Page 67 of Crowned In Venom

Satisfied.

She lifts her goblet once more, taking a long, slow sip.

Then, without looking at me?—

"Enjoy her while you can."

A final warning.

A promise.

And I bow my head, murmuring soft, obedient words.

But inside—something seethes.

Something dark.

Something waiting.

Because I know.

I know that one day, the game we play will end.

And only one of us will still be standing.

22

ANYA

The palace is never truly silent.

Even in the stillest hours of night, there is always the creak of shifting stone, the distant murmurs of unseen mouths, the rustling of robes moving through dimly lit corridors.

It speaks in hushed voices.

And tonight, I listen.

The torches are dimmed, leaving long shadows that stretch along the walls like hungry specters. I move through the lower halls with careful precision, my bare feet soundless against the cool marble. The cold bites at my skin, but I welcome it—better to feel something than to let fear take root.

The servants do not notice me.

Not because I am invisible.

But because they have learned not to look too closely.

A survival instinct. One I understand all too well.

And yet, tonight, there is something different about the air. A strange tightness, a weight pressing against the palace walls.

Something is coming.

Something is already here.

I follow the hushed voices, trailing the sound through winding corridors, keeping to the edges where the flickering torchlight cannot catch me.

Because I know?—

They are whispering about her.

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