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31 - Dancing
Fecha de publicación:
2026-06-04 23:09:19
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The Bride Wore Blood 52 - Arrangements
I walk away from Tim, telling myself that I’m overreacting. That he wasn’t too close and I must have imagined him trying to touch my hair. I stroke the strands back into place, tucking them behind my ear. By the time I’ve reached the end of the corridor, I’ve managed to calm my heart rate. It was just a misunderstanding, Tim’s worried about me the same way that Rune is. Some time outside the Palace would be good, before I lose my mind and see shadows where they don’t exist.I’m so caught in my thoughts that I enter the bedroom without thinking. For the second time in minutes, I’m caught by surprise. Faced with the huge shadow of a man before me. My heart stills for a second before thundering hard. Thade. He stands up from where he’s been reading beside the fireplace. The vast room stretching endlessly between us. ‘Good evening,’ he acknowledges me with a brief nod, one that I return.‘Good evening.’‘I had expected your return much sooner,’ he explains, voice low as he watches me, gr
The Bride Wore Blood 51 - Captured
After a long afternoon in the Solarium, I retreat before dinner away from the public spaces of the Palace where the Court exists. Glasses fixed in place as I navigate the magic laden walls and corridors. I dismissed Rune for the evening, knowing how tired she was for a day standing at my side in the baking heat. Besides, along all the corridors the guards dog my steps with Maggie and Rosa trailing behind me, their own steps heavy.I climb the stairs to the Royal Suite slowly, dread pooling in my stomach at the thought of another encounter with Thade. I grip the handrail, grimacing as a splinter slides into my palm. Pre-occupied, I pick at the sliver of wood as I trail through the corridors, walking straight into a solid wall of muscle. I stumble, but before I can find my footing, heavy hands clamp onto my shoulders, anchoring me in place. I look up into the dark, unblinking eyes of Timian.‘I’m so sorry - I wasn’t looking,’ I stammer, my breath catching as his grip tightens just a fra
The Bride Wore Blood 50 - Stifled
The air in the Solarium is too thick, perfumed with the cloyingly sweet scent of jasmine that couldn't quite mask the more worrying scents beneath, of decaying wood and a building that beneath its gilded exterior and elaborate decor hadn’t been maintained. The contradiction is something I’ve started associated with my gilded cage. It has been impossible to avoid the rigidity of palace life in Thade’s absence. This is a beautiful airless trap where every smile is a dagger and every tea service is a negotiation.I’m tired of defending an absent Husband that I don’t know, but I want to save my country, not destabilise it. I lean back in the velvet-tufed chair, fingers tracing the intricate flowers stitched into the hem of my sleeve. I’m dressed as a Queen, with all of the magic now stripped from the dressing room, it seemed safer to wear an armour of elaborate clothes. I have a satin underdress, elaborately jewelled, and over the top a dress of light peacock blue in contrast. The sleeve
The Bride Wore Blood 49 - Late Hours
It’s late by the time Ronin and Delia depart, leaving Cynan and I to face one another. Without more of the Otherworld bringing their magic to the land, Illure will fail. Adulphus knew it too, but he was too slow to act. I’ve inherited a Kingdom on the brink of collapse and it weighs on me. Like stones in my body, lead in my blood. I lean back as the low candles gutter, the tavern air growing oppressive and cold, chilling the sweat on my neck. The platter is empty, the wine and glasses cleared, yet Cynan remains, watching me with an intensity that makes the small room feel like a cage. Beyond the door, the last patrons shuffle away, leaving a silence so heavy it rings in my ears. ‘You truly think I’m fated to be with Lana?’ I ask the only question that remains on my lips. In all of the dire situations my country faces, how come this is the one that can hurt me the most?‘Nix isn’t a name from the Otherworld,’ Cynan pulls forward the list of Otherworld bloodlines in the Illure Nobilit
The Bride Wore Blood 48 - Blight
The rock of the cave room was almost as hard as her face. She held his gaze and the moment seemed to drag on. He had no reply that would calm the storm. Eventually, he sighed and said the only thing his thoughts could give him; ‘the marriage and the feast were necessary.’‘Lady Cynan believes that Illure doesn’t have much time,’ Delia spoke up from beside me, one of her hands clasped in Ronin’s beneath the table, the other curled around a glass of wine. ‘I’m aware of the risks,’ I look across at her, seeing the worry in my own expression, mirrored in her. Illure was her whole life before Ronin, she didn't want the country to fall.‘You need more Otherworld within your border,’ Cynan’s voice is husky with frustration, ‘every day delayed is a day the land decays.’‘I scouted some of the border,’ Ronin leans forward, glancing at Delia with concern. ‘There are already signs of blight in the forests.’ The room, cosy as it is, hewn into the rock is dancing with shadows. Am I imagining dark
The Bride Wore Blood 47 - Meetings
Thade’s POVWe’re a twelve day run out from the capital, heading North to the border of Boren. Ironically in the lands held by the Duke of Nix. My own land covers one side of a sweeping mountain covered in thick forest, Madder. But on the sweeping slopes the stretch down into a glacial valley and a sparkling river, it’s Nix. There are less natural defenses between Nix and Boren, so the Dukes charged with protecting Illure have spent generations building towers, reinforcing their castle and stretching walls across the border.It’s still easier to cross the border here than in Madder, if you’re not entirely human.You should have done this before the wedding. Moira’s voice is clipped in my mind.Believe me, I tried. I reply, tired. Moira doesn’t keep her judgements to herself. Better late than never, Fin interrupts us. Always cheerful, I blame his youth for his optimistic personality. Fin carries himself with the easy, unbothered grace of a man who is entirely comfortable in his own sk
The Bride Wore Blood 46 - Empty
'Don't,' I said, my voice a murmer in the quiet room. Even the birds outside had stopped singing. 'Lana,' he breathed, a low, dangerous sound that usually pulled at the invisible tether between us. He took a step closer, the floorboards groaning under his weight, and I felt the heat of him, the sh
The Bride Wore Blood 44 - Maybe
I take deliberate steps back and he advances, staying close in this endless game of cat and mouse.‘Don’t tell me that you find my glasses endlessly attractive,’ I scoff, ‘we’re not at the point of lying to each other yet, Thade.’‘But what if I do?’ He challenges as balances his palm on the wooden
The Bride Wore Blood 42 - Dressing
“Thank you for…” My voice fractures, trailing into the heavy silence. If I finish the thought, I’ll have to admit how much I am drowning under my mother’s expectations.“We’re here for you, your Majesty.” Maggie’s smile is soft, but her eyes are watchful. Both women seem more relaxed now that Edith
The Bride Wore Blood 41 - Jewels
Lana’s POVI wake to the soft sound of bird calls beyond the open window. I’m stretched out in the opulent bed, my fingers curled in the luxury of gold damask. In the morning light, the walls are a pale blue but decorated with fine paintings of birds and trees. The images were hidden behind the mag
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