Serena's POV
We sat across from each other, and neither of us spoke. The silence was heavier than any words.
A servant came to my room the evening after my conversation with Ramona, and she was not carrying the usual tray of bread and cheese.
She stood in the doorway with her hands folded in front of her, and she would not look at me when she spoke, like the message she was delivering might get her in trouble if the wrong person heard.
"The king requests your presence at dinner," she said. "In his private dining room. Just the two of you."
I wanted to say no. I wanted to press my back against the headboard and pretend I had not heard her, the way I had pretended so many times when I was a child when something scared me. Hiding had kept me alive, and it had been my shield for as long
