The Weight of What She Made

Sophia's POV

I sat with the information for three minutes before I moved.

Three minutes in the window seat of the east tower, alone, with the cold glass behind me and the sounds of the castle below me and the specific, enormous weight of what Kael had just said pressing down on me from all sides.

Alaric had crossed the border. He was moving toward the castle. He had Cordelia and a small force of mercenaries and the specific, reckless energy of a man who had been ...