Soraya's POV
They dressed me again.
Another gown — even more extravagant than the last — layered silk and moonlit lace, cinched with jewels heavy enough to anchor a drowning heart. They adorned me like a prized relic, gilded in things meant to hide the truth:
I was walking willingly into a cage.
When the final clasp clicked shut, the doors opened… and Lucas stood waiting.
I froze.
He was still here. Still in Silverfang.
I hadn't seen him this close since the night he saved me from being executed. Not where I could see the tension in his jaw and the softness in his eyes meant only for me.
He smiled faintly and reached out, fingers brushing my cheek with reverence.
"You look just like her, Soraya," he murmured. "Just like Remi."
My throat tightened. "Thank you."
"She would be proud of you," he added. A pause. His gaze softened even further. "And of your brother."
Kael.
I had wondered every second since that night if he had survived. If Leonidas had...
