Aria walked out of the throne room with purpose in her steps. The weight of Lucien’s words still hung around her chest, but she pushed them down. For the last week, she had been too busy to go meet with Rose, but now that she wasn’t, this was the perfect time to do it.

Each stride she took echoed loudly across the stone halls, her resolve strengthening with every single tap of her boots.

She had barely made it into the courtyard when a flash of red came into her vision.

“Oh no.” Aria muttered under her breath with a groan. She was already beginning to massage her temples, already...