“Not my land anymore,”he says, his voice a low growl. “Not just the Bone Orchard. They wantyou.” He sets the satchel aside, his movements dangerously calm. “Vasek’s spy didn't waste any time. The demonstration in the Orchard... it wasn't a warning to them. It was an advertisement. Now every ambitious lord knows a Resonance Partner exists, and they believe she's theirs for the taking.”
I climb from the bed, wrapping the sheet around myself. The bite marks on my thighs are visible below the fabric's edge, silver lines that catch the morning light. “What do they offer?”
“Does it matter?” His voice carries warning.
“It matters if we're going to counter their arguments.” I move to the window, looking out at the twisted landscape beyond the castle walls. A shadow servant follows me, attempting to adjust the curtains. Its smokyfingers catch the fabric successfully, pulling the heavy material aside. “They'll try to convince me I'm wasted here. That I deserve better protection, more resources, a more experienced mate.”
“And do you believe that?”
I turn back to face him. He stands perfectly still, but I can see the tension in his shoulders, the way his hands remain carefully unclenched. He's afraid. Not of physical threat, but of the possibility that I might agree with the other lords' assessments.
“I believe you fed from my thigh last night while I came so hard I saw stars. I believe I've never felt as perfectly used as I do right now, marked and sore and completely yours.” I gesture toward the satchel of letters. “What's Vasek's ultimatum?”
He breaks the seal on Vasek's scroll, scanning the contents. His expression darkens with each line.
“Surrender the human within three days or face total war. He's assembled a coalition of six lords, controlling territories that border mine on all sides. If I refuse, they'll attack simultaneously from every direction.”
“And the others?”
“Offers. Aldric proposes a 'trade'—his protection for access to you. Thane suggests a 'sharing arrangement.' Mordak offers to purchase you outright for triple what I paid.” He crumples the scrolls in his fist. “They speak of you as if you were livestock.”
“Because that's what I was. What the market made me.” I move closer, drawn by the fury in his voice. “But that's not what I am to you.”
“No. You are everything I did not know I needed. Everything I will kill to keep.”
The simple declaration makes my pussy throb with want. This massive, deadly creature who just received threats from six different lords cares only about keeping me. Not his territory, not his political position. Me.
Before I can respond, another knock interrupts. This one more formal, announced by the castle's bell system. A visitor at the gates.
“Forty-eight years, seventy days until my service ends,” Scratch mutters, disappearing through the wall. He returns within moments, agitation clear in his multiple eyes. “Lord Aldric approaches under parley banner. Three guards, no obvious weapons. He requests immediate audience.”
Kiakoa's hands curl into fists. “He couldn't wait for a response to his letter.”
“He wants to see me in person,” I realize. “Make his offer face to face.”
“You will not meet with him.”
“Yes, I will.” The words surprise me with their certainty. “If we're going to war with six lords, we need to understand their individual motivations. What they're willing to offer, what they're willing to risk.”
“Braith—”
“I can handle one lord making a proposal. Especially with you there to ensure he doesn't overstep.”
Kiakoa studies my face, his expression unreadable. The possessive creature that marked me last night wars with the strategic lord who knows information has value.
“You will not leave my sight,” he says finally.
“I wouldn't dream of it.”
“And if he touches you?—”
“You'll kill him. I know.” I reach up and press a quick kiss to the sharp line of his jaw. “But maybe wait until after he's told us what the coalition is planning.”
An hour later, I stand in the main hall wearing a black silk dress. The bite marks on my throat and collarbone are clearly visible above the neckline, silver lines that catch torchlight. I'm not hiding what happened between us. If anything, I want Lord Aldric to see exactly how thoroughly I've been claimed.
The doors open. “Lord Aldric,” Kiakoa announces. “Your message was... illuminating.”
Two of our guards escort Aldric and his party into the main hall, then withdraw to the corridors—close enough for security, far enough for private negotiation. Aldric himself enters with confident strides, and the first thing that strikes me is his size.
