Kaylah froze at the doorway, the air thick with the scent of parchment and ink. The rhythmic scratch of a quill was the only sound in the grand chamber, which the future emperor called her studyroom, cold and oppressive under the setting sun's crimson glow. Behind the heavy mahogany desk sat Caroline—soon to be the emperor of the realm. Her pen glided across documents with unhurried precision, her focus unbroken even as the trembling woman before her struggled to find her voice.
"Why are you here, Kaylah?" Caroline asked, her tone as soft as silk yet sharp enough to draw blood. Without looking up from the paper she was signing, she added, "Are you here to beg for your lover?"
