“But he’s fae,” Lyria gasped.
“He is,” Carwyn said slowly. “Which is what the people need. If there are any humans left on this side of the mountains, they’re all in hiding. We must show our strength, our unity to what remains of this empire.”
Evelina’s head spun. She knew Senna wasn’t in love with Carwyn—just as Carwyn was not in love with him. It was a political match and nothing more, a notion that made Evelina desperately sad for them.
“Manors don’t marry for love,” Carwyn added, sensing Evelina’s thoughts. “Do not pity something I will gladly do for our people.”
Lyria sniffled and Evelina reached for her hand.
They were all Manors, but it had always been Carwyn who had carried the responsibility of the name. She was the only reason Lyria was still so innocent and Evelina was able to reunite with Daimon—none of it would’ve been possible if they had been forced to carry the same responsibilities as Carwyn.
Evelina admired her sister…but also was sad for her. She was handling this in stride, caring for her sisters and her empire during their mother’s declining health. The empire needed stability; and that stability was Carwyn.
Evelina sat beneath the shelves in the infirmary. She inhaled deeply, smelling the herbs behind her, the scent a mixture of floral and spice. She needed a moment to breathe, to sit in a place she felt more like herself. The room was quiet, all other healers asleep for the evening or off tending to patients.
Her knees were tucked into her chest, her arms wrapped around them. She wanted to shut herself in here for a week, or flee to the garden. To lose herself with her hands in damp soil and grinding herbs.
She let out a deep, shaky breath as the door to the infirmary creaked open. She pressed herself against the shelves, wanting to be alone to grieve.
But as the male turned toward her, she relaxed.
“Senna,” she said quietly.
He jumped, placing a hand over his chest as his gaze fell to where she was sitting. “Blessed Divine, what are you doing down there?”
She raised a brow. “What areyoudoing in the infirmary?”
He sighed and walked over to her, dropping down to the floor beside her. “Looking for something to help me sleep,” he mumbled.
She nodded her head and pointed to shelves across the room. “Second row from the top, far left. It’s the jar with little yellow flowers and dried green wisps.”
Senna was quiet a moment, making no moves to get up. “You okay?” he finally said.
Evelina dropped her chin to her knees and whispered, “No.”
Thankfully, he didn’t press, nor did he try to say how sorryhe was. This was something she always appreciated about him; that he didn’t always feel the need to fill the silence.
They sat together for a little while, a comfortable quiet resting between them. Her thoughts drifted to her mother’s smile, to memories of Ren playing pranks on her when they were children.
This was the problem with silence, though. Too soon it was filled with memories that filled her with pain to remember.
“Carwyn told me,” she said gently. “That she’s announcing your match at the lux tomorrow.”
Senna huffed a joyless laugh. “Something to look forward to, I suppose.”
“Do you really want to marry Carwyn?”
The unsaid question hung in the air.Don’t you want to marry for love?
“I think that chance has already passed me by.” His voice cracked. “I’ve already lost the one my soul was made for.”
Shock thrummed through Evelina. In all the years she had known Senna, he was always considered a strong match as Carwyn’s consort.
She twisted toward him. “I never knew you found your soulbonded.”
“We were soldiers together for a long time,” he explained. A sad smile spread across his face. He huffed a laugh and shook his head. “It was a lot harder when he became a Rider. The war took something from all of us,” he continued softly. “I would do anything to get Keir back, and if becoming the next king helps me honor our people and his memory, I will do it without hesitation.”
Keir.The Rider he was in love with.
