Dominic's POV
I didn't sleep either.
Isabella's voice haunted the halls long after I left her chamber. That cursed crown may have settled on her head, but it hadn't silenced her. Not yet.
I told myself I went to her room out of duty.
That I needed to assess the threat.
Remind her that I wasn't her shield... I was the sword.
But now, alone in the Consort's private quarters, I couldn't shake her eyes from my memory.
Not afraid. Not innocent.
Just… alive.
And that was dangerous.
I'd seen what happened to queens who tried to outlive their roles. This court didn't forgive ambition wrapped in fragile skin. And Isabella? She wasn't fragile. Not in the way they expected.
But she was still untrained.
Still mortal.
Still mine to either guard or destroy.
The morning came dressed in storm clouds, fitting for what was about to unfold. The first day of Court Assembly. Isabella would be forced to sit beside me, silent and still, while they dressed her down with words dipped in honey and venom.
They'd see if she flinched.
They'd try to make her fall.
And if she failed…
They'd feast.
I met her at the grand staircase, expecting hesitation.
Instead, she walked toward me like she'd worn silk gowns her entire life. Her dark hair was braided back from her face, her shoulders squared, chin slightly raised.
But her hands
Her hands trembled.
She was still human, then. Still afraid.
Good.
It meant she wasn't stupid.
Only the foolish walked into battle smiling.
"You'll sit to my left," I said, without greeting.
"And when they attack?"
"You smile." I leaned closer. "And when you smile, make them wonder if you already know how they'll die."
She arched a brow, but she didn't flinch. "That's how you survive?"
"No." I turned, already walking toward the throne room. "That's how you win."
She followed me into the chamber like a shadow. The nobles had already gathered, feathers and jewels and powdered deceit. Their eyes snapped to her like wolves scenting blood.
And still… she didn't look away.
I took my place beside her, my hand resting lightly on my sword not to threaten them.
But to remind her:
The blade is mine.
But so, too, is the silence that follows after it's used.