Alaric strode into their shared chamber, expecting to find Carlton waiting for him. However, the room was eerily silent and empty - no sign of his beloved empress anywhere. Alaric frowned, puzzled by Carlton's absence.
He had assumed Carlton would be tending to their children as he often did in the evenings. With a shrug, Alaric began to undress, slipping out of his formal attire and donning a more comfortable nightshirt. He settled onto the bed, propping himself up against the headboard as he waited patiently for Carlton to return.
As time crept by with no sign of his spouse, unease began to gnaw at Alaric's mind. Memory of just days prior resurfaced - how Carlton had collapsed without warning in the palace garden before waking up with amnesia that very next morning. It was as if those eleven years of marriage and parenthood had simply vanished from Carlton's mind.
