The contradictions began revealing themselves.
Some servants claimed Cooper's meals had always been prepared by the same kitchen staff.
Others insisted replacements occasionally took over whenever someone fell ill.
A few swore they had never entered the nursery, only for attendance logs and eyewitness accounts to place them there repeatedly.
None of the inconsistencies seemed particularly significant on their own.
Taken together...
They painted a picture that refused to make sense.
Marcus leaned back slightly, rubbing the bridge of his nose before reaching for the cup of coffee someone had quietly left beside him hours earlier. The drink had long since gone cold, yet he drank it anyway without seeming to notice.
Sleep had become a luxury.
Like Kade, he had learned long ago to work whenever work demanded it.
Across the room, another Shadow Guard finished organizing a fresh stack of documents before placing them on the table.
"Commander."
