CARDIGAN, acotar ¹

chapter thirty two

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CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

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ERIS GLARED COLDLY at the supposed high queen of prythian, their undying ruler and damnation, and suppressed the urge to tear out her throat.

he'd thought about killing her every chance he got. when she was laying next to him, ordering him around, or even sitting at her throne as if she had every right to rule.

with his arms crossed, stopping him from reaching his dagger, he watched the assembled crowd dance to strange music, chilling and tempting.

amarantha had hosted yet another ball to celebrate her win, where tamlin had failed. all high fae were asked to attend but most of the high lords had refused. save for tarquin and kallias, still on delicate terms with the queen after their court's rebellion.

he looked at them with pity now, standing in silence with their array.

his traitorous gaze slid to cecelia, standing near amarantha's dais, accompanied by two guards at either side of her. shackles at her wrist that contained a power so great eris knew it was to keep away the presence of the golden shadows cecelia sought comfort in.

it was unusual to see cecelia lyre so ... dark, like a flame put out. he'd never seen her without those dancing fairies at her shoulders, humming.

"enjoying yourself, celia?" amarantha drawled down, making the lady of the night court stiffen, but continue to glare at the floor.

"you do realize," cecelia said quietly, her voice a lethal melody of rage — the voice of a queen, "shackles or not, i can kill you."

amarantha smirked. "but you won't. not while rhysand's life hangs in the balance." cecelia let out a growl, making amarantha tip her head back and laugh. "put the gag back on," she told the day court soldiers at celia's sides, forced to serve amarantha. eris knew she'd assigned them to cecelia because of her past at the day court.

"wretched bitch," cecelia seethed, but it all came out muffled as those soldiers reluctantly placed the cloth between her lips.

amarantha clicked her tongue, still smiling cruelly, and eris wanted to kill her there for disrespecting cecelia when the two ancient stone doors to the throne room creaked open on a phantom wind, and the attor hurled forward a figure from the shadows.

eris held his breath as the human lifted her chin.

it wasn't carson, yet eris couldn't find relief just yet. no — this human girl might have had lighter hair and a rounded face, but the shared features were too obvious to miss. he stared at cecelia — but her wide-eyes were fixed on the human.

carson had a sister. and she had fallen in love with tamlin.

eris felt his heart drop.

"what's this?" amarantha said, her voice lilting despite the adder's smile she shot. she crossed one leg over the other while she lounged lazily on her throne, with a hand on the black rock throne beside her, where tamlin sat blankly. he didn't flinch or do so much as blink at her presence.