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“How old are you?” he queries, sizing me up. His gaze is lecherous. I curl my lip and say nothing in response, chin up in definiance.

“She is four-and-twenty,” my father answers for me. I am unsurprised he does not remember my age. “Unspoiled,” he adds, and I want to bash his head against the ground. Myophidis brimming full ofau’mana, feeding off my quiet fury, but the drugs keep it out of my reach.

“Let me see her teeth,” the king orders, and a guard immediately steps forward to push my lips apart. This stranger's hands groping my face is enough to send me careening over the edge.

Before he can react and I can think, I open my jaw and clamp my teeth over his finger. He screams and yanks his hand back, but I do not release him. I bite harder until my teeth sink into his flesh. Until I feel bone. Until I taste blood.

Hard fingers dig into my shoulders and pull me back as the guard clutches his wounded hand. I grin at him, showing him his blood between my teeth.

“Touch me once more, and I will rip your throat out,” I snarl.

The king laughs and claps.

“Saints, I have another beast under my roof!” He chuckles.

I ignore him and turn my murderous gaze onto my father. He had been watching the events unfold, but now his eyes snap back to the floor. Like a dog who knows he has done wrong.

“I always knew you were a coward.” I spit blood at his feet. “But this is despicable, even for you.”

“You are just another mouth to feed, Shivani,” he mumbles, eyes averted. “You are unmarried with no prospects, for Saint’s sake. At least here, you may have a chance to break this curse and make us both rich.”

“How dare you!” I roar. I try to throw myself at him, picturing my hands around his neck, but the guards hold me firmly. “You stole my money!Mine! And now you are trading my life for coin!”

“It is done.” He shrugs. “There is no point in a struggle.”

White hot rage blurs the corners of my vision.

“If the drink does not kill you,” I hiss. “Then I will.”

He stares at the ground.

“Do you hear me? I will escape from here, andI will kill you!” Several more guards pile in to hold me back as I thrash like a feral croca.

“I think we will enjoy housing you for the next six months, girl.” The king rubs his hands together, cheeks red with amusement. “Perhaps you will break this curse of his! And I do enjoy seeing a fiery young woman learn her place.”

His eyes glint, and my hands ball into fists. I want to leap forward and tear his face off with my teeth. I want to rip the smug smile from his face. But I can do nothing.

“Get her cleaned up. I want her presentable when she is introduced to my son.”

The door my father came through opens again and several women pour into the room. They begin to usher me away as I quake with rage. Their faces are kind, but their grip is firm, and I am swiftly removed. I glance back atmy father, his shoulders hunched and his eyes closed.

“Bastard!” I scream.

The king’s laugh follows me into the castle as the doors slam shut.

Chapter 6

Month One

Iam in a gilded cage, beautiful and stifling.

The bedchamber the guards led me to is larger than my entire house. The floor is decked with thick, plush carpet I sink into as soon as I am thrown inside. I stumble over the soft flooring before collecting myself and rounding on the guards. They close the door quickly behind them, leaving me to thump my fists uselessly against the wood.

In my house, I regularly had to fix the door as it fell apart each time it rained. But here, the door is so strong it is as though I am pounding against rock.

“Let me go!” I yell. The door absorbs the sound of my fists, rendering my attempts impotent. I resist the rising panic in my chest and flood it with all my fury instead.

I spin around, scanning the room. Animposing four-poster bed stands against one wall, as ornate and golden as the rest of the castle. There are several clothes drawers tucked into the far corner and a vanity table overloaded with perfumes and make-up. Bile rises in the back of my throat as I think of all the dead women who likely sat there, trying their best to claim the prince’s heart. And I am next. I am a Never Queen.