Page 16 of Jilted By Jack Frost

“Beware the one with earth-bound soul,

Who walks through winter’s sacred gate.

The vessel’s power she’ll control,

And seal the kingdom’s final fate.”

My fingers had traced the words, ice spreading across the parchment. “What does it mean?”

“It speaks of your mate, my lord,” Gabriel said. “A mortal woman who will bring destruction to our realm.”

I pause at a window, staring out at the twin moons hanging low in the sky. The memory weighs heavy on my chest, like a block of ice that refuses to melt.

That same night, I’d witnessed the first signs. The great ice fountain in the courtyard began to crack, spider-web fissures spreading through its surface.

“It’s beginning,” Gabriel warned. “The mere existence of your mate threatens our realm. When she arrives, her presence will accelerate the warming. The prophecy is clear—she will be our undoing.”

My hand presses against the cold window pane. Violet’s face reflects in the glass, though she isn’t here. Those flashing green eyes that challenge me at every turn, that mouth that spews defiance with every breath. How can someone so small pose such a threat?

The fountain had shattered that night, sending shards of ice across the courtyard. I’d spent the next decade reinforcing the magical barriers around our realm, desperately trying to prevent the prophecy from coming true.

But she still found her way in.

I turn away from the window, ice crackling beneath my feet. The memory of the fountain’s destruction plays on repeat in my mind. It was the first sign, but not the last. Every year, the temperatures in my realm climb just a fraction higher. The ice grows just a bit thinner. And now that Violet’s here...

My fist connects with the wall, sending a spray of frost across the surface. I can’t let her destroy everything I’ve built, everything I’ve protected. No matter how much my body aches to be near her, no matter how her defiance makes something warm stir in my chest.

I have to remember the prophecy. Remember my duty. Remember the crack of ice and the spray of frozen shards across the courtyard that night.

I have to keep her away from me, even if it kills me to do so.

I’ve only just poured a glass of whiskey and settled into the lounge chair in my office when Gabriel finds me.

“Stopped by the library looking for you,” he says nonchalantly. “Violet sends her regards.”

“I’m sure she does,” I mutter.

“Fair enough,” Gabriel laughs. “She actually sends a ‘big fuck you’ and plenty of other curses I’d rather not repeat. A colorful girl, isn’t she?”

“Tell me, advisor, how wrong would it be to lock her in her room until I find a way to get her out of here?”

“It’s borderline kidnapping at best, I’m afraid. Notworth the scandal.”

Debatable.

I sigh and lean back in my chair, eyes closed as I run a finger over the rim of my glass. “I assume you’re here because you want something.”

“Not quite. I merely had a suggestion.”

I open one eye, looking at Gabriel carefully. “What?”

“Perhaps it’s useless to try, but what if you simply… attempted to take Violet back home?”

“That’s been the plan all along, Gabriel. I do not wish tokeepher.”

“No, no.” He waves a hand in the air. “I meant to try to shift her through the realms with you. See if it’s possible to take her.”

“It likely isn’t.”

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