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I railed against him, wanting to scream and cry and thrash and claw his damned eyes out. “You have done nothing but imprison me! All I wanted was to be free, to be free to choose, and you did not even let me do that!”

He forced me back against the wall, his eyes blazing. “Would you have ever chosen me? Was there ever a world in which you would have chosen me?”

I glared up at him, the answer twisting on my tongue.No. Yes. No. Yes.“I-I don’t know!” I tried to push against his chest, but he held fast. “I did not want this life, this-this prison!”

Azriel lowered his face to mine, his eyes filled with fury. “You are not my prisoner, you are my wife.”

“And what good is that? You have simply taken me from one gilded cage and tossed me into another!”

He grasped my jaw, pressing my head against the wood paneling. “That cage is all but melted and shaped into acrown for your own head, Evie. I took the ruins of it when you freed yourself, and made you my queen.”

“You placed me in shackles! That is all!” I turned my head, and snapped my teeth down on his thumb, biting hard and hoping I’d tear the damned thing from his hand. I tasted blood, heavy iron in my mouth, as I tore through his skin.

Azriel hissed and yanked his hand away from me, and then the bastard laughed. He laughed. His devilish face leered down at me, and he licked the blood from his hand.

“I am the only person in your life who has ever yearned to see you free.” He raised a hand to my cheek, and the stark contrast of the delicate brush of his fingers compared to his other hand wrapped around my throat, made my heart pound faster against my ribcage. “Your family? Your ridiculous father? Your dead husband? All those high members of society who laughed at you from behind fans at every ball you attended? Do you think any of them would ever care what happened to you?” He grazed his lips against mine, his eyes still boring into me. “Do you think any of them would ever want to see you liberated? Happy?” His hand moved from my throat to the neckline of my gown, his fingers running along my skin. “Allowed to feel pleasure?”

“That is not freedom.”

“Then what is freedom, beloved?” His face was menacing again, bearing down on me with eyes so unnaturally calm and calculating, it sent a chill down my spine. “What freedom would you have had, a penniless widow, left to her ruin on the streets?”

“You have fashioned yourself as the hero then?” I laughed scornfully. “The wayward son who rescued his poor stepmother from poverty? How noble of you.”

Three sharp, hard booms sounded from the door, stealing our attention away from each other.

“Who the devil?” Azriel released me, striding out of thebedroom and to the door. Hinges creaked as he tore it open, and he barked out a sharp, “What?”

“Police,” said a low voice, and I scurried from the bedroom to peer around the door frame. “We’ve been called on suspicion of lewd activities within the premises.”

“I beg your pardon?” Azriel’s tone was tight with rage. “How dare you, sir.”

The policeman’s face remained calm, rolling his shoulders slightly so the cape around them shifted. “We’ve been informed of an unmarried couple occupying a room.”

“Nonsense,” I spoke up quickly, and the policeman’s gaze averted to me. “We are lawfully married and have the right to occupy this room and not be bothered.”

The policeman rose up onto the balls of his feet for a moment, sighing. “Madam, this claim has come from a family of good standing, who I would not believe would tell an untruth. Besides which.” He glanced back at Azriel. “I’ve been informed the banns have not been read, so any marriage that did take place is illicit.” He emphasised the last word, hissing like a little snake, and I thought Azriel was sure to pound the man into the stone wall.

“My good sir,” Azriel said in a low voice, and the policeman looked a little less certain of himself. “My marriage to this woman is legal, signed and sealed. Anyone who claims otherwise is leading you on a merry dance and wasting your time.”

The policeman pursed his lips. “All the same, unless you can produce proof, you and your good lady wife must vacate the premises forthwith.”

“Absolutely not,” Azriel said. “It is night, and it is cold, and I will not be tossed from a room I paid good money for.”

The policeman exhaled heavily through his nose. “Sir, I don’t want any trouble.”

“And trouble you shall have if you intend on throwing meout.” Azriel crossed his arms over his chest, and leaned against the doorway. “I am sure an upstanding man of the law like you could not be swayed by money.”

The policeman’s eyes flashed, and he clasped his hands behind his back. “Certainly not.”

“I imagine a policeman makes a very decent wage with which to house his family.” Azriel glanced over at me and shrugged. “Ten pounds would be meaningless to this man, surely.”

I watched the policeman’s face carefully as his expression shifted. His throat bobbed, and his intent gaze dropped, his eyes suddenly unsteady as they darted about the room.

“I, uh, I should not wish to cause any trouble for the landlord here. This is a decent establishment.” The policeman’s itchy little fingers rubbed together, and I could practically hear him salivating at the idea of ten pounds. “But I am sure that if your good intentions were made clear…”

Azriel grinned widely. “But of course. I only ever have good intentions.” He turned to his coat, which hung beside the door, and withdrew several shiny sovereigns, jingling them in his hand. “I am sure the proprietor should appreciate an extra two pounds for the night. On account of the room being so lovely.”

The policeman looked left and right as the proffered coins landed in his hand, which was quickly curled away and concealed underneath his cloak. “Yes sir, I am sure the landlord will be most agreeable.” His smile landed on me. “What with your good lady wife being so tired, and it being so late, and all.”