The carriage rolled through empty roads. Dark countryside giving way to familiar territory.
Alaric sat alone now. Leaned against the seat but not relaxed.
His eyes tracked the passing landscape through the window. Trees. Shadows. Empty fields bathed in moonlight.
Someone could be following me?
He'd already dropped Teryn and Delphine at their place.
Watched them stumble inside, Delphine still half-asleep, Teryn supporting her weight. He had made sure that they were secure before leaving.
Now it was just him and an empty carriage heading home.
His hand rested near his coat.
Minutes passed. The road stayed empty.
Just silence and wheels turning.
Nothing. No one's following.
Alaric's jaw loosened slightly.
The Queen is just... letting me leave? No tail? No surveillance?
Either she trusted him more than made sense. Or—
She doesn't need to follow. She can probably track me whenever she wants.
That thought was less comforting.
