Chapter Nine: The King's Hand

The door groaned as it shut behind them.

Annie said nothing as she and Eden exited the cell. Their footsteps echoed faintly on the stone, and Eden stayed half a step behind, still hearing the faint rattle of chains in her ears. Her palms felt damp. Her heart beat louder now that it was over.

They ascended the stairs in silence, the cold stone turning slowly warmer as the levels rose.

At the top, waiting in the archway, was the guard—the same one from the morning of the summons. Eden recognized him instantly, and he gave her a short, expectant nod.

Annie glanced toward Eden. “You’ll go with him now.”

That was all she said before turning and walking off, her apron already half-full of linens, her pace unbothered—as if what just happened had never happened at all.

Eden followed the guard without a word.

She didn’t ask where they were going.

She already knew.

Back to the servant quarters. Back to her new cage.

The door creaked open to her chamber.

Cassian was already inside.

He stood near the window, gloved hands clasped behind his back, a flicker of light from the fading day haloing his silhouette like a crown. He turned at the sound of her entrance, and his face split into a pleased, almost radiant grin.

“Ahhhh,” he said. “Reunions. Such joyous moments.”

Eden kept her head bowed. Her hands folded at her front. Her face still.

But inside, her thoughts were blistering.

He saw me. Erec had looked at her—really looked—and still, he’d said nothing. For a moment, the silence had stung. But now, thinking back, she could see it clearly.

He knew.

And he chose not to expose her.

For his sake? Or hers?

She didn’t know which answer made her angrier.

Cassian’s footsteps were slow and deliberate as he approached. He was watching her, always watching. Waiting to see if she would break the silence.

Eden didn’t lift her gaze.

“Lord Cassian,” she said coolly. “I’m unsure if this will work.”

There was a beat of silence.

Then she felt it—his presence, close. He moved like silk but held the weight of iron.

Cassian placed a hand gently on her shoulder and leaned in near her ear, his voice low, nearly fond.

“It will,” he whispered. “You’ll make it work.”

She kept her breath even.

“I was never very close to my brother either, growing up,” he continued, tone light but edged with something darker. “And when we lost our parents… well, it cracked us open. A divide formed, one the entire kingdom now bleeds through.”

His hand gave the slightest squeeze.

“You and your brother will make amends… or so he thinks. And I—” his voice dropped even lower “—I will finally reunite with my brother. For the last time.”

Eden’s jaw clenched.

Cassian pulled back just enough to meet her eyes.

“You are the key, Eden,” he said softly. “Don’t forget that. Your brother—he never wanted to return to you. He could have, for years. And he didn’t.”

Cassian’s smile was subtle and sharp. “So treat him as what he is. A pawn.”

His words echoed in the stillness of the room.

Eden said nothing.

But inside, something shifted.

Her chest tightened—not with doubt, but with clarity. The ache of seeing Erec again, of recognizing her own blood beneath the dirt and scars, dulled beneath Cassian’s voice. The weight of abandonment resurfaced, clearer now than it had been in years.

He could have come back.

He hadn’t.

Not after the fire. Not after the funeral. Not after the streets swallowed her whole.

And now he sat shackled in a cell, waiting to be saved by a sister he had long since left behind.

Cassian was right.

This wasn’t a reunion. This wasn’t fate.

This was strategy.

Her brother was a key only because she was the lock. And if that was what the kingdom needed—if that was what Cassian needed—then she would do it.

For her country. For peace.

For the king who saw her.

Cassian stepped back, satisfied.

Eden finally raised her chin.

And met his gaze.

“I understand,” she said softly.

And this time, she meant it.