In answer, he brings the scarlet liquid to his mouth and drains the glass, eyes flaring dully above the rim. It’s as though his pupils hold a remnant of light, rather than light itself.
That leaves me to see to his needs. Moving to the Frost King’s side, I begin refilling his glass. In the process, our arms collide, and the wine slops onto his lap.
Ice in my blood, in my veins.
The Frost King’s gaze is a slow, crawling thing that drags from the stain spreading across his tunic to the bottle I still hold, before eventually locking onto my face. His pale blue eyes exude a devouring cold that creeps across my puckered scar. The old, toughened skin has long since lost sensation, but I swear it prickles beneath his scrutiny, as though his attention is a physical touch.
“Apologize to the king!” Miss Millie demands shrilly.
What is a little wine compared to the loss of a life?
No, I think I will keep my apology to myself. I can’t imagine it’s worth much to him anyway. “Only if he apologizes for stealing our women.”
Someone gasps. The king studies me as he would a small animal, but I am no prey.
“My lord, I apologize for her absolutelywretchedbehavior—”
He lifts one long-fingered hand, his focus wholly on me. Miss Millie falls silent. “What is your name?”
The title he bears extends to his voice as well. It is low, deep, riddled with a chilling lack of emotion.
At my silence, a few women shift uncomfortably in their chairs. The temperature continues to plummet despite the fire. The North Wind may be a god, but I will not break. If nothing else, I have my pride.
“I see.” He taps a fingertip against the table.
“Wren, my lord. Her name is Wren!” Elora leans forward in her chair, fingers gripping the arms. A choked exhalation follows her outburst.
My teeth grind together in frustration even as my stomach hollows out. This is exactly what I was afraid of: Elora and her soft heart, an utterance that will surely draw the king’s notice. If I hadn’t let my emotions cloud my judgment, this could have been prevented.
“Wren,” he says. Never have I heard so elegant a word. “Like the songbird.”
There are no songbirds in the Gray. They all perished or flew elsewhere.
After a lingering study of my face, his attention shifts to Elora. I want to claw his eyes out for how he drinks her in. “There is a certain likeness to your features.”
“Yes, my lord.” Elora bows her head in a gesture of respect. I could slap her for it. “We are sisters. Identical twins. I am Elora.”
A peculiar tilt to his head as he compares us. I am sure he finds me lacking.
“Stand up,” he demands.
Elora pushes her chair back as my voice whips out. “Sit.”
She stills, hands curled around the edge of the table. Her attention flits between me and the Frost King. Meanwhile, Miss Millie appears on the verge of passing out.
An unbalanced light flickers in his narrow pupils, like a candle wavering in darkness. He stands in one fluid motion, startling me. I imagine no one has challenged his word before. No one has been foolish enough to try.
“Come,” he says in a voice like thunder, and Elora shuffles toward him, meek and spineless. The sight of her defeat rips through me. How dare he? We are not chattel. We are people with beating hearts in our chests and breath in our lungs and lives we’ve managed to carve from this cursed, frozen existence.
As Elora stops in front of him, he lifts her chin with a finger and says, “You, Elora of Edgewood, have been chosen, and you will serve me until the end of your days.”
3
ISTORM ACROSS THE ROOMand shove Elora behind me. “You can’t have her.”
Some part of me knew this would happen. My sister is the epitome of life, and the Frost King has little of it in his realm. I’d managed to convince myself there was a more suitable candidate, perhaps Palomina, with her doe eyes and gap-toothed smile. Or Bryn, whose laughter can lighten the most dour of situations. But no. He was always going to choose Elora, the fairest of them all.
The king surveys me as though I am a fly that has yet to be swatted. “You have no choice over the matter. She is my prize. She comes with me.”
