Chapter 16 · Another Ledger in the Tower

"Step away from the desk, Bell-Keeper."

Vittal Ograne filled the doorway like he wanted to bring the frame down with him. Two guards crowded his shoulders, torches throwing long shadows across the shelves.

Ethlin didn't move. "Commander. This is my private study."

"Was." He stepped inside, boots grinding into the floorboards. "You met a man outside the wall. Three nights running. Nobody else saw him come or go. Want to explain that here, or down in the pit with the rest of the traitors?"

Rhys felt Sona go rigid beside him.

"She's not a traitor," Sona said. "She's the reason half this keep hasn't died of fever."

"That's not the charge." Vittal didn't look at her. "Ethlin. Last chance. Show me what you're hiding, or I tear this room apart and you hang for whatever I find."

Ethlin's hands were flat on the desk. White knuckles. Rhys watched her eyes cut once — fast — to the floor near the hearth.

Same tell she'd have in loop six. Loop three. Every loop where this scene played out.

"You don't want to find it yourself," Rhys said. "Trust me on that."

Vittal's jaw worked.