下载掌阅APP，畅读海量书库
立即打开
He would gladly accept the consequences for that promise. That certainty.
The double doors before him swung open with a baleful moan.
Khalid opened his eyes.
A girl stood at the entrance. She progressed toward him without hesitation. Oddly, Khalid’s guards were not leading her to her fate. They were walking at a respectful distance. Almost as though they knew better than to lead this girl anywhere. Almost as though they knew their place remained at her heel.
Who is this girl?
She was small of stature. Not an immediate cause for concern. At least at a distance.
Her hair was long and dark. Unruly. The damask of her mantle gleamed in flashes of silver and gold. As she walked, the fabric unfurled around her like wings.
As she drew closer, Khalid realized he might have been mistaken.
For this girl was anything but delicate. Her fists were tight at her sides. Her head, high. Proud.
Her eyes did not waver. They pierced through him like arrows.
Arrows dipped in honey and poison.
As she moved closer, Khalid realized just how mistaken he had been.
She was indeed small of stature. But not a girl to be dismissed. Not at all.
A pert chin. A sneer held barely in check.
A face seething with emotion.
The girl stopped before the dais. She looked up, fearless, before stepping onto the raised platform, her expression unguarded. Unmoved.
Beyond his control, Khalid’s eyebrows curved high on his brow. He returned her hot gaze, trying to appear unaffected by her presence. By her bravery.
He could not afford to care.
Khalid reached a hand out to her. The girl took it, remembering to bow only at the last instant. As though Khalid did not merit such respect.
Would never merit it.
The truth in her gaze leveled him.
She dipped low in undeserved deference, the color rising in her cheeks.
When the girl looked up again, Khalid faltered. The thrum of his thoughts coiled through his chest, tensing in recognition—