Chapter 43

• The silence in the chamber was thick, suffocating. Aiden stood by the window, his back tense, his fingers digging into the stone ledge as if grounding himself. Lydia watched him carefully, her mind racing.
• He was slipping away from her. She could feel it.
• Aiden had always been complicated—torn between duty, power, and emotions he refused to acknowledge. But tonight, something was different. The way he looked at her, the coldness in his voice—it terrified her.