“I won’t run,” I told Ryker as we stood at the high balcony overlooking the eastern ridge. The wind tugged at my braid like it wanted to rip me away from him, but I didn’t flinch. “Don’t even ask me to.”
His jaw clenched. He didn’t look at me, not yet. Just stared at the distant horizon like it had all the answers he didn’t. “They’ve made their demands,” he finally said. “The Council wants you gone by dawn—or they’ll strip me of my title and drag us both to execution.”
“So let them try,” I said.
His gaze snapped to me then—sharp, full of pain. “This isn’t some duel in the woods, Nina. They don’t play fair. If I refuse, they’ll burn the stronghold to the ground. My people. My warriors. Our allies. Innocents.”
I swallowed, forcing calm into my voice. “I didn’t come this far to be traded
