All at once, I didn't want revenge anymore.
I buried Mietitore beneath the fig tree in the courtyard and buried all my hatred along with it.
But Aldric shattered my hard-won peace with his own hands, all over again, and dug my hatred back up from the roots.
I lifted my gaze toward the balcony where his voice had come from and spoke, each word deliberate and distinct. "Aldric. It's been a long time."
Before the last syllable faded, the heavy doors of the Commission chamber swung open.
In the space of a breath, Aldric Valente descended the marble stairs with Elara Abbiati on his arm.
He looked exactly the same as before. That face, carved clean and cold enough to ruin empires, hadn't aged a single day. The suit was different. The ring on his left hand was not. I knew that ring. I had placed it there myself.
The woman cradled against him glowed with the same vitality.
Aldric looked me up and down, his brow furrowing. "I have never laid eyes on you. What do you mean, 'a long time'?"
Oh. I had almost forgotten. After my body reformed, my appearance had changed completely.
No wonder he didn't recognize me.