Maximilian stood only a few meters from the coffin, but the distance felt impossible, as if the world itself had stretched to keep him from reaching her. His breath hitched. His chest tightened. Evelyn’s name echoed through his skull, and it was a sound sharp enough to cut.
Dead. She's dead.
And as the truth settled into him like ice. He could feel everything in him start to collapse one by one.
Maximilian took one step forward, though feeling numb and dazed.
Another step, driven by instinct alone.
“Evelyn…” Her name escaped in a trembling exhale, more plea than sound.
But before he could reach her, Vincent’s men moved into formation, blocking his path. Their bodies formed a barrier he hadn’t expected, one more impossible than grief itself. Maximilian froze, then surged forward wi
