LOGINCharlotte’s POVI knew that ceiling. The water stain in the far corner shaped like a bird, the hairline crack that ran from the light fixture to the window…I’d stared at both of them for years, every night I lay awake listening to Jason snoring beside me, and I’d promised myself I’d never see eithe
I knew the face looking down at me. I’d know it anywhere.“There you are,” Jason said softly. “I’ve got you now.”…Kieran’s POVThe talisman sat in my breast pocket, a small weight over my heart. I’d carried it around since I left the chapel, rehearsing what I would say. The apology first, then the
Charlotte’s POVI’d learned long ago how to wear the right mask at the right times.So I sat at the head table in a dress the color of dark wine, my husband on one side and his daughter on the other, and I smiled and lifted my glass every time someone rose to toast the newlyweds, and not one person
“I think Elena might be haunting me and Charlotte from beyond the grave,” I finally said, deciding to just get straight to the point.The priest pulled his head back.I sighed. “Every time the two of us get close, Charlotte collapses. Like the lights just… go out.”“Well, I do recall she suffered fr
Kieran’s POVSleep wouldn’t come.I laid in the dark for ages, waiting for an exhaustion that should have dragged me under hours ago. A full day and night in the dirt by the grave. Nothing in my stomach except for a sandwich that had gone down tasting like ash. My body should have succumbed to sleep
Charlotte’s POVI had walked these paths dozens of times before, but the darkness changed them. The moon was half-full and high in the sky, and the only sounds were the pebbles crunching under my feet and the wind moving through the trees up overhead.I pulled my cardigan tighter and kept walking, l
Charlotte’s POVI found the note when I woke up.“Charlotte: You may take Nora to one training session today. Stay with her the entire time. If anything happens, you must bring her back immediately. —Kieran”He was letting us go.I sat there for a moment, staring at the note.After last night, I had
“Trust me when I say this, Kieran.” I took a step forward and tucked my chin, looking up at him through my brows. “I would never be interested in a man like you. Not in a million years. In fact, you repulse me with your arrogance, cruelty, and selfish pride.”“Oh, please. I saw the way you looked at
She was gone before I could say anything, but the look in her eyes softened me somewhat. I didn’t even get a chance to ask her name, and yet, looking at her, I felt a strange connection to her, like we understood each other in a way no one else could.My stomach churned then, gurgling as if in remin
Charlotte’s POVMy face went aflame.Whore.The word stared up at me, mocking me, ugly and hateful. No wonder people were laughing at me.“Who did this?” I demanded, spinning around to face the hallway. Several servants were lingering nearby, pretending to be busy with their tasks. “Who put this on







