"Sit anywhere you like."
The royals exchanged hesitant glances—Alaric grumbling under his breath, Jean eyeing a sea-worn tapestry that hung askew above the hearth—but they all took their places.
Lucius chose a spot near the window, watching the sea like it would reveal answers through the mist.
Salviana sat beside him, her scarlet hair catching the last strands of evening light.
Jean lounged near the fireplace, her boots casually kicked off, while Alaric leaned against the wall, arms crossed but alert.
Meanwhile, Jess pulled her mother gently aside, just beyond the thin kitchen partition.
The two women whispered in hushed tones, but the tension between them was clear from across the room.
"She's the one," Jess murmured, barely audible. "The woman with the red hair—that's her."
Her mother blinked. "The one from the castle?"
Jess nodded. "Yes, mother, the seventh princess," she looked ashamed.
"I gave her the drink. The poisoned one. I didn't know—as I told you before,"
