“I don’t want this, Fletcher! They tricked me!”
Would I never learn? I should have just run away with Fletcher while I had the chance. I did not want to be part of a kingdom ruled by people who would stoop so low.
I watched him take a hard swallow. “Do you know what happens on wedding nights?”
“No.”
“I don’t think I can handle anyone else touching you after I saw you in your mother’s cage.”
I shook my head hard. “I won’t let him.”
His lips pressed in a straight line, as if he knew there was no hope for tonight.
“I won’t, Fletcher! I will find a way out of this.”
“I know you will, princess.” He took a hard look over my shoulder at something, then his eyes darted back to me. “I miss you already.”
A large hand gripped my upper arm as I dissolved into particles and was whisked away by a powerful wind.
I came together in a large room in front of my presumed husband as I recognized the white shoes. My eyes trailed up his thick torso and into Graff’s pastel pink gaze.
“Don’t touch me!” I screamed, ripping my arm out of his grip and storming across the room.
He put his hands up and took a step back. “I won’t! I won’t.”
I bared my teeth, screaming, “Where the hell is my magic!”
“You have it, I swear. The queen just subdued you. But you still can’t leave Elizy. I’m in charge of that.”
With effort, I forced magic to pool down my arms, then I fanned out my fingers toward him. Split magic or not, I’d destroy him, maybe even take his magic also. “You better not lay a fucking finger on me.”
He brought his hands down and shook his head. “I would never harm someone I care about so deeply.”
“Youcare about me.” I lowered my lids halfway, bored at the statement. “Deeply.”
His brows set in a serious fashion and his jaw tightened. “Of course. We are bonded. Evenmore intenselynow. I’ve been through everything with you whether you know it or not. And if you could just calm down a bit, we could figure this out. You’re a little overwhelming.”
“You care about me.” I huffed out a contrite, amused laugh.
“Yes, Ripley. Of course. Do not mock my feelings.”
If he was going to be serious then so was I. I pulled my brows down and tightened my jaw, straightening one of my magic-filled hands even more. “Then, why didn’t you come looking for me, you coward?”
“Believe me, I wanted to!” His fists clenched and he stepped toward me, leaning his shoulders even more into my space. “But we all knew your best chance was Fletcher. It wasn’t a secret that he had found you in your room instead of your hologram. Do you even know how insanelyincrediblethat is?” His square jaw feathered as he raked his blond hair up and back. “He set out to find you, and we were all confident that he would, so the queen didn’t want to risk losing any of us options for you.”
“So you all sat back andsacrificed him to the Cidris-riddled Ölden Lands?”
He threw his hands up and let his head fall back with an eye roll. “It was his choice! And he didn’t want our help.”
“No, it was your choice to not bother finding me. You do not deserve my hand in marriage.”
“Ripley, we were no match for him! The night of the ritual, the queen told us all to go get you away from Fletcher, that it was our duty. And when we tried, he kicked all our asseswithoutmagic just to keep you with him. Him and I arenotfriends. He made that very clear when he broke Decksin and Jarvy’s fingers.”
My eyes darted to his hands a little disappointed. “And why aren’t yours?”
He threw his hands up. “Because I’m scared of him! After seeing what he did to the other two, I ran.” He gave a frustrated growl. “We all knew you had an affinity for him since you were born. We felt it was pointless to leave. You were always going to pick him.”
I dropped my hand and clenched both by my sides, anger boiling in me. “So that means you don’t come searching for the princess of your kingdom?”
