Nora POV
The room throbbed with tension.
Not the kind that shouted—but the cold, quiet sort that whispered of blood and bad decisions.
Marriage.
The word echoed like a curse.
“I assume this is some kind of sick joke,” I said finally, my voice steady.
Alpha Davorin didn’t joke. The last time I’d seen him, he’d stood beside Marek like a chained hound, leering while my fate was signed away in a gilded hall.
The omega messenger fidgeted. “He says it’s the only path to peace between your Court and the Kresians.”
“Peace,” Kalen muttered, arms crossed over his chest. “By handing Nora over like a pawn?”
The young omega’s cheeks flushed red. “I’m only delivering what was said.”
I stood and began to pace.
The others in the war room—strategists, emissaries, guards—watched with quiet rever
