Trigger warning: This chapter contains a scene of sexual assault attempt (no rape).
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"Now get on the bed," Finn commanded.
My body went rigid, my back pressed tight to the bedframe as if the wood could shield me. My voice cracked as it left me, thin and weak, but I forced it out.
"What's the meaning of this?"
Of course, I already knew. My mind whispered it, dread curling through every corner of me.
But I couldn't stop the words, couldn't stop the desperate need to hear him say it, to make sense of the madness.
"I-if you want to spend the night with me, that is against the rules!" I shouted, though my voice shook and wavered. "The Heirbind Rite is still days away."
His gaze didn't flicker. His lips curved in a cold, humorless smile. "You've already broken the rules. Why can't I do the same?"
My eyes widened, breath catching in my throat. Disbelief crashed over me, colder than the river I had failed to throw myself into.
