Page 68 of Crown of Ashes and Desire

I nodded slowly, absorbing this information. "So he's been remembering me, remembering us, for two years." A bitter smile touched my lips. "And yet he still chose to bind me against my will. Still planned to use me in his father's ritual."

"Ada, it's more complicated than?—"

"Is it?" I stood, brushing dust from my dress with deliberate calm. "Yes, Erlik manipulated him. Yes, he was forced to forget me. But Sarp..." I looked at him directly. "He still chose power over love in the first place. The spell didn't make him drive me away—that was his decision. Everything that came after, everything his father did to both of us, started because Hakan decided I wasn't worth fighting for."

Sarp winced. "He thought he was protecting you?—"

"By making the choice for me. By deciding what I could or couldn't handle." I shook my head. "The memory spell explainsmuch, but it doesn't excuse everything. Hakan may have been a victim of his father's manipulation, but he was also the author of his own choices."

I moved toward the corridor, then paused. "Thank you for telling me. It... it does change some things. But not everything."

“The child—Kiraz—she’s what, four?”

“Almost five,” I confirmed. “Born nine months after I left him.”

“Conceived just before he drove you away.” He shook his head, looking suddenly much older, the weight of this revelation heavy on his shoulders. “Nearly five years,” he whispered. “Nearly five years she’s been growing up without him. Without…” His voice broke again. “I should have known. I should have—” He cut himself off, visibly struggling for control.

After a moment, he laughed, but it was a hollow sound. “Gods, the cosmic joke. He sacrificed everything to protect you from his father, only to leave you unprotected with his child.”

“He doesn’t deserve to know,” Melo said fiercely.

“Probably not,” Sarp agreed, his eyes still haunted. He ran a hand over his face before forcing a casual shrug that didn’t match the emotion in his eyes. “But is it about what he deserves, or what keeps the little green-eyed terror safe?”

The question hung heavy in the air. I had asked myself the same thing countless times. Would Kiraz be safer if Hakan knew? If he acknowledged her as his, would his protection outweigh the danger his father posed?

“Your word,” I demanded. “Swear you won’t tell him.”

Sarp held my gaze, then nodded solemnly. “You have it.” He turned to Melo, still holding her wrist. “And you, magnificent creature, can put away your threats. I’m firmly on Team Keep Hakan in the Dark.”

Melo searched his face, centuries of wisdom in her ancient eyes. She stepped back, though wariness lingered in her posture.

“If you betray us,” she warned, “no realm will hide you from my vengeance.”

“I would expect nothing less,” Sarp said with a flourish of a bow. “Though I must say, your protective instincts are as attractive as they are terrifying. I find myself wondering what it would take to inspire such fierce loyalty from you.”

Melo's cheeks flushed pink, her usual composure cracking as she glanced away from his gaze. Her fingers fidgeted with the hem of her sleeve—something I'd never witnessed in all our centuries together. She cleared her throat twice before speaking, her voice pitched slightly higher than normal.

“I should get back to my chambers,” I said, suddenly feeling like an intruder. “Before someone else finds us here.”

“You should,” Melo agreed, but her attention remained fixed on Sarp. “I’ll…join you later.”

I raised an eyebrow, surprised by this unexpected development. “Are you sure?”

“Perfectly,” she said with unusual crispness. “I have a few things to discuss with Lord Sarp about the nature of secrecy and consequences.”

“Oh, we’re using titles now?” Sarp grinned, clearly delighted by this turn of events. “I was hoping we were past such formalities, especially after you had me pinned against a wall. Where I come from, that’s at least a third date.”

I backed away, torn between amusement and concern. “Don’t kill him, Melo. He’s still a friend.”

“No promises,” she muttered, but the usual bite in her voice had softened to something almost playful.

When I turned to leave, Sarp called after me, “Ada.”

I looked back.

“Be careful. The palace is restless tonight. There are factions moving in the shadows—those loyal to Erlik and those who resist him—and most of them don’t have your best interests at heart.”

His tone carried an ominous weight. My skin crawled. He turned his attention back to Melo. The last thing I saw while I slipped away was him gesturing dramatically as he said, “Now, about that fascinating transformation. Do you just…decide to take the human form or is there a specific fox-to-goddess conversion ritual involved?”

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