"Jack!" Octavia's voice echoed through the marble corridors of the Kaiser estate, sharp enough to cut crystal. "Jack, where the hell are you?"
She paused at the intersection of two hallways, listening for any response that wasn't the distant clatter of servants or the soft whisper of morning breeze through open windows.
Nothing.
Octavia tried to quell the growing knot of irritation in her stomach. Three trade contracts needed his signature, two diplomatic responses required his personal seal, and a merchant delegation from House Meridian was arriving within the hour expecting to negotiate directly with the heir of Sorne.
And Jack had simply vanished.
She spotted Celeste gliding down the hallway ahead, humming something that sounded suspiciously like a drinking song set to a funeral march.
"Celeste," Octavia called, quickening her pace. "Have you seen our brother this morning?"
