Page 92 of A Court of Wings and Shadows

“What?” he breathed. “No.”

I let the silence fall between us, and when he didn’t rush to correct me, I took another step forward, my voice low and bitter.

“Yes, you do. That’s exactly what you think. That I’ll be manipulated into it, or tricked, or corrupted. That somehow, I’ll become the thing you have to stop. Just like before.”

He opened his mouth again, but I cut him off.

“You’re using me.Again.”

The words landed like a slap.

Remy’s mouth twisted like the words hurt before they even left his tongue. “I’m not using you, Ashlyn.”

I laughed, cold and sharp. “No? Then what would you call it? You used me back in the Order to get close to my father. Don’t pretend it wasn’t calculated.”

His shoulders stiffened. “It wasn’t like that.”

“It was exactly like that,” I hissed. “You played the quiet assassin. You earned his trust, you earnedmine. And the whole time, you were on a mission. I was just part of the strategy.”

Remy’s face darkened. “I didn’t expect to fall for you. That wasn’t supposed to happen.”

“But it did,” I snapped. “And then you left me like it hadn’t. Not a word. Not even a lie to hold on to.”

He took a step forward, voice rising. “You don’t think it killed me to leave? I was under orders! I had a target, I had a mission?—”

“And now here you are,” I cut in, breath sharp, “back in my life, following more orders. This time it’s the king. And what am I now? A key to a magical weapon? A means to an end? You only ever show up when someone wants to use me.”

His jaw clenched, fists curling at his sides. “I love you.”

“You don’t get to say that!” My voice cracked. “Not when it’s always on someone else’s terms. Not when you’re always hiding something.”

The air between us pulsed with heat, unspoken magic humming just under my skin.

Then Zander’s voice cut through it like a knife.

“Remy,” he said sharply, stepping between us. “Did you get that order from the kingdirectly?”

The question hung there, cold and pointed.

Remy didn’t answer right away.

And suddenly, I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.

Remy’s jaw was set tight, his shoulders squared, but his voice was hard. “It was a written message. Carried by the royal courier. It bore the king’s personal seal.”

Zander’s expression didn’t shift, but I saw the tic in his cheek. “My father is too far gone to issue a coherent order.”

Remy didn’t back down. “It was pretty detailed for someone losing their mind. Instructions, locations, maps... It wasn’t the rantings of a madman.”

Zander narrowed his eyes. “And how do you return information?”

“I send it via the king’s personal courier,” Remy replied. “He’s been under direct orders to retrieve my reports.”

That was all Zander needed to hear. His voice turned clipped, commanding. “Then summon him. Write a message. Tell him weattempted to survey the Blood Isle but failed. Say we wanted to scout the enemy’s defenses.”

Remy arched a brow but said nothing, only glancing toward the rest of my squad.

“Send them to their rooms,” he said. “We’ll head to mine.”