LUCY
"Father, if you yet battle to believe her, then the priests of Ashkara can be involved…"
Tavric's voice cuts through the stillness as silence returns to the room. His eyes dart toward the side of the hall where the Ashkara citizens and nobles sit. They watch the drama with the signature blank looks of their region—a mask of mystery that has defined them for centuries.
They are the keepers of the wolf magic, the ones trusted by the Goddess to hold secrets that pass from one generation to the next. Terribly good observers.
The Supreme says nothing to Tavric's suggestion. Instead, he turns his heavy, piercing gaze toward my father. "King Karon, is this true? Was the Princess ever pregnant?"
My father nods slowly. In the harsh light of the hall, he suddenly looks decades older. "When she lost it… we thought it was from the pain that came from the breaking of the bonds. The rejection."
