CASSANDRA Once dinner was over, a servant guided me back to my chambers, and when I entered the room, the lights were dimmed and Finnick was fast asleep. Erika sat at the table, reading a book by candlelight, and when she looked up to face me, her kind eyes were wide with concern. “You look stressed, Cassandra,” she noted quietly, and she patted the seat beside her. “Come, tell me what’s wrong. Did something bad happen at dinner?” I crossed over to the table and took the seat next to her. The entire way there, the weight of the conversation earlier hit me hard, and my hands began to shake. “Lady Margaret made me an offer earlier,” I remarked. “She suggested that Finnick should join Prince Marco in his afternoon lessons.” “Oh,” Erika said simply, and her brows furrowed. “That… seems… generous.” I could tell the maid was stringing her words together carefully in hopes not to offend me, but little did she know, she could never say anything to hurt me. “It is,” I replied, and I lea

CASSANDRA As Adalyn continued to glare daggers in my direction, I turned to look at Finnick. “Did you lay a hand on Prince Marco?” I asked as evenly as I could possibly manage. Finnick took a moment and then shook his head. “I didn’t do anything,” he said quietly, but his expression told a different story. Finnick tended to glance down at the ground when he was lying, and he’d done just that a moment ago. So, I took a breath and repeated myself. “Finnick, this is serious,” I said in a much sterner tone. “I want the truth. Did you lay a hand on Prince Marco?” Finnick took a moment of pause, and then he nodded. “Sort of,” he admitted. “But it was just a light push, Mommy. And Marco hit me first-” “Prince Marco,” Adalyn corrected him through bared teeth, and then she rushed over to us. She seemed as if she were going to snatch my son away, but I held firm and lifted him up before she could do anything. I glared at Asher’s wife as she stopped in front of us. No one, royal or not,

CASSANDRA As I stood outside Asher’s study, my heart beat like a drum. I was there to ask the Alpha King for permission to both visit the royal library and take a day off of my duties to show Finnick Anemond, and I was incredibly anxious. I had no idea if Prince Marco or Adalyn had come to him to report what had happened between the boys yesterday, and I wasn’t sure how Asher had taken it if they had. I took a long, deep breath and then knocked on the door. A moment or two passed and then the door creaked open. Asher stood on the other side. “Cassandra,” he greeted me calmly. “Come in.” He inclined his head toward the study and held the door open for me. I crossed the threshold carefully and glanced around the room. Everything seemed as normal and there didn’t seem to be any weirdness in the air. Once the door was closed behind us, Asher took a seat at his desk and turned his attention to a stack of documents in front of him. I’d half-expected his steel-like gray eyes to glare at

CASSANDRA As the shopkeeper stared at us expectantly, a pit formed in my stomach. I wanted to turn down the man’s offer and was about to open my mouth to do just that, but before the words could leave my mouth, Finnick jumped excitedly. “Yes!” he declared, and then he whipped back around to look at me. “Just one look, Mommy, pleaaaaaase?” My son’s storm-gray eyes were as wide as the puppies’ in the window. He wasn’t normally one to beg so I was a little taken aback by his demeanor, but I was struggling to refuse his request. It wasn’t very often we were able to do something like this. “You don’t have to take one home with you today, kind lady,” the shopkeeper addressed me gently. “You’re more than welcome to join the boy and look.” I considered the idea for a moment and then nodded. “Thank you for your kindness.” I took Finnick’s hand in mine and the two of us followed the man into his shop. As we crossed the threshold, I couldn’t help but remember being here when I was young. T

CASSANDRAAs much as I wanted to return to the palace on my own, I couldn’t deny Kaleb’s offer to escort Finnick and me. The tall man was kind and besides, he was flanked by a group of muscular men who could defend us against any further threats. I couldn’t allow myself to risk Finnick’s safety again.As we walked, I couldn’t help but wonder who Kaleb was. The foreign man had to be someone important if he had all of those guards to attend and protect him. Everything about him was poised and proper, and I admired the strong way he held himself as he strode. Normally, those with a stature that tall tended to slouch to make themselves smaller. But Kaleb held himself regally and proud.Kaleb chattered on as we moved through the thrall of the market. He was making many observations about our surroundings and about Anemond in general, which told me he was new to our lands. Every person we passed by stared at him with curiosity. I couldn’t blame them. Their height, hair, and attire made them