"I thought I was bargaining with a monster. Turns out, I might be one too."
Kyra woke to silence. Not peace—never peace—but the kind of silence that vibrated with secrets. Somewhere in the darkened palace, time twisted and rewrote itself, shadows humming with memory. She wrapped the silk coverlet tighter around her and sat up.
The gown Asher had left her in ribbons lay across the chaise. Her skin still burned with the memory of his mouth, the rasp of his voice, the threat curled behind every kiss. But her mind burned hotter.
Who am I becoming?
The question had no answer. Not yet.
She wandered. Past corridors that pulsed like veins, up staircases that bled starlight. The palace was a labyrinth of nightmare and beauty, and still, something deeper called her. Until she found it.
The library.
Tucked behind an arch of weeping stone, the door didn't creak when she opened it. It breathed. The room was cavernous and low-lit, lined with shelves taller than any cathedral. Tomes bound in leather, bone, shadow. Books that glowed. Books that wept.
One whispered to her.
She followed the sound. Her fingers hovered over its cover—a dark crimson with veins of gold. The moment her skin touched the leather, the book opened itself.
A scream caught in her throat.
Because only fae blood could awaken a spellbound tome. Mortals couldn't touch them without burning.
But she wasn't burning. The book purred.
"No," she whispered, stepping back. "No, no, no."
Behind her: a gasp.
Asher.
He rushed forward, slamming the book shut with a jolt of magic that hissed against her skin.
"What did you touch?"
Kyra stared at him, shaking. "It opened for me. On its own."
Asher's face drained of color. "That confirms it."
"Confirms what?"
He swallowed hard. For once, the stoic second-in-command looked terrified.
"You're not just mortal."
She backed away. "You're insane."
"Your mother," Asher said tightly. "She disappeared when you were young, didn't she?"
Kyra froze. "How do you know that?"
"Because the High Lord has known it too. He's known since the moment he scented your blood."
Her knees nearly gave out.
"What are you saying?"
He looked at her, eyes flickering silver. "You're not just his wife. You're the key to everything."
She ran. Down echoing halls, through starlit silence, until she reached the chamber she'd come to hate. Asher sat in a velvet chair, swirling wine the color of rubies.
"Tell me the truth," she demanded. "Who was my mother?"
He didn't blink. "Gone."
"Gone where?"
"Back to the realm that made her."
Kyra shook her head, wild with disbelief. "She was human."
"She was never human," Asher said, standing. "And neither are you."
The bond between them flared. Hot. Hungry.
Kyra trembled. "You should have told me."
He stepped closer. "Would it have changed anything?"
"Yes. I never would have agreed to this damn marriage."
"Then I did the right thing."
The rage hit her like lightning. "You lied to me. You trapped me."
"I protected you," he snapped. "You think the courts would have left you alone, unmarked and unclaimed, if they knew what you were? You think Therion touched you for fun? He was testing your blood."
She stilled. Cold. Hollow.
"You knew he would."
Asher didn't deny it.
Later, she sat beneath the ceiling of stars, curled on the balcony floor like a broken thing. The ring on her finger pulsed.
He came.
He always did.
"I want to leave," she whispered.
His voice was a blade. "You can't."
"Please. Let me say goodbye to my family."
A long pause.
"Your brother has been informed. That is all."
"Asher—"
"No."
She turned, grief a wildfire in her throat. "Then unbind me. I won't be your prisoner."
He crouched before her. Brushed a finger down her cheek.
"You made a vow."
"Under false pretenses."
"That doesn't change the magic."
His eyes darkened. "But it can change the terms."
Kyra blinked. "What are you saying?"
He leaned in. Close enough for his breath to warm her lips.
"If you do not stay willingly... the bargain collapses. And if it collapses, you lose more than your freedom. You lose everything."
The bond between them thrummed.
"So choose," he said. "Stay. Or let the darkness take all that you love."
A new bargain is offered—if she doesn't stay in the marriage willingly, all bets are off.