Aurora POV:
"He left the capital," Elara announced the next morning, setting a plate of toast on the table. "He claimed he had to inspect a northern dragon's nest. My source confirmed he traveled straight to his hunting lodge outside the city."
She snorted with disdain.
This was my chance.
The place I needed to infiltrate was the private estate Ethan had purchased for Cassia right here in the capital. Their little love nest.
"How will you get in?" Elara asked, furrowing her brow. "The guards are all Sawyer family soldiers."
I pulled an old brass key from my satchel. It was etched with intricate vine patterns. "Ethan thinks he is clever. He forgot this estate originally belonged to my mother's family, the Ferrells."
The key was a relic my mother had left me, capable of opening any door on any property the Ferrells had ever owned.
Elara's eyes widened. She produced a set of black, tight-fitting clothes and several thin, almost translucent patches of cloth. "These are from the archives. Silence-weaves woven with wind-drake scales. They will muffle your footsteps completely."
As a Royal Historian, Elara had access to all sorts of forgotten knowledge.
When night fell, I made my way to the estate. High walls surrounded it, topped with sharp spikes to deter any flying dragons. For a Dragonless woman on foot, they were simply walls to climb.
I pressed the Silence-weaves to the soles of my shoes. I felt a strange lightness as I scaled a section of the wall where the shadows were deepest, dropping to the other side without a whisper.
The grounds were silent except for the distant crunch of a guard's patrol. I moved through the darkness, keeping low to the ground.
The brass key turned in the lock of the back door with a soft click.
The air inside was thick with the smell of expensive perfume and something stale.
In the living room, a woman's lace scarf lay discarded on the floor near the cold fireplace. I picked it up between two fingers and tossed it into the ashes.
My target was the master bedroom. I climbed the grand staircase, its runner carpet woven with the Sawyer family's crest of crossed spears. It was a tacky choice that lacked the elegance of a traditional dragon motif.
I pushed open the bedroom door. A huge, ostentatious bed faced a wall of windows. A sharp tension coiled in my lower abdomen as I imagined them here.
From my satchel, I took out a smooth, palm-sized Scrying Stone. It had cost me most of my savings.
I needed the perfect hiding place.
My eyes scanned the room and settled on the massive crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. It was made of countless small, glittering Wyrm-glass pieces, their facets refracting the light in a complex dance.
I climbed onto a table, my heart pounding. Carefully, I fitted the Scrying Stone into a recess in the base of the central, largest crystal. I angled it perfectly, aiming it at the bed.
I sent a tiny pulse of my will into the stone. It shimmered once, blending seamlessly into the chandelier's brilliance.
I didn't leave right away.
I walked around the room. Cassia's perfume sat on the vanity. A half-empty glass of wine rested by the bed. It was a simple glass cup, entirely lacking the refinement of the Scale-quartz goblets favored by true nobility.
Their attempts at sophistication were entirely clumsy.
Getting out was as easy as getting in. By the time I returned to the Obsidian Spire, the sky was beginning to pale.
Elara was waiting up for me. "Did it work?"
I nodded and pulled another item from my satchel: a small, enchanted farsight-lens. I set it up on her balcony, adjusting the lens until the window of the Sawyer estate's master bedroom came into focus.
"What is this for?" Elara asked.
"The Scrying Stone needs to be activated to start capturing the memory," I explained. "I need to see them walk into the trap myself before I turn it on, otherwise it will just record an empty room and run out of power."
Elara's expression shifted from confusion to awe. "Aurora, you are brilliant."
I was merely a cornered animal fighting back.
Now, the trap was set. All I had to do was wait for the prey.
I sat on the balcony, a blanket wrapped around my shoulders, clutching the small mother-stone that would activate the memory-crystal.
I stared at the distant, dark building, my mind a sea of calm.
Ethan would be back soon, bringing his mistress to their secret haven. They would have no idea that a pair of eyes watched them from the darkness.
