MasukRiley I didn’t scream. That surprised me. In all the stories I’d heard about the Fates and the Loom of Destiny, I expected the moment of revelation to be violent—a symphony of fire, the sound of the bond tearing itself free from my soul. I expected something loud enough to justify the way my chest suddenly felt as if it were being crushed by an invisible hand. Instead, there was only silence. The kind of silence that doesn’t just wait—it swallows. It consumed the sound of Kael’s breathing, the rustle of the councilors’ robes, and the very air in my lungs before I could even gasp. The first page of the folder wasn't filled with words. It was a symbol—etched with terrifying precision, impossibly familiar. It was the same jagged geometry I’d seen carved into the ancient monoliths outside Veyra. The same shape that pulsed in white-hot light beneath my skin whenever the bond woke. But here, on the parchment, it was inked in cold, flat black. Stripped of its magic. Stripped of its wa
Riley Dalth did not welcome you. It dissected you. The city rose from the valley like a blade half-sheathed in stone and frost—sharp lines, deliberate symmetry, and a silence so dense it felt conscious. There were no banners to soften the wind, no merchants calling out, no laughter leaking from open windows. Even the streets gleamed too cleanly, polished to reflect every shadow, every misstep. I shifted in my saddle. The sound of leather was too loud. Beside me, Kael was motionless. Not calm—controlled. The difference mattered. The bond tightened. Not pain. Not yet. A low, insistent pressure bloomed at the base of my skull, possessive and alert, like a hand pressing me forward while warning me not to move. Kael felt it. I knew by the way his breathing adjusted, subtle but wrong. His shoulders squared. His chin lifted. The posture of a king stepping into a room that had already decided how he would fail. Dalth didn’t believe in crowns. Dalth believed in records. “Cheerful
Kael Dawn found me awake long before the sun decided it was worth showing up. Veyra still slept — or pretended to. The city liked to linger between reflections, half-dreaming, half-watching, because of course it did. Even its silence was self-aware. Across the courtyard, her balcony door was open. Her wolf form had curled there before dawn, silver-furred and breathing evenly — the picture of peace carved out of exhaustion and pure, stubborn defiance. She was gone now, but her scent lingered — wild honey and nightwind. My mark pulsed once in recognition, a low, steady rhythm beneath my ribs. I hadn’t meant to come to her last night. I’d stood on my own balcony, trying to convince myself that giving her space was the noble thing to do. But space, when it comes to Riley Hale, feels like exile. So I’d stayed where I could see her — nothing more, nothing less — and for the first time in months, I’d actually slept. Not because I wasn’t afraid. But because, for once, I believed she w
Riley Veyra pretended it didn’t care that I’d kissed the Lycan King in front of its favorite mirrors. Veyra lies. By dusk the city put on its softest light; the river wore silk; strangers looked twice and then politely away like they’d been paid to mind their business. (They probably had.) We should’ve gone back to the guest wing. Instead we drifted—market to bridge to lantern street—letting the city eavesdrop on our quiet. Lumi slalomed ahead, terrorizing pigeons with the zeal of a licensed Minister of Nope. Varyn trailed us with three different ways to say don’t die tonight and the posture of a man resigned to my talent for ignoring good advice. Kael’s knuckles brushed mine. Small touch. Stupid. Devastating. “Careful,” I murmured, not pulling away. “People will think the Lycan King has a heart.” “They already do,” he said. “You won’t stop telling them.” “Public service.” He smirked—the private one. I stole a fast kiss, punctuation-quick. He kissed me back slow, ste
Kael Veyra woke like a blade being polished—hushed, bright, and a little too pleased with its own reflection. By noon, the Hall of Mirrors had filled with courtiers who smelled like money and nerves. The room itself was a geometry problem: a hundred panels of silvered glass angled to catch every breath, every blink, every lie. High above, a skylight dripped white light as if noon had been jarred and poured. Lumi tugged my sleeve. “Ground rules?” “Don’t touch anything that looks like it’s going to ask a personal question,” I said. She nodded solemnly. “So, the whole room.” Riley came to stand at my side—black jacket, bare throat, eyes that had learned to put out fires and start them. I didn’t reach for her hand. I didn’t have to. Choosing to stand here was already its own vow. Solven materialized from a mirror with all the humility of a sermon. Their mask today was half-moon, half-sun, stitched where the two refused to agree. “Majesty. Lady Riley.” A courteous incline. “Veyra th
KaelIf anyone asked, I’d call it diplomacy.If I was honest, it was an excuse to breathe next to her without the world watching.Veyra — city of mirrors and masks — was technically neutral ground.Which made it perfect for my plan.No council. No decree. No Daren Vale. Just a dinner that wasn’t supposed to mean anything.Except it did.Because it had been months since Riley’s memories began returning in fragments — a name here, a laugh there — and every time she looked at me, I could see the question she didn’t dare ask:Was I ever yours?So I’d done the stupid thing.The brave thing.The Riley thing.I planned a date.Three days convincing the Veyran council to host us “in the name of diplomacy.”Two hours choosing the restaurant with the most dramatic lighting.And one very long speech to Lumi about not calling it a date out loud.Spoiler: she called it a date out loud.---RileyHe called it “a strategic dinner to reassure neutral territories.”Translation: the Lycan King wants to







