The Royal escort does not enter when I tell them not to. That is the first useful thing they do.

Three riders wait beyond Maeve's fence line, visible through the trees but far enough back that Tessa can keep a knife in her hand without anyone pretending she's

The Royal Court is smaller than Ironveil's ceremony hall. That surprises me.

I expected marble, banners, people waiting to tell me what blood means. Instead Evan takes me through a side entrance into a stone building that smells like old paper, metal seals, an

The full toxicology report takes until morning.

I sleep for three hours in a Court guest room and wake before anyone comes for me. My wolf is there immediately—not pushing, not howling, just present in the back of my mind like a second set of eyes.

For most