Raven grabs my wrist mid-swing, stopping me before I can land a second blow. His grip is firm but gentle, his thumb brushing over my pulse in a way that makes me hate just how deeply it calms me.
“We have the weapon. The others are transporting it through the tunnel now.”
“And Sphinx?”
“She all but disappeared the moment the collar was nullified.” He glances down at my chest, where golden light had flared moments ago, relief etched into his features. “Your bargain is complete.”
“Then why are you here? You need to leave—”
He pulls me farther into the shadows and kisses me. It’s messy and desperate—like kissing me is the only thing that will keep his heart beating. When he pulls away, all I want is for him to come back.
“I needed to see you.” His whisper caresses my ear, sending a shiver of pleasure down my spine. “I needed to feel you tremble beneath my fingers. I needed to taste you on my tongue. But most of all, I needed a reminder of why I’m doing all this.”
The words cut through me. My throat tightens, but I refuse to cry, refuse to give in to the trembling ache in my chest.
“You’re a fool,” I say. But if he’s a fool, then so am I.
I tear off my mask, letting it clatter to the marble floor before reaching up and removing his. I drag his face back to mine again and kiss him softly. Slow and sweet, like we have all the time in the world, like this moment isn’t the last time we’ll see each other.
Like my heart isn’t crumbling to dust.
“I can’t do this.” My voice is barely more than a whisper, caught in the wind. The rawness of it startles me, the admission tumbling out before I can stop it.
Raven’s eyes soften, but there’s a tightness in his jaw I can’t ignore. “You can.”
Before I can reply, Raven pulls free a small pendant from his pocket, the gleaming, heart-shaped charm catching the faint moonlight. Tiny, curled engravings shimmer along its surface. When I stare, uncomprehending, he offers a hesitant smile. “May I?”
I can only nod and turn, lifting my hair as he loops the chain around my neck, his fingertips brushing against my skin as he fastens it. The weight of it settles against my chest, an anchor to a moment I wish I could hold on to forever. I tuck it underneath my dress, keeping it concealed. When I turn back, I frown at his grim expression.
“It’s not just a token.” His voice lowers, making my pulse stutter. “Asmuch as I would like this to be a romantic gesture, the pendant contains a deadly dose of nightshade.”
I go still at his words, my stomach twisting with the memory of my last encounter with the poison.
“Raven—”
“Promise me,” he whispers, “you’ll only use it as a last resort. If it ever comes to that.”
My throat is thick with words I can’t speak, but my head dips in a stiff, reluctant nod. When my eyes lift to his again, I see it—the crack in his mask. A flicker of fear lingers in his expression, not for himself but for me. It twists something sharp inside me, and for the first time, I hate the strength I see in him. Because it makes it easier for him to leave.
He leans in and presses his lips to my forehead, the kiss heavy and deliberate, like the weight of goodbye itself. But the word never comes, and something fragile stirs in my chest—hope, reckless and uninvited.
“Stay safe for me, princess,” he murmurs against my skin.
Then he’s gone, slipping into the shadows that swallow the starlight.
And I’m left on the balcony, holding my breath as though keeping it in might stop me from falling apart entirely. I clutch the pendant through my gown, the cold metal burning against my skin. My tears sting, but I don’t have the luxury of letting them fall.
Nyssa needs me. That should be enough—I keep repeating the words, over and over, like a mantra I can force into truth. But tonight, that mantra feels slippery, like it wants to fall through my fingers.
The court is full of predators, true, but it feels like more than that. Each smile, each mask, each calculating stare circling around me pulls at something buried. It reminds me of things I don’t want to remember, of all the pieces of myself that need to remain hidden.
I bend to retrieve my mask from the floor, securing it back in place. A sigh escapes me as the cool quartz settles against my skin, a wave of relief washing over me with my shield restored. Drawing in one last steadying breath, I turn toward the ballroom, prepared to face whatever awaits.
Gray light filters through thetall windows of my room, mist curling against the glass and casting the room in an eerie glow. I twist my ring as I stare out at the coiling haze, hoping it will clear and finally let me see the city and lands beyond.
It’s been two days since the ball.
Two days since Raven departed with most of the Flight, and it’s as though he took my heart along with them.
