Page 37 of Daughter of Shadows and Ash

I pulled away and nodded, then walked with him back to the foyer where he departed, and I was left with Shefferd, the most joyous tour guide in all the land.

"How exciting it must be for you to marry the prince and aid in his victory." He crooned as he took me down hall after hall, barely stopping as he directed me to which room was which.

Yes, how exciting it was to be betrothed to a man I spent a night with, only to have him leave me by morning. I went along with the tour until I was deposited in my own room. The thrill of a hunt buzzed throughout my body. I could almost feel my blade sliding across Johan's throat—I just needed to survive long enough to see it through.

Chapter 29

When morning came, I found two deliveries waiting. The first contained my belongings from the apartment above the bookshop.

An aged trunk sat with my clothes and books.My fighting leathers and weapons were purposely absent. Someone had clearly searched through my possessions for contraband.

Augustus had included my two worn books, along with several other volumes. Among them were new romance novels I hadn't read yet. He'd also packed his precious history books about Sunneva. If he couldn't be here to help me, this was probably the next best thing he could do. His gesture spoke of a quiet, desperate hope that knowledge might protect me where he could not.

I wondered if any of these included information on the prophecy. Though knowing Augustus's views, these would likely contain only the crown-approved version of events.

I pulled one of the few simple dresses from the chest and changed out of the nightgown I'd worn to sleep. The morninglight revealed the room's true grandeur, fit for the princess I was meant to become.

The four-poster bed had piles of cream and golden blankets atop it. Each spiral led up to a canopy of pink adorned with a sun. A marble fireplace commanded one wall, flanked by plush chairs.

Two glass doors led out to a small balcony, a promising escape route.

I made a mental note to watch the guard rotations and their sightlines to the balcony.

The wardrobe stood empty when I opened it.

I noted a couple of places that would be good for a weapons stash before placing my sparse belongings and closing the wooden doors. Another door caught my attention to the left of my bed.

As I went to open it, the handle didn't budge. I tried to force it, but still, it did not yield. There were no holes for me to attempt to pick the lock. My instincts screaming danger, I wedged a trinket from the mantle between the door and floor. If someone tried to enter, it would give me a second to act before I found myself a victim in someone else's schemes.

A knock at my door announced my second delivery. Oryn, his expression as murderous as yesterday. My body hummed with awareness as I stumbled back. He seized the opportunity, striding into the room and closing the door behind him.

"Who sent you?" he growled. My heart thundered against my ribs as I fought the urge to summon my shadows.

I arched a brow as he stalked toward me like a predator, his tall frame looming over me with a sneer.

"You expect me to believe this is coincidence?" he demanded, voice rough with hurt. "That we met, shared that night together before you vanished at dawn, cut off all communication, only to appear here as my chosen bride?"

I scoffed, my hands clenching at my sides. The audacity of him to accuse me when he'd been the one to disappear. Typical entitled prince.

"First of all," I snarled, "Ididn't ditchyou. That would require you actually being there. Secondly, I never chose any of this - not the assessment, not coming here, and certainly not marrying you."

I stumbled away from him to get some distance but he followed me step for step until he cornered me up against a wall. His arm slammed against the wall above me, the smell of citrus enveloped me.

"Is that why you left?" The look of murder eased from his eyes as his other hand toyed with a lock of my hair. "Because you awoke to an empty bed? Why didn't you just tell me when I tried to reach you through our bond? I felt you, heard you before you slammed that door shut."

"I have no idea what game you're playing, your message was loud and clear, Prince Oryn." I tensed as his hand drifted to caress my arm. I cursed myself for leaving my dagger by the bed. Even my shadows would be useless with him pressed so close. "You got what you wanted and promptly left by first light. I'm not sure why I expected anything differently from acaptain in a tavern."

He gripped my chin between his finger and thumb and forced me to look into his deep blue eyes. "I don't know what youthinkI wanted, but to return to you gone was not that." His words barely registered before his mouth crashed against mine, desperate and demanding. His hand slid to the front of my neck as his tongue coaxed my mouth to open further for him. The need to touch him overwhelmed me, pulling him closer until his entire body pressed me against the wall. That familiar buzz returned to a happy hum with every connection to the prince. How could I make sense of this? If he was upset I had left, if hehad returned, why leave in the first place? My thoughts scattered like leaves in a storm. I was too lost in the feeling of him, almost drowning in him. The fog in my mind finally cleared enough for me to shove him away. He stared at me confused.

"If you didn't want me to leave, you should've been there. What else was I supposed to think when I woke up alone?"

He raked his hair from his face, taking a step away and faced the room. "I had duties to attend to. And I never thought my mate would flee at first light. I also didn't imagine the first time I used our bond to reach out that you'd cut it off.” He paced slowly before me, his hands waving with flourish with every thought he spoke. “Did it ever occur to you I'd be back? Did you even think to wait for me? I was worried something happened to you."

His response made me pause. "What are you talking about? What do you mean our bond?"

"You're telling me you can't feel this pull between us?" He closes the distance between us, his presence overwhelming my senses.

"The way you call to me is maddening. I sought you everywhere yesterday. From the moment you walked into that tavern, nothing else existed but you. When you tried to leave that night, I meant every word about begging you to stay. The thought of you walking away felt like a blade twisting in my chest. Did you not hear me calling to you that morning?"

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