Ice slammed into her body. The knights had arrived early. And Carver wasn’twith her. Terror clenched her gut.
“Amryn?” Cregon’s concerned voice sounded muffled due to the blood roaring in her ears. Still, she turned to face him as he asked, “Is something wrong?”
“I . . .” She couldn’t think. Couldn’t breathe. Her lungs were caught in a vice.
Cregon’s brow furrowed, his features blurring.
No. Hervisionwas blurring. Her eyes stung with unshed tears.
The knights were here. Any moment now, they would realize she was an empath. They would kill her. Just like they’d tried to kill her before, the night they’d murdered her mother.
In her pocket, the bloodstone hummed. It exuded a warmth that did nothing to calm her scorching panic. She needed to run.Now.
But if she ran, it would draw attention—the exact thing she and Carver had been trying to avoid. The knights would pursue her. Catch her.
She couldn’t run, but she couldn’t stay. Unable to do either, she stood frozen.
She didn’t even have the air to scream.
“Amryn, are you all right?” Cregon frowned. “You look pale.”
Perhaps she could feign an illness. If she was dismissed, it would get her out of the room without causing a stir. But would that only make the knights more suspicious?
That didn’t truly matter. She just needed enough time to find Carver and get out of the palace.
A more insistent thrum came from the bloodstone. She didn’t hear a voice, but she swore it was offering comfort. Silently insisting everything was fine. That she was perfectly safe.
That was an abject lie. Nothing was fine, and she was in mortal danger.
She felt eyes on her. She and Cregon were the only ones unmoving; everyone else was either walking to the tables or already seated. People were beginning to notice. The knights would notice, too. It was a miracle they hadn’t already sensed her. Maybe they weren’t as experienced as Felinus? Or perhaps there were too many people in the room to sort through at once? In the end, it didn’t matter. Amryn knew it was only a matter of time before they screamed for her arrest.
Cregon shifted closer. She could see the concern clouding his eyes. “Why don’t we sit? I can get you some water, and—”
“Carver,” she said, breaking through his words with a hoarse whisper. “I need Carver.”
“I’m sure he’ll be here soon,” Cregon said, clearly trying to soothe her. “I ran into him on the way here. He was headed to your suite, to bring you to the meeting.” He cracked a small smile. “He seemed quite anxious to reach you, so I’m sure he’ll hurry.”
“He seemed quite anxious to reach you.”
Those words echoed, landing harder than Cregon could have realized. Had Carver learned of the knights’ early arrival? Had he been racing to reach her? To help her escape?
Too late.No matter how fast he ran,Carver would be too late.
The heavy doors thudded shut. Amryn’s hands trembled.
Cregon offered his arm. “Allow me to help you to your seat.”
Her heart beat furiously against her chest, every instinct screaming at her to run.
She did the only thing she could. She took Cregon’s arm.
He led her to her seat which was—thankfully—far away from the knights. She didn’t dare look at them, not even to see if they were watching her.
Cregon pulled out her assigned chair and she sank into it before her legs could give out. Jayveh sat at the table across from her, right beside the emperor. The princess eyed Amryn with a worried frown.
At the table on her right, Amryn spotted Ivan. He was seated beside Samuel, a muscle ticking in his jaw and his eyes fixed on Amryn.
Cregon took the seat on her left.
