Merrin’s POV
The sound of Violet’s sobs was sweeter than any music.
I didn’t bother to hide the smile tugging at my lips as her face crumbled, and as her hope bled out with every tear.
Lady Seraphina’s voice still echoed in my head: “I accept.”
Two words that sealed Violet’s fate… again.
No man alive could reject the kind of wealth I’d offered.
Gold and money has a way of making people honest, it strips them bare, shows who they truly are.
And at that moment, I saw the truth in her mother’s eyes.
She didn’t regret a thing.
I stepped toward Violet slowly, letting the gravel crunch beneath my shoes. The air reeked of rain, iron, and fear.
“Your body and soul will soon belong to me,” I murmured, my voice a low, deliberate promise.
Her head snapped up, eyes red and wild. “My soul wi
