Midnight Treason

Elder Vane’s POV

The night was thick, and the silence sat heavy, like something pressing against my back, urging me not to go through with it. But my feet moved anyway. I had wrapped my cloak tighter than usual, hood pulled low, hands hidden in the folds like I was just another shadow moving through the halls. The palace guards were quieter at this hour, drowsy from the cold or just used to my old