He swore she had possessed him. That he had heard her voice whispering in his mind, telling him what to do as the shadows she commanded wrapped more tightly around him.
The servant had been let go after that incident—though not before receiving a handsome amount of money in exchange for his promised discretion.
Sephia had been grounded for a month for her crime, even though she hadn’t meant to use her magic on the man. And he haddeservedit, either way.
Occasionally, she had longed to do more with her powers. But her parents and the rest of the Middlemage court had allowed her to study that magic only enough to keep it under control. Because what use did a futurehumanqueen have for such wild power? It was undignified, they said.
Now that she was older, she realized that calling it ‘undignified’just meant they were afraid of it. She had shown more magic than any Shadow twin before her, and the only person whodidn’tfear her for this was Nora.
All the more reason why Sephia couldn’t lose her.
Another flicker of darkness beckoned in the corner of her vision.
Was it really just the swaying trees?
It didn’t matter; she turned away this time.
There was a knock at the door a moment later. One of the servants opened it to reveal the prince on the other side, and then that servant and all of the others placed a fist across their hearts and bent at the waist.
Sephia’s skin suddenly felt too hot and too tight for her body.
But she did not bow.
She might have—it would have been the smarter, less suspicious thing to do—but she was too distracted by the prince’s appearance at first.
He had changed as well. He no longer wore his traveling attire, but a much more regal-looking ensemble that included a fine silk shirt and a sparkling sapphire ring that hummed with what felt like powerful magical energy. A simple circlet sat upon his wavy hair, which was loosely fastened at the nape of his neck. Around his wrist, there was a golden bracelet identical to the one he’d forced onto her.
Had he been wearing it at the bridge?
He’s shackled too, at least,she couldn’t help but think.
He stepped closer to her in the same confident way he’d stepped across the Unbreakable Bridge: As if he commanded the space and everything in it.
He does, she reminded herself.
He wore a shackle, but he also carried the key. This washerroom, she’d been told, but even it was connected to the prince’s own room by way of a short hall. Because she was to be an extension of him.
She belonged to him, now, as he’d said.
She was a symbol, not unlike that crown upon his head. And that Sun magic that she didn’thave…if shehadhad it, it would have been his to command as well. The stolen bride was a gift, a vessel of magic to be used and then discarded, nothing more.
She inwardly bristled at the thought, but she managed to keep her outward appearance passive. She did take a few steps away from the prince, but only went so far as the bedroom’s sitting area. There was a beverage tray resting on the ottoman between the various chairs and the sofa; she perched on the edge of the pin-striped sofa and pretended to make herself a cup of tea.
She had no intentions of drinking it.
She didn’t trust any of the food or drink in this place; the fae of both courts had a notorious reputation for playing amusing—and occasionally deadly—games with food and drink. One of their more unforgivable crimes to Sephia, as she was a tremendous fan of both cookingandeating.
There had been a month’s worth of her own safe and specially-prepared food in her luggage because of this very reason.
Another complication of having to leave that luggage behind, she thought, bitterly.
But she would make do. Somehow. There had to besomethingsafe to consume here—she just didn’t think it wise to experiment with such things until she was alone. Knowing her luck, one sip of her tea would have her hallucinating, dancing on the table or trying to climb out the window while her fiancé gleefully watched.
As she stirred her tea, the servants shuffled off without a word, leaving her alone with that husband-to-be of hers.
Or shethoughtthey were alone, at least—until an odd scratching came from the chair across from her. She placed her cup back on the tray and narrowed her eyes, searching.
Some sort of…creaturewas hooked over the top of that chair, peering back at her.
