I stand facing the mirror in a large, empty bedroom. Inside the glass, I see a version of myself that is a stranger. A hollow husk of a woman hidden beneath a silk train fifty feet long, blue flowers woven into her hair, and a line of rubies around her neck like a blood-drenched noose.
Who are you?
The door swings open, and Kylian enters without so much as a knock. I track him in the mirror, looking devastating—his hair swept back off his face, sea-blue eyes twinkling. For a moment, I’m struck speechless.
He pauses, letting his eyes trail over me. “You look?—”
Then, as if remembering himself, he clears his throat and continues toward me.
“I know it’s bad luck to see the bride before the ceremony, but,” he starts, slipping a hand into his pocket, “I have a gift for you.”
I turn as he pulls out a small black box. His fingers tug at the ribbon, discarding it on the floor without shifting his gaze from me.
Inside is a small gold locket—pretty, if not a bit plain. But when he flips it open, out bursts a blinding little light. I squint as it dances around the room like a firefly, so fast I can barely keep track of it.
“What is that?”
“It’s a star fragment. It’s been in my family for generations.”
Kylian turns my palm up to the ceiling, and the sliver of starlight darts into my waiting hand, bouncing with frenetic energy.
“Keep it on you at all times and you will never be lost. It will always guide you home.”
My mouth parts as I glance up at him. I want to be suspicious. I want to throw the star in his face and run. But I just stare.
He lifts the locket, snapping it closed as the tiny star dances back inside. Then he leans in and plants a lingering kiss on my cheek. Warmth spreads down my neck.
“I’ll see you at the altar.”?*
I stare after him, stunned, before dragging my eyes back to the locket.
So he gave me a heartfelt gift. It changes nothing. He is still a monster and that will never change.
But for reasons I can’t explain, I slip it around my neck, tucking the pendant into the scooping neckline of my dress.I study myself in the mirror one last time, already hating myself for what I’m about to do.
They will hate me too. Zadyn and Jace. They won’t understand why I had to do it. To them, I will be a traitor.
But I stand at the center of this knot. And I’m the only one who can untangle it. My hands are stained with blood that hasn’t yet been spilled.
But it will be if I refuse Kylian.
If this sacrifice makes me a traitor, then so be it. I’ll be the bad guy. As long as it keeps them safe.
Something old.
Something new.
Something borrowed.
And something blue.
The blood ore around my wrists is old as time itself.
The ivory dress is new.
My love was borrowed.
And inside I am blue.
