The carriage rolled through the palace gates just as the sky began to dim.
Inside, the ride back felt ordinary.
Ava leaned against the seat, stretching her legs slightly.
“That market was way too crowded for something that was supposed to be simple observation.”
Lyra sat upright beside Jasmina, silent for most of the journey.
Jasmina kept her hands folded in her lap, gaze lowered.
“I just got turned around,” she said eventually, voice steady.
Ava glanced at her.
“Yeah, happens fast in places like that.”
Lyra didn’t argue.
She only gave a small nod, like she was accepting the simplest explanation available.
The carriage slowed as they approached the inner courtyard.
When they stepped down, the palace greeted them in its usual rhythm.
Servants moved between halls.
Guards resumed their positions.
The stone corridors carried their usual quiet discipline.
No one stopped them.
No one questioned them.
They simply returned to their assigned paths, as if the day had unfolded exactly as expected.
Ava yawned lightly.
“I’m going to pretend that was productive.”
Lyra adjusted her sleeves. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
“We completed the route.”
Jasmina didn’t respond much.
She simply continued walking with them until their paths split.
Later, Jasmina found herself alone in her assigned corridor.
The palace had already moved on to its next cycle of work.
She paused briefly near a window, looking out at the gardens below.
The memory of the alley surfaced again—not as a full scene, but as fragments.
A narrow space.
Movement too fast.
A moment she didn’t fully think through.
She exhaled slowly and continued walking.
Far outside the palace structure, on one of the higher return routes through the city’s upper lanes, a carriage had paused briefly before continuing its journey.
Adrian stood at the edge of it for a moment, looking down over the city.
Still.
Quiet.
His expression didn’t change as he observed the movement below.
The men from earlier had already scattered long before now.
There was no need to track them further.
They understood enough to avoid repeating what they had seen.
That was sufficient.
“We are ready to proceed, my lord.”
Adrian didn’t turn.
“Proceed,” he said.
And the carriage moved again.
That night, the palace settled into its usual silence.
Jasmina returned to her quarters without interruption.
Ava had already gone back to her duties earlier in the evening.
Lyra had been reassigned to another section of the palace for routine tasks.
The corridors remained calm.
Controlled.
Unremarkable.
Jasmina stood by the window in her room, watching the dim lights across the palace grounds.
Her fingers rested lightly at her side.
She wasn’t trying to understand what had happened earlier anymore.
Only remembering that something inside her had reacted before she could stop it.
A knock came at the door.
Ava entered briefly, checking in before leaving again just as quickly.
“You’re quiet,” she said.
“I’m fine,” Jasmina replied.
Ava gave a small nod.
“Good.”
And then she left.