Anna paced slowly along the hallway leading to Lydia's room.
She had been doing it for what felt like forever.
Every few moments, she looked toward the closed door.
She wanted to go inside.
She wanted to check on Lydia.
She wanted to know if she was alright, even though she already knew that whatever Lydia was feeling could not be fixed by a few comforting words.
But Lydia had clearly said that she wanted to be alone.
Anna respected that.
Still, it was already past noon, and Lydia had not come out of her room since the incident.
That worried her.
The hallway was unusually quiet. The palace was still busy with servants moving around and nobles whispering about what had happened, but this part of the corridor felt almost untouched by all of it.
Anna could not stop thinking about Lydia sitting alone behind that door.
She knew her mistress well enough to understand that silence did not always mean peace.
Sometimes, Lydia became quiet when she was hurting the most.
