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“Today is our rehearsal; our wedding is tomorrow. It’s customary for all royal families to attend tonight. Although I assume Crimson will not want to. You will behave yourself, or I will kill Sybil’s husband and children tonight. You’re lucky I didn’t kill them for your last stupid mistake.”

He came over and untied me roughly. His hand grabbed mine and led me upstairs to the large bathtub he had brought me to last time. Once again, Jesper stared at me the entire time Isoaked. He had carved his name into my thigh and forearm. I didn’t say anything about it, though. I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction. So, I stayed silent the entire time I sat in the tub. Flashes of Cassius and I took up all thoughts in my mind.

“You’re awfully quiet today.”

No response from me. I took my time scrubbing the sweat, dirt, and blood from my skin. His blue eyes watched me curiously, like he thought I would attack him at any moment.

“Your wedding dress has been altered. You will now have sleeves to hide your wound,” he said, speaking as if I were pleased by this. My face was still riddled with cuts and scrapes. I also didn’t care because I knew that this wedding was a joke. The whole thing was a twisted display of power. I knew that following along would let both Jesper and my father think that I was going to obey.

I would do my best to do so, to lull them into a false sense of security. Then, I would cut both their heads off when they least expected it. That was my plan. Maybe I would kill them as they slept tonight.

“Say something for fuck’s sake,” he growled.

“No.” My black eyes narrowed on him. “Is that better?”

He sighed heavily but didn’t get angry. When I got out of the tub, he led me back to my room. Blood and water still coated the floor. I turned when I heard Jesper behind me. I backed away when he planted a kiss on my lips. Disgust was probably plain as day on my face.

“Don’t do that tomorrow or tonight,” his voice strained.

“If you think I’m going to pretend that I like you today or even on our wedding day, you are more stupid than you look.”

His nostrils flared as his hands fisted by his sides. I widened my stance, readying myself for the strike I was sure was coming.

“Did you ever think that you could have learned to love me? You didn’t need to make all of this so difficult.”

“Did you ever think that you could have married someone who actually liked you? I will never harbor any feelings for you other than hate and disgust. You are a weak man.”

He backhanded me, and I fell into the wall, but instead of showing him the agony I felt, I laughed.

“Point proven. You are a coward.”

Jesper stared at me like he wanted to strangle me, but he turned and left instead. Worry clawed at my insides. I didn’t want him to think he could just touch me whenever he pleased after tomorrow. I might have to kill him sooner than I originally thought. Thinking about it made me smile.

A flicker of relief ran through my arm, and I looked down at the contrasting feeling. My eyes stared at the blood bond that Cassius gave me. It no longer had a crack in it. He fixed it.

The relief disappeared after a moment. I stared at the bond, feeling unsure. Why did he fix it? I focused on the blood bond for hours, but nothing ever came through it. Finally, I lay down, pretending like I wasn’t about to go to a rehearsal for my own wedding tomorrow.

?????

I scanned the beautiful dress I was wearing. The fit across my chest was perfect and if this were any other occasion I would admire it more. The sleeves that were added were odd and the lace fabric irritated my wounds. I grabbed the hem of them and ripped them off. My hair had been pinned back, and my make-up was overdone. It was as if they thought they could get rid of the bruises and cuts. They didn’t. I sighed heavily as I looked at myself and unpinned my hair, letting it cascade down my back.

“I look stupid,” I scoffed. Then I laughed because I didn’t want to feel pretty. I hoped I looked like a troll walking down the aisle. My eyes had been green earlier, but I focused on the mirror long enough that they shaded over red. My swirled tattoos werefaded, but if I could make them glow, I would. Anything I could do to be rebellious tonight without doing it outright, I would try.

I had even replaced the nude lipstick with dark red that reminded me of Crimson. My heart squeezed briefly. Would he show up today? He said he would see me tomorrow.

Jesper had told me it was custom for the royal families to be present for the rehearsal dinner and then attend a feast in our honor. I wondered if any of the families would show after my father and Jesper had been complete assholes at the meeting of the kingdoms.

My father came to the doorway then, dressed in his finery and ready to impress his guests.

“Ready?” My father asked.

“Sure.”

He turned and walked out. I told him he could walk me down the aisle the day my corpse was in the ground. He didn’t argue. I grabbed the ugly blue flowers the wedding planner had picked out. They were Cerithia blue, but I didn’t care much for them. They looked like flowers you would give to a sick friend, not for a wedding or rehearsal.

They were perfect.

The most awful music was playing. It was beautiful and romantic, which was the complete opposite of how I felt on the inside. I was tempted to just run down the aisle and get this rehearsal over with, but I had a different approach. I walked unbearably slow, just like I would tomorrow. I didn’t bother holding the flowers up; they dangled in my left hand. My eyes scanned everyone in attendance. The kings of the other kingdoms were all here, except Crimson.