Chapter 17
There was no sleep after the fire.
No peace after passion.
Only ash.
When Kael left the tent bare-chested, jaw clenched, eyes still glowing with something not entirely human, I wrapped myself in his scent-stained cloak and stumbled into the night air.
But I didn’t get far.
Because the shadows pulled me.
Straight to the trial circle.
The priestess was already waiting, her blade unsheathed, and three bowls burning in a blue flame.
“The First Trial begins now,” she said. And it is not of strength. It is of choice.
The blood in my veins responded by singing, writhing, begging.
The air shimmered around me. A divine presence cracked the edges of my mind.
“What kind of trial?”
“Desire… or Duty.”
I blinked, and suddenly I was naked, bathed in gold light, standing before th
