CandaceTwo days later, Ingrid chatters about a music discussion she had with some Lilywind noble as she, Finn, and I head to the rejuvenation ritual. I want to listen. I really do. But my eyelids droop, my muscles burn, and it’s taking all my concentration to keep my skirt from dragging in the mud
Still, no one answers. He starts to open his mouth. I scrape together a few shreds of confidence to give the blessing I seriously doubt my younger siblings will volunteer for.“I will.” Mother’s voice, louder than I’ve heard it in a long time, echoes from within the walls of her prison wagon.“No—”
Hollis“Fuck,” King Kieran hisses under his breath.I stare into the depths of the prison wagon, rage pounding like a heartbeat through my veins. “Go. I’ll keep an eye on her.”He looks at me for a second, and I fucking know he’s about to ask why. I don’t have an answer. I think I might’ve exchanged
Inside sits a glass vial with, in the jagged hand of a healer, a label reading “heart.” I swallow. That doesn’t mean anything. I pluck it from the velvet cushion and shake one of the tablets out into my palm. It’s powdery and white, and I raise it to my lips.My mark pulses.What the fuck am I think
Candace“Here we go.” Raven’s Aunt Nola holds out a squalling, still bloody bundle of baby.Kieran accepts it like he barely notices the blood. Raven just slumps back against her pillows, sweat-soaked and panting.“We have a son.” Kieran’s grin could light up a whole castle.“Lemme see’m,” Raven mum
My skin grows cold. “How do you know about that? My parents made me promise never to tell anyone.”“She told me.” He shakes his head. “But we’re getting off topic. I don’t want to talk about your parents. I want to talk about mine.”“Okay?” I say slowly.“My father,” he corrects. “I was talking to h
HollisOutside the tent, Candace’s sobs sound as loud as Raven’s screams did not too long ago, but nothing changes in the flow of frantic traffic between the other tents. Almost everyone heads for the largest one, half of them clutching gifts, to pay fealty to the new baby prince.Something in my ch
Not that I’m keeping track. I, in fact, am doing the exact opposite. I’ve been so caught up in her that I’ve been neglecting my responsibilities. Even if she’s not the person I’m going to spend my life with, I still believe in her dream. There’s just no reason for her to lie, or to seem so scared if
She groans. “I really think that might count as two parties.”With a laugh, I let them lead me out of my new bedroom in my new home and down to the temple to start the rest of my life. Ingrid, Estrella, and Raven leave to join the crowd, but Eva stays with me. According to Snowcrest tradition, she w
CandaceI drag a comb through my thin hair and stare at myself in the mirror on my vanity. More accurately, the new mirror on my new vanity. Hollis and I had to exchange one more goodbye because I had to return to Dun’s Crossing long enough to pack up my life. Some things weren’t worth the trouble o
I press my mouth to hers, mapping the curve of her smile with my tongue. She laughs up into me, breathless with relief. I trace the fullness of her cheek, the slope of her neck. She nips my lower lip. I climb into the bed with her, careful of her many injuries. Someday, we’ll talk about her mother,
Hollis‘Got some more over here,’ Zain calls through the mind-link.I drag the heavy cart across the red-mottled snow toward my Beta. My muscles burn with exertion, but I’m not stopping until this whole battlefield is clear. I won’t let a wolf suffer longer than they have to.Zain nudges ice off a h
“No!” Nessa shrieks. “I warned you about this, about her. She’s twisting your mind.”Eva laughs in her face. “She’s twisting things?”Nessa darts to Soren’s side and grabs his arm. “We can’t stop. Rowena said there would be hell to pay if—”Hollis gestures sharply with the arm I’m not holding onto.
CandaceMy heart hammers in my throat. Our weapons shine dully in the snow, Hollis’s sword dwarfing my dagger. Eva drags her gaze from them up to our clasped hands. My other arm throbs, a reminder that I don’t think I could fight her off if I wanted to.She adjusts her grasp on her knife to a stabbi
Eva scoffs and smashes the hilt of her knife into my fingers around her arm. “When have we ever had trouble talking to each other?”“Exactly.” My fingers throb as I wrap them around my sword. “That’s why it was so hard.”“Bullshit!” Her voice cracks. “Just tell me. Four little words. I found my mate
HollisAt the same moment as I reach the wide ring of defenders and ranged fighters encircling the heart of the battle, Candace limps to a stop at my side. Blood stains her gray coat in a dozen places, and my heart leaps into my throat. I meet her huge, dark eyes. She melts into a human before me. H
There. The break I need. ‘Gavin wouldn’t let you lead, would he?’The shield flickers for a moment, and I crash through it. Sweet air courses into my lungs. I can’t waste the moment, so I charge at her blindly.‘I kept him as my figurehead,’ she howls. ‘I did not need his permission to act. I needed