Cassian's mouth tightened. "Especially Lord Liam."
Arik's ether flared.
The golden lines running through the corridor walls pulsed once, bright and restrained, like thunder compressed inside a closed fist.
"If anyone in that chamber has ideas about using, examining, or separating me from my mate," Arik said, his voice dangerously quiet, "I will find a way to reopen the Gates, take Liam with me, and leave Nuria sealed behind us. They can continue rotting inside the boundary without their sovereign."
Severin's gaze shifted toward him, but he did not interfere.
Cassian released a short breath through his nose. "The personality survived intact, I see."
Arik did not smile.
"Nobody will touch Liam," Cassian continued. "I have already made that clear. The court wants to know who the sovereign's mate is because his position cannot be treated as temporary."
"They already know I am bonded."
