Mira’s POV

Sleep wouldn’t come. Reports waited, each one proof of something broken. I went to the balcony, needing distance. The city below was silent. Footsteps approached. Kael. He stopped beside me, saying nothing. He placed a sealed file on the rail. The paper moved in the wind, between us like a verdict.

I didn’t touch it. He didn’t explain. “You shouldn’t be here,” I said. He looked ahead. “You waited too long without sanction.” “There’s no sanction left that ...