The silk of the bodice ended just above the breasts, and the gown was made only of white lace from the sternum to the neckline, as well as the sleeves. It was so delicate I could hardly imagine wearing it at all.
“It’s gorgeous,” Fina sighed. “Wow.”
“And of course,” Camille said, “it’s quite detailed.” She turned the mannequin slightly, and the light of the shop caught the tiny moonstones embroidered into the gown. It glowed the pale blue of Starcrest under the light.
Starcrest colors. And only Starcrest. Not a mention of Daybreak at all. Aerika smiled at me, small and secretive. “Come,” she said. “Let’s ensure it fits.”
Micah set up the dressing screen around the platform at the front of the room, shielding me from the girls and the mirrors. Then, Aerika stepped behind the screen and carefully helped me step out of my simple daywear gown and into the surprisingly light wedding gown. The fabric was surprisingly soft swishing around my legs, and light, despite the crystals and gems woven into it. The ethereal feeling was almost magical. Or maybe I was imagining it—just hoping there was some kind of Fae magic woven into the fabric, crackling over my skin.
Aerika finished fastening the hook and eye closures on the back, then smoothed her strong hands over the lace on my shoulders. “There you go,” she said. “What do you think?” Micha rolled the screen away and I turned to face the mirror.
“Oh,” I said quietly, and covered my mouth with my hand.
Seeing it on the mannequin was one thing, but seeing it on me was completely another. It was gorgeous, molded exactly to my body, accentuating the curve of my waist and thighs, while still allowing ease of movement. The lace was subtle and finely detailed, crisp white against my skin, and even my hair seemed to shine brighter against it.
“Oh, Reyna,” Adora said. “You look so beautiful.” She blinked hard, then cast her gaze up at the ceiling as she tried to hold back her tears.
Fina didn’t even try. She sniffled hard, a few tears leaking from her eyes even as she beamed. “You really do!” she agreed. “You look stunning! It was made for you. I mean—I know it literally was, but it really looks incredible.” She dabbed carefully under her eyes. “I’m so happy I get to be here to see this. I’m so thrilled to be in your court. Never in a century did I imagine something like this.”
“Since you are to be members of the court,” Camille said, “Barion of Daybreak has requested that you both stand with the bride as her wedding party.”
“Oh!” Fina gasped. “Reyna, you didn’t have to!”
My heart broke anew. I knew this was Barion’s way of apologizing. He was loyal to my father— that much was obvious. He would continue to do what my father asked. But at least he, unlike my father, did care about me. In his own way, he did want me to be happy. I couldn’t even imagine a reality in which my father would give a thought to Fina and Adora, other than to find a way to manipulate them and use them against me.
“In Nightfall tradition, the family stands with the bride,” Camille said. “But Barion has suggested that you two have become close to family. And in a wedding as extravagant as one that is the culmination of the King’s Choice, we can bend a few rules.”
Aerika hurried into the back room, and then returned with two more dress mannequins. Both were a deep dove gray, sewn from heavy, decadent velvet. Adora’s had a cinched waist and a full skirt, accentuating the curves of her figure, and Fina’s had a plunging neckline and straighter skirt, highlighting her height and elegant frame.
“Oh my gods,” Adora said. “Reyna, this is so—this is so kind of you.”
My own heart swelled. I stepped off the platform, careful not to step on the hem of my gown and wrapped them both in a hug.
“There’s no one else I’d rather have beside me on my wedding day,” I said, and I meant it. “Thank you for everything.”
For the first time since Griffin had broken my heart in the dungeons, I felt like I might actually have a future. It wasn’t the one I’d planned for, but there was something there for me. I’d make sure of that.
“Wonderful,” Camille said. “We’ll have everything ready for the ceremony tomorrow.”
When we returned from the shop, I said my good evenings to Fina and Adora and made my way to my quarters alone. I dismissed Amity and Rue. Tomorrow was the big day.
My wedding day.
I needed time alone. In the quiet of my quarters, I stoked the fire until it was crackling merrily in the hearth, and then brushed my hair out. As the fire cast its light over the room, a sparkle in my trunk caught my eye.
The necklace. I’d tossed it so carelessly back into my trunk when I’d returned from the dungeons, after pulling it from my neck hard enough to break it. I pulled it from where it’d fallen in the mess of clothes, and where it sparkled like a treasure at the bottom of the ocean. I smoothed my thumb over the garish sapphire—I could admit that to myself now, it was garish.
When Griffin had given this to me, it was with the promise that we’d be together again. I’d come to Efra buzzing with anticipation—the excitement of adventure, of seeing more of the country. I’d thought this was to be the start of something. I’d leave the Choice with an independent life ahead of me, far from the complexities of the courts and the packs. A life of travel, where I would find myself through the freedom of exploration.
Coming to Efra had been the start of my life, I supposed. Just not the one I expected.
I wrapped the necklace in a handkerchief and tucked it the far corner of my trunk. I wasn’t ready to get rid of it, not yet. It wasn’t just a gift from Griffin, it was a relic of my previous life.
Now I was about to start a new life. I was going to marry a king who everyone had told me was a monster. I had seen him behave monstrously. And yet I had seen a deep humanity in him, as well— both in the privacy of his quarters, and on the arena pitch, when he had given Griffin two chances to submit.He was the monster who was a man. My father was the man who was a monster. My father was the one who had orchestrated all of this—the coup, the lies, the disregard for what I wanted. He’d never cared about me. Never loved me. All he’d wanted was the throne, and he’d used Griffin in an attempt to get it.How could I tell who I could trust? How could I even begin to imagine the future ahead of me?27had barely fallen asleep when I was awoken by the commotion of Amity and Rue hurrying into my room. Amity threw the curtains open, casting sunshine into the room, and Rue poured the coffee. “Good morning, milady!” Rue said. “It’s your big day! Are you so excited?”I pushed myself up onto one el
“It was,” I said. “It really is beautiful.”Before Amity could close the door, Fina called, “Did we miss it?” She stuck her head in the gap in the door and the doorframe. “The final fitting?”“No, no,” I said with a smile. “Come in.”Fina and Adora both hurried into the room. It was mid-morning, and they’d been dolled up by their own handmaidens. Both looked gorgeous, in their lush gowns and simple makeup. Fina swept me into her arms immediately in a hard hug, and I laughed as she spun me around. “Please don’t smudge the makeup,” Amity said. “We don’t have a lot of extra time!” “I won’t, I won’t,” Fina said as she released me, grinning.Adora gave me a hug as well, and an air-kiss on each cheek. She was a bit flushed, but she looked happier than she did yesterday. That was about all I could hope for, considering how things had shaken out for the both of us.“We wanted to be a part of the big day,” she said. “I hope you don’t mind.”“Not in the slightest,” I said. “I’m so glad you’re h
My own wolf roused with anxiety, wanting to spring forth, as if she was pulled by the presence of so many others.A violinist in the clearing began to play a delicate tune, the strings lilting through the air as if following the birdsong overhead. Fina and Adora walked into the clearing first and took their places a few paces from the edge of the cliff, to an audience of high-ranking court members in their human forms.Then I was standing at the tree line with just Amity and Rue in their wolf forms at my back. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do—no one had told me exactly how this was supposed to go. Icouldn’t see the king either, half-hidden as he was by the officiant as they both overlooked the crowd under the cliff. I glanced around, looking for some sort of instruction, when my father stepped into the tree line with a scowl on his face.“What is this?” he hissed, sneering at my gown. He was dressed in his ceremonial finery, linen layered against the cold along with a cloak, a
What else had I learned in Daybreak that was a lie?“Your Majesty,” the priest said, “my lady. We gather here today under the watchful eyes of our gods to join both of you together in matrimony as leaders of Pack Nightfall and the Kingdom of Frasia. The Choice has guided you to your queen, and now you may enter the rest of your lives together.” He cast his yellow eyes around the guests. “With your court and your pack as witnesses, you will begin this journey.”My father was nearly vibrating with anger as he watched, though if any other wolves noticed it, they made no comment. Fina was already crying as she watched, dabbing under her eyes delicately from where she stood. Even the duchess, stern in her rich purple gown, seemed minutely pleased to see the culmination of the Choice.Lady Marin stepped forward to the priest’s side. In her hands she held a plain wooden box. The priest opened it and carefully took out a heavy piece of thick, plain rope. “Face each other,” he said.We did as
“Just something special for our wedding day,” the king said, obviously pleased by my reaction.The guests in the main hall applauded as we walked in, cheers and hoots filling the room. The king laughed, loud and booming, and waved at the guests with his free hand as he hitched me a little closer. I hid my smile behind my hand. It was a strange feeling, being here like this, the center of attention—it almost didn’t feel real. Like I was playing a role, which I supposed was true. Finally, I felt like I was free from the judgmental, assessing eyes of the council and the court. The Choice hadn’t ended the way I’d wanted—but at least it’d ended. Small favors.The band began to play, and the king led me toward the floor. “I still don’t know the Nightfall dances,” I whispered.“Don’t worry about that,” the king said. “The ceremony was for the rituals of Nightfall. The rest of the day is about us.”He squeezed my hand and then pulled me close, in the center of the dance floor. The other guest
The song ended and Barion stepped away with a bow. “Thank you for the dance,” he said, “and good luck, Lady Reyna.”That was his way of saying goodbye.Outside, the sun had dipped down below the horizon, and the evening edged into night. The wine and champagne flowed, the band sweated through their clothes, and the cake was served down to the glass stand. I was still on the dance floor with the king, exhaustion beginning to nip at my heels like a pup.A bell sounded from somewhere in the room. The king pulled me close to his side. “That’s our cue,” he said. His voice was low, rumbling from all the talking he’d done to the guests. He looked just as tired as I felt, with his crown a little askance and sweat gathered at the collar of his fine shirt.I leaned against him, like my body was about to give up standing on its own since he was here to hold us up. “Cue?”The crowd began to hoot and shout out their well wishes. Scattered throughout the crowd, guests held sparklers, passed out by
My wolf urged me to move closer, to kiss him, to bury my face in the crook of his neck and erase all my reason and logic in the delicious familiar scent of his sweat. I wrestled her into submission.“We should talk,” I said.The king pulled back with an interested smile on his face. “Sure.” He moved toward the crackling fire, then gestured toward the armchair across from his own. He hadn’t changed his clothes, but did roll up the sleeves of his fine shirt, revealing the tanned muscular curve of his forearms. He poured us each a bit of brandy, then offered me the glass. “Let’s talk.” “I know it’s our wedding night,” I said.“You have a keen eye.”I ignored that. “And I know what is—customary.”“Right,” he said, that wolfish smirk reappearing on his face as his warm eyes tracked over my body.“But I—I can’t forgive as quickly as some might be able to,” I said. “I need more time.”The pleased expression dropped off his face. He raised his eyebrows. “This is about that traitor of yours?”
Before I made it, though, he caught up and caught my wrist in his hand. “Where do you think you’re going?”“Outside,” I said. “I need space.”He kept his hand around my wrist as he stepped close. “The last thing we need right now, Reyna, is more space.” He pressed his chest to my back and ducked his head closer, nosing behind my ear and inhaling. “I know you yearn for me.” His voice vibrated into my bones from the intimacy. “I can smell your desire.”I pressed my thighs together. It was no mystery that I wanted him. I’d made that clear the last night we’d spent together in this room. “My body and mind have two different opinions of you.”“Perhaps that’s part of the problem,” he said. “You’re so caught up in your mind that you ignore your body—and your wolf.”“I don’t ignore her,” I huffed, even as my wolf protested. Then I snapped my mouth shut. I didn’t need to justify myself to the king. I wasn’t an animal like the wolves of Nightfall. I had more selfrestraint than that.“We cannot