LOGINAria’s POVLyra’s gaze didn’t leave my face nor did Kade’s.And Damon… I didn’t need to look at him to feel the bond between us humming under my skin, stronger now, steadier in a way that made it impossible to ignore. The suppressants were gone, the barriers stripped away, and everything I had worke
Damon’s POVI knew she would hate me for it.The moment the word yes left my mouth, I felt it settle into my bones like a decision that would not be undone. There had been no hesitation in my voice, no visible crack in my control, but inside, something had shifted into place with a finality I could
Aria’s POVThe silence after that was not empty… it was alive.It pressed against my skin, thick and suffocating, like the entire chamber had been holding its breath and now didn’t know what to do with it. My heart was still hammering from the Queen’s declaration, from the way she had spoken so calm
Aria’s POVMorning came too fast, like the night had been impatient to abandon me.I woke before I even opened my eyes fully, aware of the warmth beside me, aware of the steady rhythm of breathing that didn’t belong to me. For a moment I just lay there, staring at the ceiling, remembering exactly ho
Damon’s POVI should have stood my ground, slept on the floor instead. My chest tightened the moment she scooted closer, that familiar heat crawling up my spine like fire on dry wood. Her lips were pressed into a thin line, her eyes flicking away the instant mine landed on hers. The kind of look th
Or maybe she did.Maybe she just didn’t realize how bad it was.“You really want me to answer that?” I asked, my voice dropping.“Yes.”No hesitation, no fear. Just that same stubborn insistence that made everything ten times harder.I exhaled slowly, dragging a hand through my hair again as I force
Aria’s POV“What the hell is going on here?!”The courtyard froze.It was as if the air itself had been ripped apart and forced to still under the weight of that voice. Every whisper died mid-breath. Every shifting foot stilled against the stone.My heart stuttered painfully in my chest.Damon.Reli
Aria’s POVThe world wouldn’t stop spinning.I stayed on my knees, my palms pressed flat against the cold stone as I struggled to keep myself upright. Every breath scraped through my chest, uneven and shallow, and the warmth spreading beneath me told me what I already knew—I was still bleeding.Lyra
Then she stepped forward herself. “Fine,” she said, her voice deceptively calm. “If you’re all too incompetent to follow orders…”Her hand clamped around my arm. Hard.I gasped as pain shot up my side, my knees buckling slightly as she yanked me forward. “I’ll do it myself.”“Lyra, don’t—!” Mira sta
Aria’s POV“What?”The word tore out of me before I could stop it, sharp and breathless as it scraped against my throat. For a moment, I just stared at Lyra, convinced I had misheard her, that my mind was still clouded from the pain, from the blood loss, from everything that had happened, but she on







