Page 237 of Reign

The woman opens a drawer and removes a slim black band with a blue light sealed inside it. Clean. Bright. Impossible to miss once activated.

Elena stares. “It glows.”

“That’s the point.”

“Because subtlety died?”

“Because people need to see it.”

She looks from the bracelet to me. “What does it mean?”

I take it before the woman can move toward her. “That you’re learning.”

I fasten it around Elena’s wrist myself. The blue light pulses once against her skin.

“And no one approaches you without my permission.”

Her expression shifts. “What if they do?”

“They won’t.”

“But if they do?”

I lower my voice. “You come to me.”

“That’s it?”

“No.” My thumb passes over the glowing band. “Then I handle it.”

Her breath hitches.

The bracelet marks her as new. Protected. Under my supervision.

It doesn’t say mine.

A design flaw I may need to correct.

We move onto the main floor, and the effect is immediate. Eyes flick toward Elena, taking in the outfit and bracelet, before turning away again. Every man in the room remembers his manners with admirable speed.

Elena notices.

Her fingers brush the bracelet. “This is very dramatic for a warning label.”

“It isn’t a warning label.”

“No?”

“No.” I place my hand at the small of her back. “It’s a courtesy.”

“To whom?”

“Anyone who wants to keep breathing.”

She looks up at me.

I let her see that I mean it.

Instead of being alarmed, she smiles.