in a flurry of confused anger, Bria

n chest beneath the window-the only thing of real value she had brought wit

e lid, the rampant lion of the House of Beaumont,

ent guardian. She knew how muc

er filled the air. There were no jewels, no silks-only a small stack

the page, words written just before her wedding three years ago. It was

r Allen is a promising young man. They have given their solemn promise to honor the terms of your dow

e paper, blurring the ink. A safe

y hadn't seen a bride; they had seen a walking tr

en so confident

maternal grandfather's house, Beaumont, had been destroyed, branded traitors for a plot to poison the king generations ago. Her mothe

eted, so thoroughly underestimate

a whispered, offering a handkerchie

up, her gaze was bright with a terrifying re

the chest, to a small velvet po

and tipped its con

ed with the image of a lion and a shield. On the reverse

. If you ever face a danger you cannot overcome, she ha

y night, she had never once considered using it. She had w

s kingdom, a woman alone, a divorcée without a powerful famil

solute separation. She needed to become a feme sole-a woma

, to grant a divorce and relinquish his claim on a fortune

armies, a man whose name was whispered with equal parts

cold edges digging into her palm, groundin

n was made.

sewn inside her bodice, where it lay cold against h

sture straighter,

ce quiet but ringing with new, steely

lady's calm tone and nodded, her o

ing-not one of her colorful, soft velvets, but a simp

ast time, not as a victim, but a

, the cold weight of the token a constant reminder against her heart, an