"Kneel, Lady Dorne."
The words echoed like a curse in the royal court chamber.
Sunlight slanted through stained glass, painting the floor in blood-red and gold. The nobles stood in a wide circle. Whispers flared like wildfire. And at the center—
Prince Kael.
Crowned. Cold. Watching me.
The same eyes I remembered from the fire.
"My lord?" I asked sweetly, pretending confusion.
"You have been summoned to answer for your behavior at the last banquet," he said. "Kneel and accept the court's reprimand."
I looked at the polished floor.
Seraphina would've dropped instantly, tears in her eyes, hoping for forgiveness.
But I… I had already kneeled once before.
In flames.
***
I took a single step forward.
"If I may, Your Highness…"
"You may not."
His voice was sharp. Cruel. It thrilled the court to see a noble daughter humbled.
But I smiled anyway.
"Then allow me to kneel only to the truth," I said, lifting the pendant he had sent me — the one he once gave me before burning me alive.
Kael's eyes flickered.
For a heartbeat, the mask cracked.
You remember me, I thought. Even if you don't know how.
***
"Very well," I said, stepping forward and dropping to one knee.
But I kept my chin high. My eyes locked on his.
Not submission. A challenge.
"As your subject, I kneel," I said.
"But as your equal, I rise."
Gasps spread through the chamber.
Kael said nothing. Not then. Not as I stood and turned my back on the crown — and walked away without waiting to be dismissed.