Is this how he makes kings answer to him?
A swarm of bodies dressed in ruby red part to reveal Cal’s black-clad form. His head snaps in my direction, his gray irises overtaken by black pupils. Familiar power floods my body,mixing with my own until I can breathe steadily again. My feet move in time to the music, but their movement is all mine again. Whatever spell Marks held over me is now broken.
“Interesting choice this evening, declaring yourself as royalty before the Ascension Vote.” There’s an oily quality to his words and they leave a slick trail as they wash over me. “You never have been one for subtlety, have you, Poison Ivy?”
The barb of his little nickname spears me, injecting me with a boldness that I wield better than any blade.
“I am coming for you, Lord General,” I whisper. Marks spins me outward in a sweeping twirl, my face coming close to his when he whips me back into his hold. “And when my poison slows your heart, I want you to look me in the eyes as you admit your defeat.”
A foreboding, humorless laugh bellows from his mouth. Dancers around us pause their steps in an effort to hear our conversation. Marks waves them away with a flick of his hand, never stopping our long-short-short step sequence.
“This game goes beyond you, Ivy. Be a good girl and play your part.”
“And what part is that?” A barely contained fury barrels through me at his words.
“Willing partner. Subdued paramour. Dutiful wife.” He spins me again. “It matters not to me, just as long as you submit and keep your poisonous mouth shut, lest I shut it permanently.”
“It’s you that will submit, Lord General.” I snarl at him, baring my teeth like a wild animal, unable to contain my ire any longer.
The music stops abruptly and the dancers step away to clap, but I’m unable to move. The air in the room is impossibly thin but no one else seems to be struggling to breathe. My lungs spasm in short pants as I gasp for oxygen and find none. My nails claw at my throat desperate for breath as black spotsthreaten to overtake my vision. My body sways and I can feel myself slumping towards the marble floor.
Strong arms encircle my waist, catching me before I fall. My body rests against a broad chest, the only thing holding me upright and conscious.
I am not supposed to die like this. This isn’t what the gods have foretold would be my fate. I am not in Amale yet.
Air suddenly rushes back into my lungs and I gulp it down by the mouthful, desperate for even a hint of oxygen.
“You don’t look well, Lady Ivy. Perhaps you’ve drunk too much wine? I hear you are fond of that.” Marks’ pointed words scrape against my skin. “It’s a good thing Lord Kieran caught you before you cracked that pretty little head of yours.”
My stomach clenches at the realization of who currently holds me but I don’t have enough strength yet to break away.
“You know, I was just explaining to Governor Rollins how advantageous of a match you two would make,” Marks continues. “Especially now that your father is dead.”
Time stills again, the entire world ceasing to spin as my mind tries to make sense of what’s happening. There’s a cracking in my chest and hot liquid spills from my eyes in wordless rivers.
My father is dead.
“Escort the heir … I mean, thegovernor… to her room, Kieran. Or yours, if you’d prefer.”
“Yes, Lord General.”
The wet blur of faces, the garbled sounds of music, the forceful grip on my arm, the gasping breaths in my chest—they’re all part of an obscure moment in a new world. A world without my father.
Kieran hauls me forcefully into the hallway, dropping my arm as soon as we’re clear of the heavy oak doors that separate us from society. They shut noiselessly and I’m only vaguely aware that he’s speaking to me.
No, not speaking to me … shouting at me.
But I can’t hear him. I can’t hear anything over the sound of my universe shattering.
“Are you listening to me, Ivy?” Kieran yells.
“No.” My voice is barely a whisper, barely a breath.
Kieran pushes me backward, forcefully smacking my head against the hall wall. Whatever the purpose, the collision forces me out of my stupor.
“What the fuck do you want from me?!” I scream, my voice raw as magic sizzles at my fingertips. I can’t control it in this state, and there’s no telling which side will decide to come out when my hold breaks.
“Tomorrow, you’re going to accept Marks’ offer to marry me.”
