Page 102 of All the Chaos of Constellations
“Well.” A stern female voice splintered through the silence surrounding them. “Isn’t this cozy?”
Asher spun around, pulling Novalise behind him, her gasp ringing in his ears.
Standing on the other side of the secluded archway were Trysta Starstorm and Drake Kalstrand.
“Novalise, come here.” Trysta’s gaze flicked over Asher with harsh scrutiny. “Now.”
He sensed it the moment she shifted out from behind him and into view. She stood beside him and when she answered her mother, her voice wavered.
“I don’t think so.”
“Do not make this any more difficult that it needs to be, darling.” Trysta held out her arms, her somber features softening slightly. “Come along.”
Warmth spread through Asher. Novalise clutched his hand, leaning into him for support. He interlaced their fingers, squeezing tightly.
She rolled her shoulders back and stiffened her spine, ready to face her mother down. “No. I don’t want to marry Prince Drake. I don’t love him.”
Trysta’s hands dropped to her sides, the bangles she wore clanging harshly through the air. She expelled a tired laugh, grating and pinched. “Oh, darling girl, love has nothing to do with it.”
“But you and father married for love,” Novalise countered.
At the mention of her late husband, Trysta flinched. It was nothing too noticeable, a slight twitch of the shoulders. But to Asher, the insignificant movement screamed of guilt.
Novalise took another small step forward, and he held tight to her hand.
“I want a love match,” she declared.
That annoying twinge, that ever-present ache in his chest, expanded.
“Love is for the weak. The broken. Isn’t that right, Lord Firebane?” Trysta tossed her hateful words in his direction, the barb striking true. “Your father was quite skilled in the art of seduction. He courted multiple ladies with no regard to your mother’s heart, and more than one of his affairs involved females who were married.”
Her loathsome gaze skimmed him up and down, revulsion curling at the corner of her mouth. “It would seem the stars were right. You are exactly like your father.”
Seething, Asher released Novalise’s hand, ready to confront her wicked mother. But a swarm of shadows stood in his way.
“Come with me, Novalise.” Drake offered her his hand, blocking Trysta from Asher’s view. “Before Lord Firebane does something he’ll regret.”
But Novalise was not so easily swayed. She stared up at the shadow prince, her brow knitting in concern.
“You…you sent me out into the gardens on purpose.” Accusation set fire to her words, anger frothed and bubbled beneath the surface of her furious face. “You knew I’d find Asher here, and then you brought my mother to shame me. You tricked me.”
“Who, me?” Drake almost looked appalled, but the dark gleam in his eyes spoke volumes about his malicious intent. “Never.”
“Novalise, if you care about Lord Firebane as much as you say, then you’ll walk away from him right now.” Trysta’s words were clipped, tinged with a foreboding promise. “Otherwise, I’ll let your betrothed be the one to teach him a lesson.”
Drake smiled, ruthless and cunning. The Shadowblade appeared then, its honed blade glinting like nightfall and a thousand shattered stars.
The fucking bastard.
Novalise gasped. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“Oh, believe me.” Drake flicked his wrist, catching the sharpened tip of the dagger between two fingers. “I would.”
Drake was many things, but of them all, he was not a liar. He always made good on his word, be it a threat or a promise.
“Go.”Asher spoke the words into Novalise’s mind, pleading with her.“Don’t worry about me. Just go.”
“Consider this your final warning, Firebane.”The ice from Drake’s voice infiltrated their bond, sending a cold spike of paranoia down Asher’s spine.“Stay away from what is mine.”
