“Viv,” Violet began.
“Just shut up,” Vivian snapped.
Violet drifted toward her sister, stopping next to War. “No. This is ridiculous. It’s clear we both had misconceptions about the other.” She shook her head sadly. “Even if what you said was true, how is that my fault? I never blamed you for anything, and all I wanted was for us to be how we used to be as kids.” She swiped at her own tear. “We felt the same, but you unfairly twisted your feelings into hate.”
“I don’t hate you,” Vivian corrected her, “and believe it or not, I’m trying to save you. If I wanted to hurt you, I would have done it at the border.”
Griff moved between Violet and Vivian. “What do you mean save her?”
* * *
“You need to come to the southeastern forest,”War practically shouted down the bond.“I tracked Vivian to Violet and her guards. Something else is amiss, I can feel it.”
Roman knocked over his chair at the council table in his haste to leave.
His father stood as well, poised to fight. “What’s happened?”
“I don’t know,” Roman said, throwing open the door. “Vivian approached Violet in the jungle, and War said something is wrong.” He took out his key to the bunker and handed it to his mother. “Get those in the compound who can’t fight to the bunker and send someone to alert the townspeople to find safety.”
Throwing open the council chamber doors, Roman sprinted through the halls, across the courtyard, and into the dense trees, praying he reached his wife in time.
All the hours of studying and training Roman’s father had forced him to do as a child served him well because he knew every inch of his kingdom like the back of his hand. Branches scraped against his exposed skin as he ran, but he didn’t care. Nothing mattered more than getting to Violet.
Somewhere a woman yelled, and the closer he got, he realized the voice belonged to Vivian.
“What do you mean save her?” Griff demanded seconds before the world around them erupted in chaos.
The sounds of shouting and footsteps trampling the brush surrounded them, and to Roman’s horror, rebels, dozens of them, maybe more, burst into sight. “Violet,” he yelled. She ran toward him with terror written all over her face. “Use your glamour and run northeast toward the palace,” he yelled to her, pointing toward the capital. “I’ll find you.”
His mate nodded and switched course. The rebels descended upon them, and glamouring himself, he ran to Ares and Griff, cloaking them too. “I glamoured you two. Find my parents and warn them.” The two men spun around and crashed into one another. They couldn’t see through the glamour. “Ares stay to the left and Griff stay to the right,” Roman instructed.
Roman looked around for War.“Meet us back at the palace.”
“We won’t let them get to the capital,”War promised.“We’re coming.”
Roman tried to make sense of the statement but failed.“We?”
Everything happened in slow motion. Fae beasts of every kind appeared behind the rebels with War leading the charge. The ferocious roars were deafening as they attacked the rebels, ripping them to shreds. The fighters never stood a chance.
Roman stared slack jawed at the blood bath and took off running to find Violet.
* * *
Vivian watched Roman call out to her sister. “Violet!” Violet ran toward him. “Use your glamour and run northeast toward the palace,” he instructed, his voice betraying his worry. Vivian noted the direction and watched her sister flicker out of existence.
Dammit. Vivian stood off to the side, having been forgotten by the king, and waited for him to turn away before she ran after her sister.
She strained to hear her sister’s clumsy footsteps and loud breaths and slowed herself as she neared. Violet screamed and appeared on the ground; her head covered in blood. She must have tripped and hit her head.
Vivian dropped beside her sister and assessed the damage. The fighting behind them grew louder as the rebels closed in. “Can you stand?”
“I think so,” her sister replied in a daze and grabbed Vivian’s hand to stand. “Where’s Roman?”
“I don’t know, but we need to get to the palace where it’s safe,” Vivian said, throwing her prior plans of handing Violet over to Titus out the window.
Vivian wanted her rightful place on the throne that she’d allowed her jealousy and stupidity to throw away, but that dream died amongst the trees today. She hadn’t believed Violet’s claim of being Roman’s bonded mate until Violet’s glamour hid her from the other fae. The bond didn’t make a royal love their mate, but Roman never needed a bond for that. He’d loved Violet since they were children, Vivian had seen it written on his face every day.
Nothing in this world would stop him from getting to Violet, not even death. Roman would send himself to the gods and claw his way back with Violet in his arms.
