Immediately, I was entranced by the detailed maps drawn carefully in the very front of the book.
The city of Efra was bigger than I’d even imagined—and it was smaller now than it had been in the past. The map in the book showed Efra sprawling out across Frasia, its neighborhoods almost reaching Daybreak and the other packs. Huge. As if the city of Efra was the entirety of the continent. I
smoothed my finger down the map. What had changed to shrink the city so much, and to break the land into the separate domains of the packs?
Amity and Rue arrived with breakfast, and I dismissed them just as soon as it was set up. I stayed in my pajamas as I sipped my coffee and nibbled at toast, the small tome open flat on the table beside me. There were few pleasures better in my life than a lazy breakfast and a good book.
I was only a few dozen pages into the introduction to the book and the history of author Hae Blaylock’s life when a brisk knock at the door shattered my attention. I pressed my lips together. I’d expected Barion to show up at some point, especially if he heard I wasn’t feeling well—he’d want to discuss how the sparring went, and what ways I could improve. We hadn’t debriefed yesterday so of course he’d want to this morning. With a sigh, I pulled my robe on over my pajamas and fastened the tie at the waist.
Another brisk knock. I rolled my eyes and padded over to the door, opening it with a half-hearted greeting for Barion already on my tongue.
Except it wasn’t Barion.
It was the king.
There was a strange look in his dark eyes, something distant and almost…almost sad, in a way. His hands were clasped neatly behind his back, and he was dressed simply, as he always was. Like he could be an off-duty soldier on his way home instead of the King of Frasia walking his own royal halls.
“Your—Your Majesty,” I stammered.
“Lady Reyna,” he said.
I swallowed. There was still a strange intensity hovering in the air between us, but it wasn’t the tightly coiled energy from the arena. There was something else there, something that made my skin prickle with the need to be simultaneously close and far away. “What brings you here?”
“Lady Glennis informed me you weren’t feeling well,” he said. “I wanted to make sure you were all right.”
I blinked. Make sure I was all right? There had to be some kind of ulterior motive here… “I’m fine,” I said. “Just tired.”
“Understandably so,” he said. I expected some sort of pithy remark, a joke or a barb—but none came.
“I just needed a bit more rest after yesterday,” I explained to fill the slightly awkward silence.
“That’s all.”
“I’m relieved you’re not sick,” he said. “You didn’t seem unwell at all yesterday. You’re quite agile with a sword, for a woman.”
My confusion soured into the now-familiar irritation. “A lady,” I corrected him. “You might be surprised to find out that women can do many things. Often, we can do the same things men can do.”
The king pressed his lips together into a hard line. My sarcasm was not lost on him, that much was obvious. For a moment, he looked like he was about to say something else, to push back and argue in some way—but then he just sighed, shoulders slumping.
“Right,” he said. “Get some rest then, Lady Reyna.”
Internally, my wolf whined at the sight of the king looking so upset—she was a caretaker and wanted to surge forward to improve his mood. If he felt her close to the surface, he didn’t show it. Not even a single gleam of gold in his dark eyes. Before I could say anything else, he nodded his head curtly and walked back down the hall.
I closed the door behind him and leaned back against the cool wood with a sigh. What was that about? After all that time spent insulting me, provoking me, and teasing me, he was suddenly sincerely concerned with my well-being? But then, even as he attempted to compliment my sparring, he managed to insult me as well? For a king, he was no good at conducting himself. Every interaction I had with him only made me more confused about what he wanted from me.
My wolf’s reaction wasn’t helping, either. She was starting to have more of an influence on me than I’d like. That soft, sad look in his eyes made something in my chest pull tight. But I didn’t want to feel bad for him. I didn’t want to feel anything for him at all. Especially not anything like this—a little curious, a little warm. I thought suddenly of that moment in the arena, when his strong, callused hand had tightened around my wrist as he’d tried to pull me closer.
What if I hadn’t resisted? What if I’d let him pull me closer, until I was flush to the plane of his broad chest? How would my wolf react to that kind of closeness: sweat, warm skin, muscle, the barely there coppery scent of blood that I’d drawn myself?
I shook that thought from my head. What had gotten into me? The king was taking up far too much space in my thoughts. I glanced at Blaylock’s book. There was some engaging information there, sure, but it’d only made more questions bubble up.
Staying in this room would only cause me to get more lost in my own head, though. If I was stuck in Efra for more trials, I should at least take advantage of the resources provided. I dressed quickly in the fine outfit I’d ordered from Camille with the wide pants and the long jacket. I pulled my hair back in a loose ponytail. My wolf was still irritable, and her urge to pace and whine was already beginning to give me a mild headache. She felt off, unsafe, for some reason—was it the fact that we’d upset the king? Or shirked our duties at breakfast?
“It’s fine,” I muttered aloud, as if that would calm her down. “It’s just a day to rest.”
Except she didn’t feel rested at all. She wanted closeness, other wolves, either the handmaidens or Fina and Adora, or better yet, the king. That wasn’t happening today, though. I padded over to my dresser and pulled out the fine silver knife Barion had given me, sheathed in its leather scabbard embroidered with the Daybreak crest. Sometimes a wolf’s instincts were just a little overactive. I’d been through a lot of stress—the dinner, the sparring, and having the king show up at my door. My wolf was on high alert. Having the little knife on my person would calm her down, certainly. I slipped it into the waistband of my pants.It worked. My wolf settled, the weight of the knife a substitute for her bared teeth, and a tangible reminder of Barion, too. Then I tucked The History of Fae in Frasia into the crook of my arm and slipped out of my room. I didn’t leave a note for Amity and Rue, but I had a feeling they’d know where to find me.I made my way through the halls of the manor undistu
But what would a shewolf be doing creeping around the halls? It had to be a guard, or— Or something worse. Someone sent to find me.I swallowed, my feet pinned to the floor. “Can I help you?” I asked primly, the steadiness in my voice hopefully concealing some of my fear. But I didn’t doubt the wolf could sense the anxiety radiating off me. It crept up the stairs until it was on the balcony with me, its paws silent on the stone floor.Internally, my own wolf raised her hackles.“What do you want?” I asked, low.What did I expect? For the wolf to shift back into human form and explain itself? Of course it didn’t—it just pulled its lip back from its teeth in a snarl as a growl began to build.The yellow eyes fixed on me with the bloodthirsty gaze of a predator.This wolf wasn’t here to scare me.This wolf was here to kill me.11barely had time to acknowledge that truth before the wolf launched off its back feet with teeth bared. I scrambled backward, and my foot caught on the hem of m
“Where are we?” I asked.“My study,” the king said sharply.“Then what’s the room upstairs in the library?” I asked.“My archival study,” he snapped. “Why am I letting you ask questions?”He guided me to one of the chairs at the table and pushed me down to sit. I swallowed. Goosebumps rose on my arms. I was still riding high from the adrenaline of the fight and reeling from the way the king had carried me—I was offended while my wolf was preening. Right now, I was too tired to untangle those reactions. He exhaled. “Are you hurt?”I looked down at my hands. They were covered in blood, sticky and darkening as it dried, and it had reached my clothes as well. Certainly it had flecked my face, too. The same dark blood stained the king’s hands where he had grabbed me.“I’m fine,” I said. “It’s not my blood.” Suddenly, renewed anger surged through me. “Care to explain why I just got attacked in your library?” “Attacked?” the king asked.“Yes, attacked!” I tried to stand up to get in his face
The blood drained from my face. Poisoned. So that was why Barion had insisted I not touch the blade. I simply thought it was the weapons safety he’d drilled into me since I was a little girl. But no —it was poisoned, and he hadn’t told me. I hadn’t intended to kill her, just stop her—but would I have killed her with the blade alone if I’d had to?Yes, I realized. I would’ve done whatever it took to protect myself. My wolf and I were aligned in that way. Her instincts had pushed me to carry the knife with me, and if I hadn’t listened, my attacker would’ve torn out my throat without remorse.“I was attacked without provocation,” I said. I met the king’s gaze steadily. “She tried to kill me. I defended myself.”“A guest of my court cannot be carrying weapons like that,” the king said. “A scuffle should not result on the death of a wolf.”“A scuffle?” I balked. “She tried to kill me! If I hadn’t defended myself—”“A wolf should always defend herself,” the king said. “If a wolf threatens y
“Adora may be weak with a sword, but the resources she would bring to your court would empower you more than any show of strength on a battlefield.” “The council agrees with you,” the king admitted.I blinked. “They do?”“It’s an obvious choice,” the king said. “Adora is a beautiful woman with exceptional resources at her disposal. She impressed the council greatly during the first trial.”“Wonderful,” I said. “So it’s settled.” A strange dark disappointment washed over me.“The competition hasn’t ended,” the king said. “The council does not make the decision—I do.” I glanced up. “It doesn’t seem right to continue after this.”He took another sip of his drink. “I am not holding the Choice for purely political means.”“You’re speaking in riddles.” My head was spinning. Too much had happened in the past hour—I couldn’t keep up with the king’s tendency to talk around things. So the council had a favorite, but the competition was still ongoing, and Rona was dead. Where did we go from here
“Now,” the duchess said, “it’s time for the final trial. Tomorrow, you will be attending the closing ball for the King’s Choice. You will be expected to face the council again, but this time, you will be presenting to the council.”“Oh?” Adora asked. “Like a diplomatic meeting?”“Yes,” the duchess said. “The council has tested your knowledge of governance and manners, and your physical skill on the battlefield. Now, the council would like to know why each of you wish to wear the Crown of Nightfall at King Elias’ side.”Fina nodded, trying her best to look excited, but I could see the despair in her eyes. This felt like a terrible school assignment—having to stand in front of the council and argue that I wanted the crown? I was good at navigating diplomatic situations, like trade disputes and legal questions, but just standing there and telling them I wanted this seemed like an impossible task. And I could only assume the duchess would be trying to thwart me every step of the way. She
“I know my way around,” Adora said. “I think.” “Love the confidence,” Fina said with a smile.“Walking will do you good if you’re sore,” Adora said. “And it’s warmer inside the manor than outside.”Not that I needed any more convincing. Adora led us through the quiet halls of the manor. Though we passed guards and servants, no one seemed to give us a second glance. I had expected there to be more guards, or an increase in surveillance of some kind after yesterday, but it seemed like the duchess and the council would rather pretend it hadn’t happened at all. I supposed Nightfall violence was only acceptable when the Nightfall wolves were the victors.We made our way to the northern wing of the manor, where the hallways were narrower and the lighting dim.“This is mostly servants’ quarters and prep rooms in this wing,” Adora explained quietly. “My sisters and I would always come this way to play hide and seek when we were here as children. Anything to avoid the boring trade disputes.”
Well, I’d already almost died once this week. Might as well keep the fun going. The Fae magic crackled around me. I grinned at Fina, ignored Adora’s protests, and stepped into the dark room.As soon as I crossed the threshold, the magic raced over my skin like a curious, sparking touch. It made my hair stand on end, and my wolf alert and attentive internally. Not fear, just—intensity.Curiosity. Then, as I squinted into the inky darkness, torches lining the walls sparked to life.Light flooded the room. I gasped, my eyes widening as I drank in the sight in front of me.This wasn’t just a room. This was a vault.It was a small room, low ceiling, with stone walls lined with shelves. Where there weren’t shelves, there were glass cases, lining the space like the books in the library. It was crowded, stuffed with items, and the whole room crackled with energy.“Wow,” I murmured.Fina and Adora stepped in behind me, both equally shocked. “What is all this?” Adora asked. “Fae artifacts,” Fin