LOGINThen I whispered, “She woke because of truth.”Nicholas’s POVTruth.The word cut deeper than any blade.Watching Esther’s wolf awaken, seeing that glow ripple through her, was like watching dawn break inside my own ribs. Norman howled in joy, circling like a storm.Mate. Whole again.I wanted to re
Esther’s POVThe moon hung low over the palace courtyard, pale and thin as if it too had been hollowed out by truth.I hadn’t slept in days. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Carl’s face in that hospital bed, the IV line glowing red with Nicholas’s blood, a thread connecting them that could never b
I couldn’t stay. Not then. Not with the room spinning around the truth.I turned on my heel and left.Outside, the evening had turned cold. The palace gardens stretched wide and silent, shadows long across the stone. I made it halfway to the fountain before the first surge of fury hit, hot and wild
Nicholas’s POVIt was supposed to be an ordinary morning.A quiet one, even the kind where the palace felt less like a fortress and more like a home. The smell of breakfast bread drifting through the halls, the faint laughter of children somewhere near the east courtyard.Then came the scream.High.
I turned the page without a word.Inside, the fragile hope I’d been nurturing began to splinter.Nicholas found me near noon.He stormed in, half out of his formal jacket, eyes dark and wild. “Who leaked this?”“You’re asking me?” I said.“I’m asking everyone.” His voice was a snarl. “They’re saying
Esther’s POVThe palace had never been this bright.Golden banners fluttered across the courtyard, musicians tuned lutes and violins, and trays of sugared fruit glimmered beneath the sunlight. All of it, the music, the laughter, the illusion, was for Sofia.My daughter. My little girl who had someho
I pressed my fists to my eyes and tried not to scream.Hours passed. Or maybe days. Down here there was no sense of time.At some point a guard shoved a tray of food through the bars. There was nothing but gray porridge and a tin cup of water. I stared at it but couldn’t bring myself to eat.Amanda’
Esther’s POVThe first sign something had gone wrong was the screaming.Not the usual palace whispers or courtly scuffles, but a shriek so loud it cut through the marble corridors like a blade. I’d been in the infirmary reorganizing tinctures when the sound crashed over me, followed by the frantic p
And so you crown her.“I buy time.” My voice came out like stone.The council chamber smelled of cedar and sweat. Elders lined the benches like vultures in robes. Amanda stood at my right hand, hands clasped over her stomach, the picture of radiant dignity.I rose. My own voice echoed back to me in
Esther’s POVThe announcement hit like a blow even though I’d been bracing for it.The palace press office had called a “routine morning briefing” in the marble atrium. Everyone came. Officers, healers, servants, and courtiers were all jammed under the tall glass roof as if drawn by some instinct. T







