I didn’t sleep.
Lina’s breathing had finally evened out, but every time I closed my eyes I saw Rowan’s smile and the knife at her throat. The signet ring sat heavy in my pocket. The mark glowed against the dark.
73.
A war horn blew at dawn.
Low. Deep. The kind of sound that shook stone and announced blood.
I was on my feet before the last note faded. Guards thundered past the door. Someone shouted Kane’s name.
Darius appeared in the doorway already in black armor, sword at his hip, hair pulled back. The soft, exhausted man from the night before was gone. This was the Alpha King the stories warned about.
“Get behind me,” he said. No greeting. No softness.
“What’s happening?”
“Kane. He heard about the attacks. He’s using them as an excuse to challenge me in open court.” His eyes f
