The waltz slowed. The final note of the orchestra lingered in the air like a breath held too long.
Milena stepped back from Crown Prince Thorian, her gloved hand slipping from his grasp. Her mask stayed firmly in place, but her mind raced. Every movement she made was calculated — graceful, unthreatening — while her heart pounded behind her ribs like a warning bell.
Thorian looked at her with narrowed curiosity. "You dance like a noble," he said, "but you wear no crest."
She smiled softly. "Not all nobility is born in daylight."
He studied her. "You're hiding something."
"I imagine we all are."
He chuckled, then leaned closer — not threatening, but testing. "You came alone?"
"Doesn't everyone, behind a mask?"
His expression darkened for just a moment. Then he said, "My father would have liked you. He admired people who spoke in riddles."
Milena's voice grew cold. "And you? Do you admire ghosts?"
Thorian blinked. Just a flicker. Enough to confirm it — he had something to hide too.
Before he could respond, a servant whispered something in his ear. His eyes sharpened.
"I'm afraid duty calls," he said, bowing slightly. "But I do hope we meet again, Lady…"
"Vale," she said quickly. "Miren Vale."
He nodded once, then turned and disappeared into the inner halls of the palace — guarded, unreadable, and powerful.
---
Milena exhaled only after he left. Her fingers trembled slightly, and she flexed them to hide the shake. Gareth approached her a moment later from the edge of the crowd.
"You danced with the man who burned your house to ash."
She turned to him. "I needed to see his eyes."
"And?"
"They're too calm for a man with clean hands."
---
Back in the prince's private chamber, Thorian unpinned his mask and stared into the firelight.
"She looked familiar," he murmured. "That hair… and that flame in her eyes…"
A man in dark robes stood near the door. "Shall I find out who she is, Your Highness?"
"No," Thorian said. "Not yet. If she is who I think she might be… she'll come to me."
He turned his gaze to the flames, unaware that far across the city, the ring on Milena's finger had begun to glow again — brighter than ever before.