~LUCIAN'S POV
Zephyrus looked unbearable even in sleep.
He lay stretched across Alaric's guest bed, pale against the dark sheets, one arm resting over his stomach as if he had simply decided to nap instead of being forced into magical recovery by royal order.
His breathing was steady but shallow, and faint bruising still lingered along his forearm where the lightnings had struck him.
He would hate this.
He hated weakness in any form, especially his own. When he woke and realized we had confined him to Alaric's chamber for healing, he would complain about it for hours.
He would insist he could have handled the fire himself. He would swear that we overreacted.
I folded my arms and leaned back slightly in the chair, watching him with narrowed eyes.
"You look ridiculous," I muttered under my breath. "Sleeping through chaos."
Across the room, Zade lounged on one of the long couches like he had purchased the palace himself.
