LOGINI walked down the heavy stone stairs from the balcony. The sun was just starting to break over the high walls of the Blackwood stronghold, casting long, sharp shadows across the packed snow. The main courtyard was no longer quiet.Fifty elite Northern guards sat on their horses. They were dressed in thick winter leathers and dark iron armor. They sat in perfect, disciplined lines, waiting for my command. My massive black warhorse was saddled and ready at the front of the column.Standing right next to my horse were Cillian, Elian, and Martha.I walked across the courtyard. The Northern guards did not look at me with suspicion. They did not see a feral rogue. They looked straight ahead, treating me as a seasoned commander ready to lead them on the road.I stopped in front of Cillian.The Warlord King was standing like a conqueror looking down on a rival. He stood with his shoulders relaxed, his hands resting naturally at his sides. Cillian stepped forward. He reached out his right arm
[Kaelen's POV]It was four in the morning. The very early eyes of the day.The Blackwood castle was completely dead and silent. The sun was still hours away from coming over the high stone walls. The deep winter darkness covered the stronghold.I rested my elbows on the flat stone wall. In my hands, I held the Eastern crown. It was a thick, heavy ring of solid iron. I turned it slowly in my fingers. I spent the last twenty years of my life running through the mud. I fought stray wolves for raw meat just to survive the freezing winters. I had hidden in caves and ditches, letting a fierce, burning anger keep me alive in the dark when I had absolutely nothing else. I wanted revenge. I wanted to tear King Garrick apart for stealing this piece of metal from my family.But as I stood alone in the dark, the anger was gone.My chest felt steady. The wild instinct that always told me to fight and hide had vanished. I looked at the iron crown, but I was not thinking about revenge anymore. I was
[Elian's POV]I stood in the courtyard and watched the guards drag Selene out of the castle.She looked nothing like the proud, cruel woman who had tortured me in the Royal Suite. Her expensive clothes were ruined and covered in mud. Her hair was a tangled mess. She was shaking violently in the cold wind, struggling to keep her balance as the guards pulled her forward through the snow.When she saw the wooden block in the center of the courtyard, her legs gave out completely. She collapsed. The guards did not stop walking. They carried her the rest of the way. They forced her down onto her knees in the wet snow right in front of Cillian.I did not feel sorry for her. I stood perfectly still. I did not hide behind Cillian's back. I did not look away. I looked directly at her face.She looked up at me. Her eyes were wide and full of absolute terror."Elian," Selene begged. Her voice cracked. Tears spilled over her dirty cheeks and dripped onto her chin. "Please. Tell him to stop. I kept
[Selene's POV]I lost track of time in the dark.There were no windows in the lowest cell of the dungeon. There was no candle, no torch, no crack in the stone to let the moonlight in. The only way I knew a day had passed was the small iron slide at the bottom of the door. Once a day, a silent guard pushed a wooden bowl of water and a hard piece of stale bread into the dirt.I counted the bowls. One. Two. Three.By the fourth bowl, I started screaming. I demanded to see Cillian. I reminded the empty hallway that I was a Princess of the East. I threatened them with war. I promised them heavy chests of gold. I told them my father would slaughter their families if they did not open the door. No one answered. The silence was absolute and suffocating.By the sixth bowl, my throat was completely raw. I stopped screaming. I pulled my knees to my chest and shivered violently on the freezing floor. My expensive leather riding clothes were soaked with damp mud. My hair was a tangled, filthy mess
Gaius kept his head bowed, accepting the praise quietly."For your bravery," Cillian declared loudly, making sure the entire hall heard him, "you are granted full access to the Royal Archives for the rest of your life. You will receive a permanent place on my high council, and a chest of solid gold to fund your medical research."The soldiers in the hall cheered loudly. Gaius smiled a weak, grateful smile. He bowed again and walked back to his seat.Cillian raised his hand again to quiet the room."Martha," Cillian called out.I smiled widely as I watched the old cook stand up from her chair. She smoothed down the front of her clean gray dress. She looked incredibly nervous as she walked up to the high table, wringing her hands together."You did not hold a sword in this fight," Cillian told her, his voice softening with deep respect. "But you showed more courage than an entire battalion of soldiers. You protected the innocent when no one else would. You discovered the Princess's esca
I stood in front of the large mirror in our bedchamber. I pulled a clean, dark blue shirt over my head. The fabric felt incredibly soft against my skin. It did not pull on the healing cuts on my back, and it did not scratch my neck. I fastened the buttons and let out a long, slow breath.Cillian was sitting on the edge of the mattress. He was already dressed in a simple black tunic and dark trousers. He did not wear his heavy armor or his crown today. He was watching me quietly. His golden eyes were calm and clear. The heavy, dark guilt that had covered his face for the last few weeks was finally gone.I turned away from the mirror and walked directly over to him.I did not stop until I was standing right between his knees. I reached out and wrapped my arms tightly around his neck. I pulled him close and pressed my chest against him. Cillian immediately wrapped his massive arms around my waist, holding me firmly against his body. He buried his face in my stomach, taking a deep, steady
I was not given food or water.A few hours after Cillian left me in the dark, the iron door shrieked open again. Two massive Beta guards dragged me out by the chains, my bare feet scraping against the freezing stone. The sudden influx of torchlight felt like daggers in my eyes. My head was pounding
The first thing I felt was cold. A heavy, damp chill seeped straight into my bones, sucking the life right out of me.Where was I? I tried to move, and a sharp, metallic clink echoed through the darkness. My breath caught. I pulled my arms toward my chest, stopping short as heavy iron chains bit
Several people screamed. I slapped both hands over my mouth to keep from making a sound, biting down on my own palm so hard I tasted blood. My heart was beating so fast against my sore ribs that I thought my chest was going to split open. Panic. Blind, total, animal panic. My body got hot fast.
My ribs ached before I opened my eyes. That was how every morning started. Pain. A dull, steady ache burned on my left side where Alpha Thorne had kicked me two days ago. My crime? I hadn't scrubbed the blood out of the training mats quick enough. It wasn't just that my ribs ached. The screaming







