Midday light came through the shutters in clean bands.
We had finally left the bed a few hours earlier, washed, dressed, and eaten without speaking much. The quiet between us was comfortable rather than heavy. Elizabeth sat cleaning her blade with slow, methodical strokes. Vale checked the outer wall of the compound. Seraphina and Lydia worked on a proper rebinding of the injured arm using the better supplies the city had provided. Feng Lan stood near the open window that looked out over the shifting sea, her expression lighter than it had been in weeks.
The gate of the compound opened without warning.
Lady Sable entered alone, crimson robes moving only slightly with her steps. Her blood-coloured eyes swept the main room once, taking in the disordered beds visible through open doors, the shared looks that still lingered between us, and the general air of people who had finally slept and then done more than sleep. She did not smile. She also did not pretend she had noticed nothing.
