Now it was Elara's turn.
At five minutes to midnight, she walked out of the palace.
She had not changed clothes — she was still in the formal court dress from the day, which was not ideal for walking through an old cemetery in the dark, but she was not going to give anyone the satisfaction of watching her prepare for this as though it was something she needed to prepare for. She walked at her normal pace, which was the pace of someone who had somewhere to be and a reasonable expectation of getting there.
The path to the cemetery gate was lined, on both sides, with — she did a quick count — approximately sixty people who were not, technically, watching, but who had all coincidentally found reasons to be standing in this general area at this specific time. Servants. Guards. Several nobles who had not bothered to pretend they weren't watching, which she respected more than the servants who were pretending to adjust their uniforms.
