hysical blow. Alistair stared at his wife, h

greedy, filthy laughter in Orestus's hall. Logic and tradition

octave as he fully committed to the treason. "Something

forehead. Her eyes were soft, but her jaw was set in

out a terrified whimper. Her knees ga

air, her eyes wide with panic. "Lying to the King is high treason!

dly for the heavy oak door, desperate to esc

viper. He grabbed the back of Agnes's collar, yankin

ped against his palm. He pressed the freezing steel

s voice was colder than the winter wind. "If you take one

y went completely limp against the door. Tears and snot streamed

e walked slowly toward the door. S

d to her knees on the filthy stone

pull his wife up, but Pandora shot him a

trembling hand, squeezing it tight. "Agnes, you have a daughter. You kn

t the dagger still hovering near her neck. Her psychological defenses shatte

ompartment behind a loose stone in the wall. He pulled out a

e took on a dark, ritualistic cadence as he recited the

ir didn't hesitate. He drove the silver needle deep into her finger

blood pooled together on the ancient paper. The parchment absorbed the

u watch your own daughter suffer the exact same fate," Alistair said. He rolled the parchment up and

made. Agnes wiped her wet face with the back of her sle

pulled out a roll of tough, unyielding linen

e sleeping Elinore. Her hands hovered over the ba

e linen roll from Agnes's hands. A flash of profoun

folded extra layers of soft linen across the chest, creating a padded bulk that would obscure

slight restriction made Elinore squirm in her sl

es. She swallowed her tears. She grabbed a loose, oversized male i

rom it was a massive, flawless blue sapphire-the traditional amu

vy chain around E

e is no little princess in this world," Alistair said, his voic

d a deadly secret deep in the foundation of the kingdo