughts pressing in. Still, no matter how hard I focus, one line keeps surfacing in my mind, Prince Kaine’s voice from the other night. “You should.” I don’t know if it was a warning or just professional advice. Maybe it was both, maybe neither, but the way he said it... it hasn’t left me. Nara seems convinced. She stirs in the back of my thoughts, her presence heavier than usual. “He felt the bond”, she murmurs. “Even if he doesn’t understand it.” He doesn’t know, I answer quietly. “Doesn’t change what he feels. You heard the way he said it.” I shake my head and push the thought away. I’ve spent too long reminding myself t