CASSANDRAThe dream began just like many others before it.I knelt on the floor, begging the intruder to see Asher until my throat was raw. But the soldiers never listened.Their faces were black, undiscernible no matter how much I stared at them. They were like shadows, mocking my every word, my every whimper, my every cry.As my voice caught in my throat, one of the shadow men took a step forward and gripped my arm. He pulled me harshly to my feet, gripped my face, and pried my mouth open. I kicked and kicked, but the effort was useless. The shadow man forced a liquid down my throat, and as it streamed into my mouth, I began to gag. It was cold and harsh and burned every bit of the way down.My mind started to swirl as the room spun around me. I collapsed to the cold ground and froze, unable to move.The shadow men spit and snarled at me. They cursed me, called me an indecent, terrible woman, and swore that I deserved every bit of what came next. And then, they left the room, lockin

CASSANDRAWhy had there been a viper near the Palace?And why had Asher uttered my true name before he’d lost consciousness in the garden?The questions swirled around in my mind as I stared down at Asher. The Alpha King was fast asleep and tucked tightly into bed. His forehead was still shiny with sweat and his chest heaved as he breathed laboriously.Just after he’d been bitten by the viper, I’d screamed my head off and caught the attention of several guards out on the grounds. They’d rushed over to Rosepetal and helped get the king back to his room in the palace.One of the guards, an older one whose name I couldn’t recall, had asked if I wanted the aid of the other royal healers, but I’d turned down the offer. I didn’t want to risk the others seeing the dark mark on Asher’s skin. Injured or not, I’d made a promise to keep the king’s disease a secret.Since I’d been appointed as Asher’s private healer, the guards had no problem with me treating him personally. They’d even gone out

CASSANDRA Luckily the small crowd of people that had gathered in the chamber left after nearly an hour. Adalyn had wanted to stay and keep watch over Asher, but Margaret insisted that the Luna accompany her instead. It took a little pleading on Asher’s stepmother’s part, but Adalyn finally agreed and left along with the rest of the family. Once they were gone, relief flooded through me. This had become quite a messy affair, and I didn’t need the added pressure of a million eyes on me while I tried to get Asher’s condition under control. When I was certain that no one else was going to burst into the room, I carefully lowered the blanket I’d tucked around Asher. Kane had seemed curious about why it was there when Asher was so feverish, but I’d made up some kind of excuse that it was used for treatment. However, keeping him warm was the worst thing I could have done. In all reality, the blanket had been a means to cover up Asher’s dark mark. I hadn’t wanted his family to know about t

CASSANDRABy the time I had Asher’s condition stable and under control, I was utterly exhausted. The clock on the wall read 4:00 AM, and I was certainly feeling the effects of being up so late.It took a lot of effort and plenty of medicine, but Asher finally looked better than he had before. His breath was steady, no longer labored, the blueness of his lips had faded, and the swelling of his bite went down. Yet, he still hadn’t regained consciousness, so I needed to stay with him and make sure he was truly alright.I pulled a chair up over to Asher’s bedside and then slumped into it with a long, heavy exhale. This felt like the longest night I’d ever experienced, longer than the night Finnick and I had spent in the woods.I rested my head in my hands for a moment and closed my eyes. My adrenaline was finally wearing down and sleepiness was starting to take hold.As I sat there, Kane’s earlier words played like a repetitive song in my mind. There was a chance Asher’s stepbrother was r

ASHER “Checkmate!” Kane laughed as he shifted his pawn. An agitated grumble rose out of me and I sat back on the couch in irritation. “That’s the third time you’ve lost today,” my stepbrother remarked, much to my annoyance, and then he grinned at me. “So strange, brother. Ever since we began playing years ago, you’ve never lost a single match. Tell me, what’s bothering you?” I remained silent and did my best to ignore him as I crossed my arms against my chest. It had been a huge mistake to invite Kane to play chess with me, but I’d needed something to distract me from thinking about Cassandra Keller. That being said, this experience only added to my frustration. “Let me take a guess,” Kane continued on, and he rubbed his chin and gave me a mischievous, boy-like expression. “It’s the healer, Cassandra, isn’t it?” I wanted to curse him out at even mentioning her, but I held my tongue and rolled my eyes instead. How dare he pretend to know me? “Don’t deny it,” my brother prodded,