Page 100 of Forged By Heart and Claws
Between them, in the center of the dais, stood a fluted pedestal bearing two crowns. Not the ones Elara had hidden in the onyx cellar, but new ones formed by twisted silver vines adorned with dark gems.
“You can take this as one such example,” Colm declared, his voice rising. “Prince Vad sought to manipulate the trials for personal gain. He chose a bride not appointed by Fate. He murdered his own father to seize his power. How fitting that we have now come here full circle.”
His hand swept toward the base of the dais, toward a block of black stone positioned just below the stairs. My gaze followed…and I froze.
Vad.
He was shackled to the stone, his body forced into a kneeling position atop the cold slab. Iron cuffs bound his wrists and ankles, and his wings sagged behind him, one of them twisted at a wrong angle. Blood streaked his waxy skin, and his pale face was bruised, one eye swollen nearly shut.
A dagger was buried deep in his chest.
Blood was pooling underneath him in a dark, slowly spreading lake. His bared chest was covered in freshly bleedinglashes, and the hilt of the dagger jutted from the center, glistening obsidian beneath the ceremonial light.
His head hung forward, unmoving.
I couldn’t breathe.
CHAPTER 22
Briar
My feet locked in place, and my hands froze against the door frame. I couldn’t draw a breath.
I knew that dagger.
It was the same one Colm had used to kill Vad’s father and frame me for the murder. And now it was lodged in Vad’s heart.
That must have been the horrible pain that had sliced straight through me and broken our sacred connection.
My fingers tightened around the door frame.
Colm’s voice echoed through the Ceremonial Hall, ringing with false grandeur and venom. “This traitor prince—thisfalseking—sought to destroy the unity of our realms by defying Fate herself. It is only fitting that he be executed here, before your eyes, as my bride and I take our rightful place.”
I clenched my jaw, the world spinning. Where was Finbar and his fucking army?
Ember edged closer to me, her voice low and her hand tight over my arm. “I smell wolves.”
I finally drew in a breath, slow and quiet, but all I caught was the scent of blood and death…until three sets of crimson eyes glowed from the far shadows in the doorway behind us.
Shadow wolves.
They crept silently into the groom’s chamber, their massive bodies barely visible in the darkness. Behind them, more eyes appeared.
My mouth went dry. We were pinned, and there was still no sign of Thalen and Finbar.
Colm approached the dais, his robes trailing behind him, and stopped beside Vad. “When I remove this blade, I remove the curse that every single one of these kings and queens has placed upon our realm.”
He turned to the nearest servant. “Bring me the ceremonial wine.”
No. This couldn’t be happening. I couldn’t lose him, and especially not like this.
Ember leaned in, her voice a breath of panic. “We have to go. We can’t fight off this many. Is there any other way out?”
I shook my head.
Colm was twenty feet away. The guards would see us and attack before we took more than a few steps, but Vad would bleed out the moment the blade was pulled. We didn’t have time to delay, but getting caught right away wouldn’t save him either.
I scanned the chamber for an answer. We wouldn’t make it far if we ran, not with the guards and the shadow wolves both watching for threats. I bit my lip and looked toward the shelves near the thrones. They were tall enough, and the crowd’s eyes were fixed on Colm and Calla Lily.
