Chapter 40

• The grand feast carried on, the sound of clinking goblets and joyous laughter filling the hall. But beneath the golden glow of chandeliers, in the shadows cast by flickering candlelight, tensions simmered like an untamed wildfire.
• Seated among the nobles, Astrid seethed. Every cheer, every toast in Chloe’s honor was like a dagger to her chest. This should have been her moment—her place at Kael’s side. But instead, the woman she loathed sat upon the high table, basking in the glow of a crown that didn’t belong to her.
• Her nails dug into the silk of her gown as she leaned toward Lord Everett, one of the noblemen who had never been fully convinced of Chloe’s worth. "It’s almost laughable, isn’t it?" she murmured, her voice laced with venom.