“I need you to play the part for just a few more moments,” he urged, his eyes searching mine like a man pleading with fate.
And then—his hands framed my neck. His mouth crashed against mine.
The world sped up and slowed down all at once as I gave in to his kiss. Chaos melted away the moment his lips touched mine. The rustle of silk, the swell of music, the blur of motion—all faded into nothing. All I could feel, all I could think of, was him.
Shayde’s lips moved against mine like he meant every second—like this wasn’t just part of the act. His hands were warm on my skin, steadying me while my pulse thundered in my ears.
When I parted my lips for him, his fingers tightened at the nape of my neck. He tilted my head back and deepened the kiss, a low groan rumbling in his chest. The sound vibrated through me, jolting down my spine and stealing the breath from my lungs.
I barely recognized my own hands, fisted in his suit jacket, or the way my hips molded to his—until he abruptly broke the kiss, glancing over his shoulder.
My eyes fluttered open, dazed, trying to make sense of the sudden shift. Then I followed his gaze. Cora Reyes and her companion had their backs to us now, completely unaware of our presence. The kiss had done its job—two lovers lost in each other, nothing more.
It was just an act. Shayde playing the part.
I steeled myself, biting the inside of my cheek as I ground out, “We have to go. Now.”
We pushed through the edge of the crowd, slipping between silk gowns and crisp uniforms as all eyes turned toward the staircase. We retrieved our cloaks and were nearly out the door when Cora’s voice sliced through the air.
“Good evening, everyone!”
We froze.
Cora Reyes stood on a raised dais in the far corner, arms spread wide as if basking in the crowd’s attention. “Thank you for being a part of our annual event,” she said, her voice honeyed with pride. The crowd hushed instantly.
“This year promises something truly special. We’ve captured not only enemies of Tyria—but traitors from Arya’s own Barren Watch. The very ones preventing trade, keeping us from the resources we deserve!”
The crowd erupted. My stomach turned.
I caught the attention of a couple passing by. “What’s going on?”
The woman’s lips pressed into a tight line as she clutched her cloak closer. “Reyes and Finian took over the annual event last year.” Her eyes flicked nervously around us. “She captured civilians from across the border—hung them outside the castle as a warning, then tossed them into the dungeons. We feared this year would beworse.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “We’re not staying to find out if we were right.”
The man beside her wrapped an arm around her shoulders and hurried her away.
Then Finian—if my guess was right—stepped onto the dais with an authority that silenced the room. His voice carried easily as he addressed the crowd.
“Everyone, please make your way to the courtyard. We have a very special show planned for you tonight.”
Shayde and I slipped through the threshold before the crowd could close in. His hand stayed firmly wrapped around my arm to keep us from being separated as we veered toward the gate, skirting the outer edge to avoid the crush of bodies.
My stomach dropped at the sight. The two men from the Barren Watch—the ones we’d clashed with after the market, who had fled before the fight was over—now hung along the castle wall, wrists shackled in iron chains. Their heads lolled forward, faces bloodied and swollen.
In a flash, Cora and Finian appeared on the castle’s front parapet. Finian’s arm wrapped possessively around her waist as she continued her speech with cold authority.
“These two men were offered a chance to earn their freedom tonight—if they could deliver a crucial piece of information to us. Yet despite being caught within our grounds without the intel, they claim they already completed the mission. Clearly, they failed to follow even the simplest instructions, as the vital piece was nowhere to be found.”
My feet moved on their own, scrambling toward the gate as the realization hit me—these men were being punished because we’d stolen the intel they had left before Cora could seize it. Shaydeand I were almost past the iron gate when the beating of wings solidified my rising fear.
Three sets of leathery wings unfurled above the treetops, drawing my eyes upward as gray dragons soared into view. They circled the stronghold, each nearly as large as Lakota—but something was deeply wrong. Their wings resembled tattered sails, riddled with holes both large and small, somehow still holding them aloft.
Though their frames echoed Lakota’s and Noemi’s, these dragons’ bodies were sunken, ribs visible even in the dark. Jagged spikes along their backs jutted out—some unnaturally long and sharp, others snapped and broken. Between their gritted, decayed teeth, balls of light glimmered with an eerie silver glow, unlike any I had ever seen.
“And even if they had delivered—would they have deserved freedom after manning the Barren Watch?” Cora’s voice rang out, sharp and venomous.
Half the crowd erupted in a roar of “No!” while the rest stood frozen in uneasy silence.
“Arya shows us no mercy,” Finian bellowed, raising his fist. “Let this be our right to return the same cruelty!”
