Adrian's POV
I should be thinking about a solution for my nightmares but currently that's not the main issue.
I could feel the way the council's members whispered when they thought I wasn't listening, the way their eyes darted away from mine only a heartbeat too late. Fear was supposed to be absolute. I had thought crushing the old regime, seizing the throne, would be enough to stamp it into their bones.
But it wasn't.
The council chamber was colder than usual this morning, the scent of blood still faint in the stone. It was the first meeting since the rebellion attempt had been crushed. Their faces were different now though, less proud and more cautious but the tension was thicker than ever. I could feel it bleeding from the stone walls.
They were not sure whether to bow or to sharpen their knives, well that's their problem.
