ALARIC'S POV
"Mother," I said, my voice sounding thin in the vastness of the temple. "I have done it. I have marked her."
I whispered, my fingers curling against the cold stone of the floor.
"The remedy is still there. The Council want me to be the High Lord they remember. They want the wings and the eyes of a ruler who does not hesitate to take what is owed."
I lowered my head, the silk of the blindfold feeling like a brand against my skin.
"I cannot do it," I admitted, the truth finally breaking through the ice of my restraint. "I look for reasons to justify the sacrifice, but every time I am near her, the logic fails."
I paused.
"She is the mother of my child now. She is no longer just a promise written in an ancient pact. She is a life I have sworn to protect, even if it means I remain broken until the end of my days."
