dress before they bot

wire, binding my ribs so tight I could barely dra

heavy silk train that felt more like armor than court wear. "The

d, though the sour pit in my s

d flat on my face at the feet of a king. Every hour since had

of the Crown Council, choking on the heavy

e with hawk-like scrutiny. Beside them, silent a

with so much slowness, his voice echoing off the v

ty King Vyrn and the human Zenaida Kessington, the court propos

N

enough to snap the official's mouth shut mid-p

id, cold and clea

it back a sudden, dangerous grin, while Torin, leaning against the

d, his face flushing under his high c

ward, the heavy skirt rustlin

every councilor who had spent the last fortn

ugh a hole in the universe. And I sure as hell didn't ask t

e your consent to exist,"

does. I'm not a prize won because magic decided we're compatible. If I ever wear a

ce settled o

Vyrn

d the room instantly. A subtle tightness in his jaw betrayed the sting to hi

ht," Vyrn s

l blinked.

voice carried through the quiet with authority. "Until then, Lady Zenaida

through the councilors. Free rein for an

not to crack if I tried. I just offered a single nod, tur

the suffocating ribbons at my wrists to

nch, pulling my knees up into t

wed archway and settling beside me. "No one refuses a crown

nt flowers blooming in the dusk. "I didn't ask to drop into this world, and I didn't

fixed on the gravel path. "Perhaps no one has given you the rig

ing at her side profile.

ying over the rustle of the leaves. "It's old. Sealed before the current wards w

ke a physical blow. "No o

t, dangerous sympathy. "They've told you the bond is his only cure. They told you how littl

t etiquette suddenly reframed itself in my mind. They had built a

me," I

tte of the palace, where the ward-lights were b

softly. "Before the