Chapter 3

My fingers clench the fabric so hard the nails dig half-moons into my palm. Quinn's vacant stare, Shawn's soft eyes—everything feels so grotesquely comic I almost burst out laughing, yet the dull weight in my chest swallows the sound before it can escape.

"I…" Quinn starts, her eyes flickering, but she says nothing more, just ducks her head with a shy smile.

I turn away, throat constricted. Telling him now would serve no purpose; I am already promised to another. If Shawn is convinced Quinn rescued him, let him keep that belief.

I scoop up my fallen fan and slip into the depths of the garden.

As the she-wolves scatter to admire the blooms, Shawn murmurs to a maid to look after Quinn, his eyes never once drifting my way.

A sharp scream shatters the garden's calm. "Bees! Bees!"

I spin around. Quinn's flailing, a swarm buzzing around her as she swats with her handkerchief.

Maids scramble, waving torches to drive the bees off, but one catches a curtain, and flames leap up, smoke billowing.

"Fire! Run!"

The surge of the crowd knocks me down; ribs blaze as shoes drum across me. Clenching my teeth, I drag myself upright,and spot Shawn ploughing against the flow.

My heart leaps.

But he brushes past me, racing to Quinn. He sweeps her into his arms, and as he turns, his shoulder slams me back to the ground.

My skull slams into the stone steps and the world blurs. Smoke floods my lungs while heat crawls across my skin. Just before the dark takes me, I catch sight of Shawn's steady silhouette, Quinn in his arms, moving away without a backward glance.

Everything fades.

I don't know how long I'm out, but faint sobs pull me back. "Leah, you must hold on. The healer's on his way…"

I heard some whispers.

"Diana gave him her best, but Shawn took them all for Quinn…"

"We begged him to come, saying you're hurt worse, but he… he didn't care…"

My chest aches. But I squeezed my eyes shut.

Suddenly I heard footsteps.

"The healer's here!"

A healer checked my pulse, and the prick of silver needles made me wince, but I was too weak to even groan.

"Her injuries are severe. Why her treatment was delayed…" The healer's voice is grim. "She'll live, but she'll suffer."

"She's alive! Thank the stars!" The maids cried bitterly.

I wake up the next day, propping against the headboard.

The healer returns, checks my pulse, prescribes herbs, and orders me to have a good rest.

Outside, servants whisper. "Shawn hasn't visited Leah once."

"Quinn just got spooked, and he's there every day, spoon-feeding her medicine…"

My fingers clench, heart sliced open by a dull blade. But I just stroke my bandages, pretending I hear nothing.

While I heal, I begin to arrange my dowry. In the previous life I had packed it with joy, convincing that tying myself to Shawn would open the way to happiness; instead it ushered in a nightmare.

I will not walk that path again.

I catalog my mother's heirlooms,jewelry, silks, paintings and have the deeds to my lands and shops double-checked. Everything's in order.

The next day, the town buzzes.

Shawn arrives with a lavish betrothal procession, and servants crowd the corridors to gawk.

"A bushel of East Sea pearls!"

"Hundred bolts of silk!"

"A pair of rosewood screens, carved with gold!"

Shawn's steward belts out the list as lackeys haul in leather chests. The servants murmur. "Shawn's got deep pockets!"

"Leah and Quinn both get treasures fit for Lunas. Talk about prestige!"

I stand on the porch, watching calmly. The gifts are identical, down to the last pearl, as if to scream that Quinn and I are equals in this bond.

Once the list is finished, the steward raises a polished jade bangle from a lacquered box. "This Yates family heirloom is to be presented by Madam Yates to the next mistress of the den."

Every eye turns to me. As the high-born she-wolf, it should be mine.

But Shawn takes the bangle and strides to Quinn, sliding it onto her wrist. "Wear it," he says softly. "In my heart, you're the only one worthy."

Quinn's eyes light up, though she glances at me, feigning hesitation. "Is this… okay?"

Shawn chuckles. "Leah's big-hearted. She won't mind."