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64 - Masks
publish date:
2026-06-30 03:35:36
Latest chapter
The Bride Wore Blood 70 - Blood
Valerius had vanished through the side exits, his dark hair catching the candlelight one last time before he vanished into the shadows of the corridor.I didn't think. I didn't look at Thade either as he danced with Pera. Even knowing that he’d gone to help her, I couldn’t help the small pang of jealousy that his arms were around someone else. But it was less than I deserved having acted throughout the dinner that I would even entertain Valerius. I could feel the weight of a dozen looks my way from members of the Court. Especially those I had been able to pick out with Otherworld blood. If I stayed, I was a bird in a snare; if I followed, I was stepping into the fire. I chose the fire.The transition from the buzz of the dancing and laughter of the antechambers to the silence of the palace corridors was violent. My slippers clicked rhythmically against the polished stone, the sound echoing like a frantic heartbeat. The corridors were a maze of secrets, lined with tapestries that seem
The Bride Wore Blood 69 - Danger
The scrape of chairs against the stone floor signaled the end of dinner. As the heavy wooden doors were thrown open once more, the suffocating atmosphere of the great hall began to bleed into the smaller antechambers. The promise of music and dancing hung in the air, a forced levity designed to mask the jagged edges of the evening’s politics.Thade stood, his presence a towering shadow beside me. Without a word, his hand found mine. His grip was firm, almost possessive, yet the warmth I had once found comfort in felt like a brand. We moved through the crowd, a silent tableau of royal unity, though I felt the weight of a thousand judgmental eyes, Kael’s, Elara’s, the Duke of Boren’s carved into my back.He led me away from the burgeoning swell of the music, toward a secluded gallery where the floor-to-ceiling windows looked out over the darkened grounds. The half moon was a pale sliver tonight a thousand stars flickering in an inky sky the stretched endlessly over the city of Soln. Th
The Bride Wore Blood 68 - Playing with fire
Lana’s POV ‘I see a man, desperate to make a statement,’ I reply, as though I’m bored. I’m certainly tired of letting Duke Valerius talk any more. I squeeze Thade’s hand beneath the table, ‘come now, Duke, we both know such is unnecessary for a man of your calibre.’ He’s looking at me and I’m going to keep his attention. If only to stop him trying to cause more damage.Valerius leans back, his eyes tracking the line of my throat as though he’s contemplating where best to sink his teeth. He is a predator who preens, a man whose ego is as vast and treacherous as a marsh. I can feel the weight of Thade’s gaze on the side of my face, a silent, burning pressure but I do not look at him. I cannot. If I break eye contact with the Duke now, the fragile web of fascination I’ve spun will snap.‘A man of my calibre,’ Valerius repeats, the words tasting like fine wine on his tongue. He smiles, and it is a sharp unsettling thing. ‘You have a way with words, Lana. Or perhaps it is simply that you
The Bride Wore Blood 67 - An Era
Thade’s POV The weight of the crown felt heavier tonight, a literal band of iron pressing against my temples, but it was nothing compared to the weight of the hand currently resting in mine. Beneath the table, out of sight of the circling hawks of the Illurian Court, I kept my grip on Lana’s hand firm. Her skin was warm, a sharp contrast to the sudden, icy dread that had settled in my gut the moment Valerius walked through those doors.I could feel them watching us, the vipers, the sycophants, and the predators. The Court was a fractured thing, split down a jagged middle. Half of them looked at Lana in her wine-red dress and saw a tether, a way to pull my leash if I ever bit too hard. They thought her a weakness, a soft spot in the armor of a King they still didn't entirely trust. The other half, the ones with sharper instincts and longer memories, saw her for the threat she truly was. They wanted her removed as a threat to my power. Duke Valerius of Boren took his seat with a pract
The Bride Wore Blood 66 - Valerius
The red silk of my dress felt like a second skin, heavy and shimmering under the flickering torchlight of the palace corridors. Every step I took toward the Great Hall felt like a march toward a scaffold. I could still feel the phantom heat of Thade’s hand against my cheek from our confrontation in the suite, a brand of trust and terror that I couldn't shake.The heavy oak doors loomed ahead, but a figure stepped out from the shadows of a fluted pillar, intercepting me before the guards could announce my arrival.'Lana.'I froze. My father, Duke Nix, stood before me. Gone was the iron-fisted man who had bruised my arm on my wedding day. In his place was a man transformed by a terrifying sort of radiance. He reached out, taking my hands in his, his grip firm but lacking its usual bite.'You look every bit the Queen Illure needs,' he murmured, his eyes scanning my face with a pride that made my stomach churn. ‘I can see you’ve used your potion tonight, no glasses,’ he commented. Pleased
The Bride Wore Blood 65 - Under Control
The silk of the wine-red dress hung on the hook like a fresh wound against the pale walls of the suite. It was a beautiful, terrible color, one that seemed to mock the current air between us. Thade stood near the heavy oak door, his silhouette imposing, his posture a fortress of rigid duty. He hadn’t looked at Rune when she left, hadn’t even acknowledged her departure. His entire universe had narrowed down to the space between where he stood and where I waited.‘Where did you go?’ I find myself asking, confused about his disappearance once we arrived back in the Palace. 'I had a meeting arranged, our journey last night jeopardized my attendance, but I was able to make it.’I cold shiver runs through me, he never mentioned a meeting but I don’t want to be suspicious about his every action. He’s the King, he does have things to do. Thade paces the room with the measured, silent grace of a predator. He was careful, though. He kept his distance, a physical border that hurt more than his
The Bride Wore Blood 27 - Two Years Ago: The Duke
I stare at him, heart pounding as he watches me across the small distance. He’s serious. Like Delia and Ronin are going to run to the border of Boren, Thade wants to run. My legs feel like jelly, there’s been so much over the last few days that is hard to comprehend. ‘I can’t just run away with yo
The Bride Wore Blood 24 - Two Years Ago: Wild
We tumble down into the pool, I won’t draw his blood but I hold him, pinned beneath the water. Then we leap. Kalik is a large black wolf and we land easily back in the cave. Our eyes adjusting to the dusky light. There’s another wolf before, silver like the moon, Lady Delia. I growl and she tries t
The Bride Wore Blood 23 - Two Years Ago: Bitch
I stand at the entrance to the chamber, the water pouring behind me. Alert to the sense of another Wolf approaching. My awareness brushes his, in a way that makes Kalik bristle and snarl. I expect him to walk away, to sense me hear and leave. But he persists. He appears as a shadow in the long tunn
The Bride Wore Blood 11 - Two Years Ago: A Kiss
A smirk lifts the corner of his mouth and he looks down again, as though to hide the expression. He knows the power he has over me, and it pleases him. That’s undeniable. ‘A dangerous request, Miss Lana.’ ‘It’s a dangerous situation,’ I pause, lifting a hand to press against my chest. ‘Should I
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