Chapter 34 What Burns Beneath Armor

• The war room was thick with dust and silence when they entered. Long-abandoned scrolls were strewn across the table, half-written reports of border threats, troop movements, and council decisions that had piled up in their absence. Espen took her place across from Mikko, leaning slightly against the heavy oak table, her fingers brushing the rim of an ink-stained scroll.
• They reviewed reports, delegated matters to aides, signed parchment after parchment with crisp, impatient strokes. Yet Mikko barely looked at the words he was approving.
• He couldn’t stop glancing at her.