Chapter 43
Chapter 43
Lila
I was brushing out my hair by the window when the mind–link pierced through. The pressure hit behind my eyes like a vice. It started as a prickling along the base of my skull–then sharpened. I knew the sensation well.
Lila.
His voice slithered through my mind.
I froze, the cool night air brushing against my cheek from the cracked open pane. My pulse stuttered. Yes, Father?
It’s been too long since your last report. His tone was smooth but cold. I hear whispers of a private date. A balcony rendezvous. You’ve had his attention and I assume you’ve done something productive
With it?
I kept my jaw clenched, fists curling around the sill. We spoke. He’s aware of your desire for a Council seat. I delivered your message.
I don’t want interest anymore, he snapped. I want commitment. An agreement. Formal. Signed. I want him bound to me, not just curious about you. Do you understand me?
My stomach twisted. The Council seat hadn’t even been the original deal. That was what I’d sold myself for. That’s not what we agreed to. Again.
I gripped the back of the chair to steady myself. “Mother’s doing better,” I whispered aloud, trying to distract myself, to remember the one thing he hadn’t destroyed.
A silence pulsed through the link, thick as the blood I wish we didn’t share. When Henry replied, his voice was ice. Your agreement doesn’t bind me, daughter. You think because you’ve made it halfway through this circus that you’ve earned leverage with me?
I bit the inside of my cheek hard enough to taste copper. You promised my mother would be safe if I did this. Then you asked for more, and you’re doing it again. Don’t change the rules now.
Then don’t fail me. The words crackled with power. Damon’s bloodline is the key to everything we need. You’ve got his ear–now get him to put it in writing.
My heart pounded. You said a seat. One. I’m not marrying the Crown like a damn bribe to buy your
influence.
His reply came slower this time, but darker. You think you have a choice in this? I own your truth, Lila. One word from me and your mother’s treatment ends. Do you want her to decline again? Do you want her blood on your hands?
I pressed my lips together to keep from screaming. My body trembled with effort, one hand flat on the windowpane to keep myself grounded.
I will get you the seat, I said, voice shaking with rage. But if you threaten me again, I’ll walk straight into the Council chambers and out myself. And then let Damon rip you apart with his bare hands.
Another long silence.
Careful, he said finally, quieter this time. You’re playing a dangerous game.
Well, I was encouraged to be dangerous. No, I shot back. You are. And I’m the one who has to survive it.
His voice grated like claws in my mind. You’re not done until I say you are.
You touch her,” I hissed, and I’ll tell him everything. I swear to the Goddess.
Then I shut the link. Slammed it shut, so hard I felt the echo ripple in the back of my mind.
The silence afterward rang. My whole body felt like a live wire. I couldn’t tell if I was freezing or burning and my fingers ached from clenching too tightly.
Chapter 43
I backed away from the window, pacing once, twice, three times across the room. I needed to breathe. To move, I wanted to scream into a pillow, punch the wall, tear down every single thing he’d ever said to me and remake myself from the pieces.
Instead, I slipped on a shawl and turned toward the door.
I needed air. Not just because of the pressure he’d dropped on my shoulders, but because if I stayed here any longer, I might do something reckless. Like follow through on my promise and tell Damon everything.
Henry wanted me desperate, but I was something far more dangerous now; I was cornered and furious.
The garden was quieter than the palace halls. I slipped into it without a shawl, letting the cold air sting my arms and clear my head. The adrenaline from the mind–link still sat bitter on my tongue, and I needed distance from everything.
From Henry. From Damon. From all the lying and pretending. I just needed five minutes to myself, to be nobody else.
I took the long path past the moonlit fountain, skimming my fingers over the hedges until I reached the rose arbor.
“Beautiful night,” Asher said smoothly, appearing like he’d been carved from the moonlight itself. “Or are you out here plotting the downfall of your enemies?”
I exhaled through my nose. “You startled me.”
He gave a mock bow. “Apologies. I saw you slip out and thought–well, surely this means something juicy is happening.”
“I just needed air.”
“After the trial today? I’m not surprised.” He tilted his head. “You killed it.”
“Thanks,” I said warily.
“I mean it,” he added. “You took the advice and ran with it. I half–expected you to crumble under Nora’s smug little stare, but you pulled out something… brilliant.” He smiled. “Unexpected.”
“Everyone keeps saying that,” I murmured.
“Because it’s true.” He stepped closer, casually but deliberately, hands tucked behind his back. “And I like surprises.”
I crossed my arms. “Is that all you came to say?”
He studied me for a moment. “I also wanted to offer… condolences.”
I blinked. “Condolences? Not congratulations?”
He smiled again, wider this time. “Correct. Because if you keep impressing people like this, someone’s going to try to cut you down. The higher you
climb…”
“…the longer the fall,” I finished.
“Exactly.”
There was something in his tone that made me bristle. Not threatening, but not entirely safe either.
“You’ve got sharp instincts,” he continued, circling toward the edge of the arbor. “The kind someone doesn’t learn in finishing school. Or court.” He glanced at me sidelong. “The kind you pick up when people want things from you–when they own pieces of you and call it love.”
I went still. My breath hitched, but I said nothing.
“Funny how someone can ask for a favor and it sounds like a threat,” he mused, voice quieter now. “Or how a girl can look like she’s here on her own terms, but you can see the leash if you’re looking closely enough.”
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Chapter 43
My pulse kicked up. “Do you make a habit of spying on people, or just the ones in dresses?”
He laughed. “You’d be surprised how loud silence is around here.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“No,” he agreed. “It’s not.”
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We stood there, watching each other in the half–dark. I didn’t trust him. I didn’t think I ever would. But there was a strange kind of honesty in his deflections—like he didn’t care enough to lie convincingly.
“And,” he added after a beat, “if things get too interesting–too dangerous–I’m always available. As a backup.”
I stared at him. “A backup?”
“Mate,” he said tightly, as if offering me a second dessert. “You’re playing with very sharp teeth, Elena. If you need an escape hatch, I’m an excellent one.”
My stomach twisted. “Are you joking?”
“Not entirely.”
He stepped back, finally giving me space. “Just keep it in mind. Damon may be the King, but he doesn’t have a monopoly on power. Or protection.”
I said nothing. I didn’t trust my voice.
Asher gave a shallow bow and turned. “Good night, Lucky.”
I watched him vanish into the garden’s shadows, and only then did I let myself breathe. My heart still thundered in my chest. That wasn’t just flirting. That was a warning, maybe even a dash of threat for good measure. And I had no idea how much he really knew–about me, about Henry, about the entire damned situation.
Back in my room, I locked the door behind me and stood still for a long time. I wasn’t sure who to be wary of anymore. But I was starting to think Asher deserved a closer look.
