All Chapters of The King's Hart : Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

"I told you to leave."Jace hasn't moved from the hallway. Blood drips down his cheek and onto his ripped t-shirt. His hands are still shaking, but his voice is ice now. Cold and hard. A door slamming shut.I'm standing in his bathroom doorway with the first aid kit in my hands. My heart is pounding. My feet refuse to move."I heard you," I say. "But you're bleeding.""That's not your problem.""You're right. It's not."I walk toward him anyway. He flinches when I get close. Actually flinches, like I'm the one who might hit him. The reaction sends something sharp through my chest. Guilt or recognition or both."Sit down," I say."Get out.""Sit. Down."The air between us crackles. His blue eyes are wild and furious and terrified all at once. I don't back down. I've stared down landlords and debt collectors and professors who told me I'd never make it. Jace Kingston is just another wall.He sits.Not because he wants to. Because he's too exhausted to keep fighting me.I kneel in front

I didn't sleep.Not a single minute. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Gregory Kingston's face twisted with rage in that hallway. I heard his voice slurring my name. I felt my phone buzz with another message that never came but always felt one second away.By the time Thursday afternoon arrived, I was running on caffeine and adrenaline and the desperate hope that Jace wouldn't notice the dark circles under my eyes.The walk to The Forge felt different now. Every parked car was a potential threat. Every man in a dark coat was Gregory. The winter wind cut through my thin jacket, and I kept my phone clutched in my pocket, fingers wrapped around it like a weapon. The doorman buzzed me in without a word. He was starting to recognize me. I hated that. The elevator ride to the sixth floor took forever. I caught my reflection in the polished metal doors—pale skin, tired eyes, a girl who looked like she was barely holding it together. I straightened my spine and rolled my shoulders back. By

The silence Jace left behind was louder than any slap shot.I stood at the edge of the ice long after the tunnel door slammed shut. My phone was still warm from his grip. His voice still echoed in my head—you'll be safer than anyone who ever loved me—and I couldn't decide if I wanted to scream at him or chase after him. The emergency lights buzzed overhead. The ice stretched out like a frozen wound. Somewhere in the distance, the Zamboni hummed to life, a low mechanical growl that meant my cleaning shift was starting without me. I didn't care. I couldn't move. Gregory Kingston had called me on speakerphone while his son held my phone, and Jace had threatened to expose everything, and now the boy who swore he'd never let anyone close had just pushed me away harder than ever.I should have felt relieved. I should have felt safe. Instead, I felt gutted.The walk home was a blur of black ice and paranoia. Every car that passed too slowly made my heart stutter. Every shadow in a doorway w

Gregory's message burned behind my eyelids every time I blinked.You kissed him. I warned you. Now you'll both pay.I shoved the phone into my coat pocket before Jace could see my face. He was still coughing smoke, still gripping my hand like I might dissolve into the cold night air. Marcus was already pulling his truck around, headlights cutting through the chaos of fire trucks and emergency vehicles. The Forge was still burning, orange flames licking out of the sixth-floor windows, and somewhere out there in the darkness, Gregory was watching it all with a smile on his face."What did that text say?" Jace's voice was hoarse, but his grip on my hand tightened."Nothing new." The lie came out smooth, automatic. I'd been lying to protect him for days now, and it was starting to feel like a second skin."You're doing it again.""Doing what?""Shutting me out." He stopped walking, pulling me to a halt beside him. His soot-streaked face was inches from mine, and even covered in ash, even

The detective's eyes dropped to my pocket before I could hide the phone. "Miss Hart? Who just messaged you?""No one." The lie tasted metallic on my tongue. Jace's words were still glowing behind my eyelids—trust no one—and even if I didn't fully believe him, I wasn't about to hand his secrets to a stranger with a badge.Detective Marlene Cross didn't blink. She stood in the doorway of the motel room, blocking my only exit, her dark coat dusted with fresh snow. Her gaze was steady and patient and absolutely certain that she could outwait me. "You looked at your phone. Your face went pale. Either you're lying or you just got very bad news. Which is it?""I'm just tired. It's been a long night.""Then you won't mind showing me the message."The command hung in the air. I thought about the blood on Gregory's car seat. I thought about Jace's voice when he said I'm going to end this. I thought about all the things a desperate man might do to protect someone he cared about.I pulled out my