For the first time in five years, Bianca was afraid.
Not nervous.
Not worried.
Afraid.
The feeling sat heavily in her stomach as she paced across her room for what felt like the hundredth time that day.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
She had known Markus her entire life.
She knew his moods.
His habits.
His temper.
His strengths.
His weaknesses.
And lately, something had changed.
The change had started after the regional festival.
At first, she hadn’t paid much attention to it.
Markus had returned quieter than usual.
More distracted.
More withdrawn.
That wasn’t unusual.
What frightened her was what happened afterward.
Questions.
Too many questions.
Questions about Felicia.
Questions about the banishment.
Questions about things that should have stayed buried.
Bian
