Meanwhile in the Castle
Ciel's POV
I jolted awake, drenched in sweat. Serena… Her name echoed in my skull like a curse. Dawn had already broken, and golden light filtered through my window—mocking me with its serenity.
I pushed myself out of the chair and walked, no—staggered—toward the garden. Each step was a battlefield, haunted by the fragments of my nightmare. Her screams, the look in her eyes when they dragged her away. No, she has to be safe. I told myself. She has to be.
I clenched my fists as my boots crunched over gravel. The guilt was eating me alive. I failed her. I let them take her.
With a growl, I slammed my fist into the stone wall. "Damn it!"
I had to stay calm. I had to. I couldn't afford to spiral. Not now. Not when she needed me. "Jason!" I barked.
He appeared at once. "Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Any word from the demons I sent to search?"
"None, Your Majesty."
I cursed under my breath. "And the investigation on the spy?"
