The wagon trundled through the battered wooden gate. The creaking and groaning wheels left deep tracks in the churned mud, until finally coming to a stop, as if the horse had refused to pull it any further. Amelie and Celine stepped down from the wagon to be saluted by the biting wind that hindered their approach to the barracks. Nevertheless, Celine would take the discomfort of the wind over unwanted advances and coarse remarks of the soldiers who would have been crowding around them on a nicer day. Now, only the few unlucky ones keeping watch were trying to steal glances at them.

  “We are here to see Commander Amir Baros,” Amelie said to one of the guards, her voice trembling slightly as she tried to make herself heard over the wind. “Tell him that Lady Amelie Strout has come to speak with him.”

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  The soldier's eyes narrowed, and he turned away to relay the message. The moments stretched on, tension thickening the air around them until it was almost suffocating. When he finally returned, his face bore a grim expression that sent a chill down Celine's spine.

  “The commander refuses to see you,” he spat, clearly taking pleasure in delivering the cruel news.

  (The rest of the chapter has been removed to prevent further copyright infringements.)