Steadily, the footsteps were coming closer toward her room, and Chorong reached to the nightstand and pinched off the candle. The room fell into darkness, though she could see a flickering light beneath her doorway that led into the hall, and she saw shadows stop in front of her door. A heavy thud sounded, shaking her door, but the bar held and the door stayed closed, and she heard a man grunt from the other side.

"I'm thelling you, the girl lockth herthelf in every night, there will be no getting in," a lisped voice said, to which there was no reply. The shadows stayed a moment longer, then a shout from another room called to their attention and the men left. Chorong took a much-needed gulp of air then, but didn't dare to light her candle again. Instead, she slid into the recesses of her closet, pulling at the loose boards on the floor to reveal a hole that she had used as her hiding space as a child. She was much bigger now, but she found that she still fit inside the space as long as she lay on her back with her arms folded above her head. She pulled the board over herself and was just lowering it to see if it would fit back into the floor without smashing her, when another loud bang sounded.

This one was from her window, and though it was shuttered, it didn't have a heavy bar and the shutters broke open immediately. Torch light filled the room and she dropped the plank frantically, catching sight of a knee-high black boot swinging over the window sill before the wood fell into place. It didn't quite meet up perfectly to the floor, her s holding it a fraction of an inch from actually settling into place, but she could only hope it would be enough.

Boots sounded on the wood then, slow and sneaking as the intruder searched her room. She heard the trunk thrown open, and a pang struck her heart as she listened to the sound of someone carelessly rifling through her artwork, but soon enough that stopped and she remembered to be afraid for her life. The boots sounded closer then, the intruder pausing to dig through her jewelry chest before a crash sounded and they continued into the closet. When they stepped into the small room, their foot landed on the plank she currently hid underneath, and a surge of pain ran through her as the other's weight forced the piece down into place and squashed her chest. They stood there for a long moment, long enough to make Chorong fear that she had made a noise when they had stepped on her, but finally they left.

She stayed in her hiding spot for hours, even falling asleep at one point before she awoke with aching bones and a stiff neck. It must be safe, she thought, and slowly moved her numb arms down to try and push the board off of her. It took several tries, her limbs not wanting to cooperate, but she finally managed and sat up to find that early morning had come. She clambered out of her hole to sit on the floor, massaging her limbs as she took in the mess.

Artwork, clothing, and cheap costume jewelry lay strewn about the room, the bed stripped bare and mattress pushed aside. It looked as if the intruder had gone through looking for something specific, though Chorong couldn't guess what that was for the life of her. She didn't own anything of value! She finally felt whole enough to stand and moved out of the closet to find her bedroom door thrown wide open, the bar discarded on the floor. She was afraid of what she would find if she left her room, but common sense told her that she couldn't stay, either. And so she eased out into the hallway, quiet as a mouse with her heart pounding in .

She saw none of the men from before, and a look out through the courtyard told her that the horses were gone, too, but she couldn't shake the feeling of dread that coursed through her. She rounded the corner into the main hall and froze, the sight ahead of her making her feel as if she were dreaming. The double doors of her brother's study were hanging open, and there between them stretched a pair of boots.

Chorong had seen those boots a thousand times, carefully doing her duty and shining them every weekend so that Yongguk would look sharp and clean. She knew what she would find even before she took her first step toward those doors, but when she reached them and peered beyond, the pool of blood surrounding him seemed so surreal. She felt numb, cooly taking in the two wounds that had killed him: one through the heart and one across his throat, the blood soaking into and matting his thick curls.

She stood for a long moment, then backed away all the way to the corner again, keeping her eyes on his boots. He was gone, she was free, and yet all she could think of was that without him, they would come for her next. What was she supposed to do? He was gone, he couldn't tell her how to handle this, and she felt true powerl