Page 51 of The Throne's Undoing

Sweat coated her neck and dripped down her back. Her entire body trembled, and she grew light-headed as the room spun.

Her fingers dug into Iro's arm as her legs turned to liquid and her head spun, her vision darkening.

But before she lost consciousness completely, she heard the king's disapproving voice as he chided, "Take her away and do not bring her back in this state next time. We cannot afford any more delays."

Chapter 15

KALLIE

Kallie coughed,spitting out a cool liquid that dribbled down her throat.

"Gods," a nearby voice hissed.

"She needs water," someone else said.

"She'll choke."

"No, she won't," the second individual argued, voice tense and stern.

Kallie tried to take in her surroundings, but when she blinked, black splotches crowded her vision. In the hazy darkness, she could barely make out the two silhouettes hunched over her, their identities hidden. Even their voices were foggy in her ears, distant and undistinguishable.

"Kalisandre," one of the voices beckoned, her name rolling off the man's tongue like a sweet lullaby sung to soothe a temperamental child. "Can you hear me?"

She hummed, her tongue too heavy to voice a response.

"Can you take a sip for me?" he asked gently.

Kallie tried to shake her head in dissent. She was too tired.

"You can sleep after you drink something," one of the men murmured.

His voice was familiar, but when she tried to match it with a face, her stomach twisted, and pain shot through her mind, heat rising in her veins.

"Please drink."

Cold metal touched her lips, pleading for her mouth to open.

She groaned but opened her mouth, allowing the crisp water to pool inside. She lazily swished it around, and when she swallowed, the man put the flask to her lips again.But the cool water did little to sedate the rising fire building within her veins.

There was something wrong--something she should have been doing. Yet she had no energy to act upon it.

The flask disappeared, and the man said, "Now you can rest."

A slight smile tugged at her lips as her eyelids grew heavy once more.

Kallie hurriedthrough the marble halls of the castle with her head down as she bit back the tears threatening to slip free.

She passed several guards and servants who bowed and curtsied at the sight of her, but Kallie ignored them all.

Her father's words were an incessant hiss in her ears:Never let them see you weak. If they see you are too emotional, if they can identify your weakness, they hold all the power.

If they saw her crying, word would get back to her father, which would only worsen matters. She wouldn't let a single tear drop in their presence despite how much her throat seized and her eyes burned.

When she finally reached her quarters, she burst through the door and slammed it shut behind her. Her back hit the wall, her chest rising hard and fast. And still, even in the safety of her room, she tried to refrain from crying.

If she cried, there would be no denying that her father was right.

But as her fingers wrapped around the doorknob, her knuckles blanching, Kallie could no longer hold the tears back. Immediately, she swatted them away from her face before they could fall and stain the silk corset she wore.

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