“Pardon me?” Jecob asked, turning around to face the lady, Blankka.“I’m sorry. I wasn’t meaning to overhear. It’s just, I have several friends in Eastbury as well, and my understanding is that you got lots of practice in order to ensure you’d be one of the princess’s favorites should you ever have the opportunity to visit her chambers—not this one of course, the one you must be invited into. Do you know the history of how that land, the acreages you’d like to split up, was attained? I’ve not heard the entire story, but from what I do know, it’s not something you should be discussing either. You have no idea why that particular family was disgraced.”Kit wasn’t sure whether or not she should tell Blankka to mind her place or wait to see what Jecob would say in return. She was more than a little lost herself, only gathering they were discussing unfairly confiscated land. Wh

The queen was seated on her throne, impeccably dressed as always, not a hair out of place, and her crown was perfectly situated on her head. The rest of the council also appeared as if they’d been up for hours. Kit approached the throne slowly, with her head held high, as Eli had suggested, and she tried not to be in a rush or seem upset at all by the information she’d discerned earlier. The fact that Armant, the royal physician, stood across the room, in front of the council members’ thrones alerted her that whatever was wrong, it was serious, and Kit did her best to keep her breathing even.She bowed and went through the process of greeting her mother, trying not to hurry through it to get on with the matter at hand. When she stood, she kept her shoulders back and her chin up, determined to keep her head on straight no matter what she was about to hear.“Katrinetta, thank you for joining us. Finally,” her mother chided, rolling her tongu

As soon as the door was closed, she turned and buried her face in his shoulder, hot tears splashing against his uniform as she could no longer contain her emotions. He wrapped his arms around her, whispering, “It’ll be all right, Kit. It’ll be all right. Just breathe.” She thought she heard her ladies’ footsteps behind her, but he waved them off, and she continued to sob, gasping for air as images of Jecob’s smiling face flashed before her eyes. Despite some of his less than amicable behavior, she’d already began to bond with the man, and now, his fate was in her hands.Eli continued to soothe her, and Kit fought to control her breathing and her tears, but just when she thought she had them under control, an image of Jecob as he leaned in to kiss her filled her mind, and she’d find herself gasping for air as another wave of sorrow hit her, leaving her sobbing again. Her knees felt weak, and she took a few steps backward, away fr

Atkin of Iceforge was a brute of a man, and not in the same way that Cassius and Landon were—he wasn’t the least bit attractive. Just very large and bulky, and she almost wished he hadn’t bothered to come from such a great distance when she was fairly certain she’d be sending him home within a few weeks’ time. Still, she’d greeted him and his entire delegation and wore a pleasant smile even though her mind wandered to Jecob endlessly.At least it hadn’t taken hours to meet just one Representative. Kit was hesitant to return to her chambers because she knew she’d have to think of something to say tomorrow. She looked out at the crowd now, before she turned to go inside, and wondered how many of these people would be there in the morning. Her mother had not made a formal announcement yet. That would come through couriers out into the queendom shortly, but Kit was certain the rumors had already begun to spread. Even now, there seem

The crowd was alive with shouting and laughter, a raucous pulse that seemed to fill the space in front of the castle with a festive vibration, and there was no doubt those that had gathered that early morning had come for one reason, and one reason alone; they wanted to see the spilling of blood.Kit stood next to her mother on the dais, the same place she’d occupied for the better part of the last two weeks, though the pleasant feeling associated with greeting those who’d come to be a part of her Choosing was long gone, replaced with a dread that threatened to overwhelm her. Had it not been for the encouraging glances of her Representatives positioned right in front, below the dais, she might’ve shriveled up and lost all of her nerve. It also helped to know that her father, Avinia, and Isla were behind her, and though she could not see them, they were giving her every ounce of their support. Her cousins had been quite helpful as she’d spent most of th