Page 73 of Reign of Betrayal

“I need to rest for now, but I’ll come see them later.” I attempt a smile, but it feels hollow. As Kylo departs, I knock on Reign’s door.

“Just a moment!” she shouts. The sound of shuffling reaches me before the door cracks open, and Reign peeks her head out, scowling when she realizes it’s me.

“May I come in?” I shift my weight, uneasy.

“I’m about to wash up. Can you come bac?—”

“I’ll wait inside,” I cut her off, unwilling to be turned away.

She opens the door fully, closing it behind me. Only a drying cloth covers her body.

“I guess just sit wherever makes youleastcomfortable, Prince Lukene,” she quips, giving me a sinister smile, walking back into the bathroom and shutting the door. I couldn’t help but notice the many scars on her back, peeking out from under her cloth.

Reckless. There it is—that spark I have been craving, that bite, that fire. I lay back on her bed, listening to the running water, wondering how she got those scars, wondering who I’m going to kill for giving them to her.

I try to keep my mind blank. I try. I let out a shuttered breath when the washroom door opens, and Reign comes back in. She sits in the chair, brushing her long, pale-lavender hair.

Reign is exquisite, a true vision of perfection. She embodies passion and unpredictability—a wild tempest I’d never dare to tame. She is everything I yearn for but can never possess, a divine jewel I am unworthy to hold.

When I look at Reign, I see the essence of everything I covet and the haunting reminder of my duties to my kingdom. She is the dream I chase and the reality that slips through my shadowy grasp—an unattainable beauty that sets my soul burning with desire and despair. She’s the promise of light in the darkness—the quietness in my chaos, an ember I can never touch without burning.

Reign sets the brush down and meets my gaze. “What can I help you with, Your Majesty?” she asks, her voice dripping with frustration. Her glassy eyes lock with mine, and the guilt gnaws at me. Hurting her was never my intention. Clearing my throat, I wonder whether I am the cause of her sadness—or if it’s something else entirely.

“I need you to come with me.” I rise to my feet.

“Prince Lukene… I don’t have it in me to?—”

“Now, Reign.”

She exhales sharply, her annoyance clear as she stands. I lead her to my bedchamber, closing the door behind us.

“Have a seat,” I gesture to one of the black leather chairs. She perches on it, her lavender eyes trailing over the dark expanse of my room, curiosity softening her features.

“This is your room?” she asks, her voice tinged with wonder.

“So it would seem,” I say plainly, fanning my hand out and panning my room as I sit across from her.

She shifts in her seat, rubbing her bottom lip between her thumb and pointer finger again. The movement is just as distracting as it is delightful. “It’s all… so… black.”

“Observant,” I reply, a hint of a smile playing on my lips.

“Why am I here?” she whispers, her voice sounding defeated, drained, and deflated.

“Why are your eyes glassy?” I lean back in my chair, crossing my ankle over my knee.

“I don’t even have the energy to argue with you. Not that it’s any of your concern, but I don’t want Elm to leave me. I don’t want him going back to the Hollows without me.” So, I wasn’t the cause of her tears after all.

“Reign.” I stand and walk over to the table where her wrapped gift waits. “Elm isn’t going to the Hollows.”

“No!” She jumps up, dropping to her knees before me, sobbing. “Please don’t execute him. Please. I’ll trade places with him. He can be your champion. I am sorry I upset you. Plea?—”

I played the part of the monster well, if this is how she truly thinks of me. “Reign.” I bend down, lightly grasping her arms and pulling her to her feet. “Look at me.”

She lifts her tear-filled eyes, lips trembling, and it hits me—I can never bear seeing her like this again. The weight of it presses hard on me, causing a pain unfamiliar to me. “I am not killing anyone. Before we left, I had Kylo arrange for him to return as a royal guard.”

“What?” she breathes, her mouth falling open.

I cup her face, brushing away her tears with my thumbs. “Yes, he’s training with Kylo now.”

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