ana'
wouldn't c
rozen cobblestones. My body vibrated under the chilly weather and I could
n from last night's disciplinary lesson remained. Above me, my half-s
ling her morning tea. "Papa's litt
t. It landed in the dirty water with a splas
ted into
ov household had taught me that silence was
me. The eldest Orlov daughter stopped so close that I couldwater soaked through my threadbare dress, one of their cast-offs from th
'll never be a real Orlov," she whispered, her minty breath fogging between u
eped out. I held back my tears. "I wish you'd just died at birth." She sa
lov himself strode through, his wolf-fur coat dusted with fresh snow. The si
lia
e flooding my veins. He n
over my soaked dress with obvious disgust
pped from her fingers, shat
e white dress," he told me. "And for Go
rment passed down to me by Elena, reserved for rare occ
lipped out of my mouth be
it coming. Pain exploded across my cheekbo
he said calmly, shaking out his han
fingers like talons. "Finally making yourself useful
. Steam curled around my battered body as I sank into the hottest water I could bear. My mind raced with terribl
mother died immediately I was born. He w
f girls, making him
wrath because they are of nob
me in the eyes. The expression on her face was way
tly as she worked the kno
before continuing. "They say... th
it wa
dress, my damp hair braided tightly down my back. Nickolas look
hed me toward the waiting car
ittering storefronts and crowded cafes. I pressed my forehead to the cold glass
ts golden domes glowing against the night sky.
aw the b
lver. A snar
ov c
turned
be doing her
whispered. "Smile, Dochka, you're finally useful." He smirked. "I can finally end th
d. Marriage! who
ged, but it was too late. My f
Liliana." He smir
as I fought to hold back the
ing on my neck. It was the only thing I have left of my mother - her pi
sts whose eyes never left me and standi
wn the aisle. But the look on his face told me
? Well, I wasn't given to him as a wife. I was sold to
before him, my
the devil himsel
ress. His glacial eyes raked over me, stripping me bare
hadows of the cathedral's archw
sol
n enemy. But
se to marry me? Guess he
rabbed my wrist tightly
r thinks he's trading trash for peace. But tr
hten, it became very
vows. A sleek black Rolls-Royce Boat Tail stopped right
Nikolas walked up to Mikhail. Mikhail
gger into my palm. His gaze turned dead
es wi
't a peac
a suicide
o kill, I wouldn't be standing he
d I quickly slipped th
was never go