“He killed a vuk.” I leveled my gaze at Seth. “You’re right, it’s nearly impossible. Which means this Lirien isn’t ordinary. He’s Sealed. Imagine what we might learn from him if he joins us.”
Seth scoffed. “And if he doesn’t? What then? He runs back to Lirien with our secrets?”
“Then we execute him,” I said bluntly. “But not until we’ve learned everything we can. Throwing away a potential advantage is shortsighted, even for you.”
A murmur rippled through the crowd, and Soroush nodded faintly. Perfect. Let them think this is about strategy, too.
My gaze swept over those gathered, meeting each pair of eyes in turn. “Is this what we’ve become? We execute those who save our lives without even asking why?”
“Don’t twist this,” Seth snarled. “You knew what would happen.”
“I know what happens to those who break their oaths. If we let honor die in the name of fear, what’s left to protect?”
“Admit that he’s your lover, Seren. It’s the only logical explanation for your behavior. Maybe then the council will have mercy.”
Yes, because breaking our laws to rendezvous with and save a Lirien lover made more sense to him than the truth. The bitter irony of it made me want to scream.
But he already believed me to be a liar. So be it. “If I admit this man is my lover, you’ll allow me to save him?”
Seth’s frown deepened. “No. I meant mercy for you. You can’t claim a lover.”
No, but I can claim a spouse.
The desperate plan I’d wrestled with on the journey here might be the only way out. Seth wouldn’t back down. Time was running out.
All Viori had the right to claim family or spouses if they fled from Lirien to join us. But born Viori couldn’t claim spouses—because it was impossible. A Lirien spouse meant you’d lived in Lirien.
But I knew a way around that.
My mother’s spell book held an ancient, nearly forgotten incantation. The Oath of Bryndis. A sacred bond, rarely spoken of, but one Ibarrans would be familiar with. The oath would not only tether this man to me—it would heal him. Allow me to claim him as my husband, buying me time to decide what to do next.
And the bond meant the Lirien wouldn’t be able to betray me without hurting himself. It was a risk. A gamble. But the only one I had left.
But who knew what the consequences would be?
Bile rose in my throat and I forced it back down. My father’s voice echoed through my mind, the lesson ingrained in me since childhood: Never break your oath. To break it is to break yourself.
And then Esme’s face flickered in my mind as well—small, defiant, and so certain I’d keep her safe. I couldn’t fail again.
Not this time. Not this life.
“I claim him as a husband,” I declared.
The words sent a ripple through those gathered. My mother’s alarmed gaze snapped to me. Ciaran went rigid.
Seth scoffed. “That’s impossible.”
“No, it’s not.” I uttered a spell over the Lirien and me and a dome of crystal-clear ice formed around us. Someone with spellcraft might be able to break it, but it would buy me precious seconds.
Doubt gnawed at the edges of my mind. What would this mean for my family? For my mother, who would certainly be scrutinized? For Ciaran, who stood uneasily nearby, looking at me like I’d just thrown myself off a cliff?
I didn’t have time for doubt.
Gripping the handle of my dagger, I dragged the blade across my left wrist, carving two adjacent Xs. Blood welled instantly, warm and slick as it trickled to my wrist bone.
Shit, shit. This hurts like hell.
There was no time to do the same to the Lirien, so I yanked the cloth from his neck wound. Dark and angry blood oozed out as I set my wrist to his neck.
