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“It was always what Carleah wanted.”
Was I truly that childish? Am I being that childish now? Is it nothing more than an impossible dream to believe I might get to be happy with the man I want versus a man I do not wish to spend a single moment with?
I stop beside a pond that glistens beneath the bright moonlight above. Shadow drops his head to drink, so I take a seat at the water’s edge and stare down at my dim reflection. Bright blue eyes. Snow white hair.
I am a Navalis Royal. There is no denying that. And I wouldn’t want to even if I could. I’m proud of the blood that runs through my veins. I only wish my bloodline didn’t come with shackles around my wrists.
A light breeze lifts strands of my hair as Shadow drops down beside me and lays his massive head in my lap. I run my hand over his soft hair, letting the repetitive movement calm me down even as the tears still threaten to fall.
“None of this is fair,” I tell him. “On one hand, I understand where Bowman is coming from. He is king, and we do need Soreno to back us if we are to reclaim Navalis. But can I truly give up everything I’ve found with Fort for the good of the kingdom?”
Feeling more alone than I have since Navalis fell, I stare out over the water and try to concoct some scenario where what I want and what I need to do align.
Unfortunately, as I’ve learned over the past few weeks, nothing is fair in this life. And even as I don’t want to accept it, I am learning that sometimes being a royal means setting aside what you want for what you must do.
I only wish doing what I must didn’t mean sacrificing Fort.
Chapter 2
Fort
I stir slowly, blinking rapidly as I wake to clear the mist from my vision. By the time it clears, I’m staring up at the ceiling of a white tent, the cloth swaying ever so slightly from the breeze outside.
“Awake already?”
Adrenaline surges through my body at the sound of the man’s voice, and I shoot up out of bed, only to find myself face-to-face with Bowman. He stands beside me, arms crossed, looking incredibly pissed for a man who just discovered his sister survived.
“Carleah told me what’s going on,” he says, “and what you both have done.”
I swallow hard, unsure how much I should tell him. Especially when it doesn’t seem as though she confided in him about the fact that I can speak.
“I appreciate everything you did in keeping her alive and bringing her back to me. There’s no telling how difficult it must have been for you to care for her when she was so—” He trails off. “Unaccustomed to a life on the road.”
Anger heats my blood at the insult to Carleah, but I remain quiet.
“Either way, taking her virtue the way you did is only forgivable because of what you’ve done for this family. But Carleah is betrothed, and that betrothal must remain intact if we are to get Soreno to aid us. I’m sure you understand.”
“The hell I do!” I lunge up from the bed, still a bit wobbly but grateful for whatever the healer did to eliminate the pain from my body.
Bowman’s shock turns to rage in an instant. “You do speak!”
“I do. Which means I can tell you that there is no way in hell I am letting Carleah marry that damned worm.”
“You could speak. All these years. And you hid it from us?” His tone is low, dangerous, but he’s no match for me, and we both know it. The thought of Carleah being forced to marry Patrick after everything we’ve been through is suffocating—and I cannot allow it.
“Bowman, you cannot carry through with that betrothal.”
“That is hardly your biggest problem, Fort. You lied to us. For years. How the hell do you plan on explaining that?”
“It’s complicated.”
“Then it had better get uncomplicated really damned quick. Because the way I see it, if you’ve been lying to us about that, then who knows what other mistruths you’ve told? Combine that with what you did to my sister—”
“What I did to your sister? It was mutual, I assure you that.”
“If I thought for a second it wasn’t, I would have killed you while you slept,” Bowman spits out. “So, you either start talking, or I’m going to bring the guards in here and remedy that poor judgment.”
I glare at him, my hands clenching into fists at my sides. He’s Carleah’s only remaining family, though, and if I were to do anything to jeopardize her relationship with him, I’d never forgive myself.
