Page 31 of Broken Crown

Rather, it was the steady, unhurried pace of a man who knew his quarry couldn’t escape.

Sometimes closer, sometimes farther away, but always there—measuring the distance between us with the precision of a hunter.

I could feel his eyes boring into my back.

The security cameras mounted in discreet corners swiveled as I passed.

I never saw him touch any controls, but they followed me through the house like mechanical sentinels.

His electronic eyes, never blinking, never sleeping.

When I first arrived, I’d attempted to cover one with a silk scarf.

Within minutes, a security guard had appeared at my side, wordlessly removing it with gloved hands as though handling a snake.

He never spoke to me directly, only to Sebastian through his earpiece. I could have been a package to be delivered, rather than a person.

The palazzo’s security room was off-limits, but I’d glimpsed inside once when the door was ajar—a wall of monitors, each displaying a different part of the estate.

Tonight, his footsteps had sounded different.

Closer. More deliberate.

I trembled as I reached my bedroom door.

My fingers fumbled with the handle when he stopped just inches behind me.

His breath stirred the hair at the nape of my neck.

“Sweet dreams, Sabrina,” he murmured, his lips almost—but not quite—touching my skin.

“Sebastian.” My voice came out shakier than I intended. “What are you doing?”

“Saying goodnight.” His hand pressed flat against the door beside my head, caging me without touching. “Is that not allowed?”

“You’ve never—” I swallowed. “You don’t usually get this close.”

“No.” His breath blew hot against my ear. “I don’t.”

“Then why tonight?”

A long pause.

“Because I’m tired of watching you walk away from me.”

I slipped inside, slammed the door, and turned the lock with shaking fingers.

The metal bolt sliding home sounded pathetically inadequate. A child’s defense.

I pressed my forehead against the cool wood, listening to his breathing on the other side. He stood so close we could have been embracing, with only two inches of carved walnut between us.

He knew full well that the lock was useless.

He had a key.

Would this be the night he used it?

I waited…and waited.