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When morning came and we headed back to the academy, I looked for my father but couldn’t find him. I should probably try to sleep before having that conversation anyway. I reached my bedroom and placed my ear against the door. The last thing I wanted was a conversation with Rianne after the travesty that was dinner. I wasn’t sure I could trust her to keep things to herself.
As far as I could detect, there was nothing that indicated anyone was in the room. I slid my key in the keyhole before slowly opening the door. Darkness surrounded me the second I stepped inside, but there was no movement. There was nothing.
I closed the door, leaned my back against it, and closed my eyes. Relief washed over me.
Nobody knew.
I would sleep now, and tomorrow, I would tell my father I’d marry Marcus. Maybe then the ache in my heart would ease, even for a bit.
The next morning,I woke early so I could shower and get ready to break my fast with my family the way I usually did. I bypassed the dining hall despite the strong scent of food that might have otherwise lured me to see what was on the menu for the morning. There seemed to be a buzzing throughout the academy, despite the fact that the majority of us would be gone because of the full moon tonight. There was an energy here, one that seemed to imply anything could happen.
I passed other students. Everyone looked at me. Everyone whispered to themselves. No one would acknowledge me directly.
I tried to ignore it. There weren’t many people to deal with in the first place, so ignoring this should be easy. But the stares were harsh, full of judgment. It was more than just being my father’s daughter.
No.
Something else was going on, I just didn’t know what.
By the time I reached my father’s chambers, my heart raced against my chest and I was certain my face was flushed. I didn’t pause to think if Matthyw would be present after everything that had happened last night. That wasn’t my first concern. I just needed to tell my father I would do my duty, I would do exactly as he asked, and hoped that was still a viable option for me.
The servants opened the doors for me, which I took as a good sign. If my father wanted nothing to do with me, I was certain he wouldn’t even entertain me coming to break my fast with him and wouldn’t allow me entrance at all.
When I walked in, my father, Megan Chamberly, and Taskier were already present. Their heads turned to look at me. The second they saw me, Rianne looked away, her cheeks turning a deep red, Taskier cocked his head like he was seeing me for the first time, and my father narrowed his eyes, like I was a bother to him, a nuisance he was furious he had to deal with.
Something had gone horribly wrong, and I started to realize just what that might be…
“Sit,” my father commanded without preamble.
All of the boldness I had had just yesterday seemed to have disappeared. My feet moved without my mind thinking about it, crossing the room so I could pull out my usual seat next to Matthyw if he were here. I took my seat, kept my posture perfect, and folded my hands in my lap. I craned my neck to the side so I could look at my father, to try and understand why he seemed so terribly upset, but there was nothing I could do until he explained exactly what was going on.
“Do you have any idea of the consequences of your actions?” he demanded to know.
I glanced at Taskier for some kind of hint at what my father could be referring to. Had he wanted me to jump at the chance to marry Marcus? Unless…unless this was about something else. And, if that was the case, how could he possibly know?
“You’ll have to be more specific,” I said, my voice cracking.
My father’s voice contorted into a scowl. “Oh, will I?” he demanded. There was such sarcasm in his tone, I flinched. My father wasn’t the type to use sarcasm simply because he thought it was beneath him, but apparently, even that was an exception to him. “I don’t think you realize the gravity of the situation you’ve found yourself in. Unless you’re being flippant on purpose?” He arched a brow, indicating he expected some sort of answer from me.
“Father,” I said slowly. “I promise, I’m not trying to be flippant. I came here because I wanted to apologize for yesterday, to tell you I’m willing to do my duty for the pack and marry Marcus.”
Chamberly dropped her head into her hand, resting on the surface of the table. She shook it twice, as though she was personally offended at the words that had come out of my mouth.
My father softened as he regarded her – actually softened. I didn’t think I had ever seen him appear that way before, even when he had tried to reassure me of things in the past – and reached out to take her hand in his.
“You think you still have that option after what you did?” my father asked, though he still looked at Chamberly as though making sure she was okay was his top priority.
I tried not to let it bother me. I tried to ignore how gentle he seemed with her, someone he barely knew, and refused to compare it to his current treatment of me.
“No one will marry you now, Adrya,” he said, finally pulling his eyes away from Chamberly to look at me. Everything soft sharpened; even his eyes looked like dry icicles. “Not after what you did. Not after what was seen.”
My face turned clammy. Breathing became difficult. I shifted in my seat, trying to get some sort of steady footing and being unable to find it. Because I knew what this was about, but it was hard for me to understand it only because I didn’t get how anyone could possibly know.
Except, that’s not true. You know how they know. You know what Matthyw did. He revealed your identity when he pulled off your hood. Then, he kissed you in the middle of the brothel. You would have let him do much more if he hadn’t left you there by yourself –
“Father,” I said, forcing myself to speak, needing to hear him tell me what was going on, what I could do about it. “Please. Tell me what you mean so I…so I can fix things.”
“Fix things?” He shook his head. His eyes lit up, but the amusement reflected in them was hollow. “You think you can fix things? Surely, you must still be in some kind of dream state if you think it’s even possible for you to fix anything at this point. Tell me, did you know what Matthyw was doing when he took you to that place?”
