“Dask, forgive me.”
Amerei turned toward him—
And lightning split the sky.
Her hand flew to her chest.
The sharp crack echoed across the garden, scattering the cherry blossoms like startled birds.
Viktor had called down lightning from a cloudless sky.
She looked at him.
He stood motionless, breathing hard, caught between battle and grief. Light shimmered faintly behind his eyes, then faded into a mist.
He stared back at her, her slender body braced against the stone.
His words fell like meteors eviscerating in the sky.
“Are you afraid of me?”
Amerei stilled, slowly pulling her hand away from her chest. She rose, her every step like treading glass. She took his hands and finally said, “No, Viktor. I don’t fear you.”
Her eyes shone in the morning light—fierce, defiant—her vow laid bare.
“I swear it now—by crown, by flame,
by every star that bore witness to our union:
My children will bear your likeness.
And theywillbear your name.”
Chapter Seventy-One
Before the Sun
Her grandmother’s fire steadied her. The sun ahead would blind her.
Amerei sat stiff as Juliet pressed the final pin of her silver crown into place. Her hair had been woven into a single intricate braid, gems glittering through the strands, the black gown gleaming like raven’s wings.
Gabriel stood by the door, speech in hand, his tone warmer than his stance. “It’s better than most given in that hall. You’ll do well, Princess.”
She inclined her head. “Thank you, Gabriel.”
He slipped out as silent as he’d come, the quiet he left behind oddly weighted.
Juliet bent down, catching Amerei’s reflection in the copper mirror.
“You slept?”
Amerei exhaled a smile.
“Eventually.”
“You’re radiant.”
Juliet’s eyes glimmered.
