Chapter 87

• Hadrian's words echoed in my ears, each syllable slicing deeper into the wound in my heart. The crowd roared their approval for the future king and queen, their applause a deafening backdrop as I pressed myself against the cold stone wall, silently praying for some divine intervention to spirit me away. What was I even doing here? Once a cherished mistress, now discarded by the Lord Protector—the man who would soon ascend as king.
• He didn’t spare me a single glance as he stood alongside Selene at the podium’s edge, the pair basking in the adulation of the crowd. The rhythmic clapping thundered in my ears, matching the erratic pounding of my heart.
• My vision blurred. I hadn’t even realized I was crying until I felt the warmth of tears soaking into the neckline of my dress. Pathetic. This was my own doing—I’d let down every guard, allowed myself to believe in something that was never meant to be. And now, I bore the price of that foolish hope, bleeding from a wound I had practically opened for him.