The sleep had been light, restless, more of a pause than true rest. When I opened my eyes, the sky beyond the large windows had turned a deep gray, as if the entire castle were trapped in a bubble of fog and silence. I sat up slowly, still stiff, and felt it immediately: his absence.
Lucian wasn't there.
His side of the bed remained untouched, the sheets cold, stretched out with precision. Not a wrinkle, not the slightest indication that he had shared the night with me. Only the subtle emptiness of his absent presence, more overwhelming than any word.
I sat on the edge of the mattress, my feet sliding across the soft carpet, and let the silence fill my lungs. Something inside me pulsed strongly. It wasn't fear. Not anxiety either. It was something deeper... like a crack.
