Chapter 47: To Be Loved

Curzon's death was quiet.

The Bastion didn't crumble. The dead didn't disappear. No one knew the war was over. Violet, Eden, and their allies weren't free of Curzon's deeds yet.

But in that still moment with the sun streaming on her face and Eden beside her, Violet let the victory wash over her. Every muscle, each bone, deserved to know that he would never touch her again. He could never harm her or the people she cared about.

She approached Eden who still stood near Curzon's body. He hadn't stopped staring since he bit the Blood King.

She touched his arm. "Eden?"

He startled at her voice and backed away from her, his expression dark. There was blood all over him—his hands, his tunic, even specks on his trousers. He looked like he'd been dragged through carnage.

"Don't get close to me," he said.

"What do you mean? Why?"

"I—I'm a Blood Monarch. I fed on him."

"You saved Hestia and Olivia—you saved all of us," Violet answered.

He searched her face, confusion etched on his brow. "You do