Her plan did not work. Dread filled Skylar's chest again, and beneath it rose something else. Hot and sharp, an eruption of fury that eroded any thought of consequence.
She turned back to face Caspian.
"No."
"No?"
"I will not go quietly. I will not smile and nod and play the part of the blushing bride." She smiled, it was purposely too wide and too menacing. He did not return it. Caspian appeared indifferent, and unmoved, but he didn't interrupt. He observed and listened without saying a word.
"I promise that I will spend every waking moment of the rest of my life making you regret choosing me. I will blame you for my unhappiness. I will hate you with every breath. I will be a wife who is nothing but a burden, a chain around your neck that you cannot remove. You will be my prisoner"
All caution was thrown to the wind. Her fury painted her words red, each promise turning into a threat.
"You have the power to free us both," Skylar continued, her voice rising. "You are Lord Everus. You have the King's favour. If you called off this wedding, no one would fault you. But you choose not to." She threw her hands in the air, her laughter, empty. "Is there truly no other noble lady in all the five Kingdoms who would be honored to stand at your side? You said it yourself. Other women would try to impress you, earn your favour, and your heart. So why can't you choose one of them? Why do I have no choice? Why must I be stuck with your decision, trapped by your precious sense of duty?"
Caspian watched her and said nothing. Even though her voice had raised against him, despite the hatred and disdain she showed him, the young Lord stayed an observer.
Skylar pressed on, wanting a reaction. She wanted his voice as loud as hers, for his anger to burn with hers. A bout of wills that may work in her favour if she made Caspian furious enough.
"I will never fit the role you want. I will not stand quietly at your side, smiling at your courtiers, agreeing with your opinions. I will never… ever see to your desires." She looked down at his arm, then back at his face, letting her disgust show plainly. "And you will never touch me."
The silence that followed was absolute.
For a long moment, Caspian simply looked at her. Then he moved.
It was faster than she could follow. One moment he stood a pace away; the next, his hand flashed toward her hair. Skylar flinched, but he was not reaching for her. He was reaching for the flower. The blue rose that Lucian had placed there.
He plucked it from her hair in a single, fluid motion.
Skylar froze.
Caspian held the rose between them, turning it slowly in his fingers. The space around them had changed, grown thick, suffocating. His dark eyes glimmered with something she had not seen before.
Excitement. Thrill. Like her threats had not offended him, but inspired him. She tried to reach out for it, but it was futile. Caspian pulled back, drawing Skylar closer towards him.
"I look forward to it," he said quietly, leaning his head down. His voice was like a whisper, words meant for only her ears.
"What?"
"Every moment." He stepped closer, and this time she could not make herself hold her ground. She stepped back. He followed until her back hit the wall and there was nowhere else to go.
"Every moment you spend blaming me. Hating me. Being a burden." His voice was soft, almost intimate. "I will watch with satisfaction and great interest. I am curious to see how far you will go."
"You're insane."
"Perhaps." He tilted his head, studying the rose. "But your defiance pleases me, Lady Skylar. It seems my choice is not a boring one."
"Is that what you wanted? Not a wife, but entertainment?"
"Well, it seems that you'll be giving me both. My Ladyship, and a pet to watch struggle against the leash she wore herself. I wanted to know what kind of woman I was marrying." His eyes met hers. "And I really have made a great choice. And here I thought you were trying to repel me."
Skylar scoffed, gesturing to the leaves in her, and her torn dress. "Perhaps you should take a better look, then, Lord Caspian."
And Caspian did exactly that. He took his time, his gaze, slow, dangerous, with a shimmer of delight.
"I am looking."
The response caught her off guard. Her face burned, and she felt a rush of nerves, like she was wholly unprepared for what was before her. Even as the young Lord looked over the leaves and her torn dress, his burning eyes showed no sign of regret, or revulsion.
"What I see is a woman who would rather destroy herself than surrender. I see fire and fury and foolish courage." He paused. "I see someone who will make this far more interesting than I ever imagined."
He crushed the rose in his fist.
The blue petals scattered to the floor, falling beside the leaves that had come before. Skylar stared at them, at their remains, destroyed in an instant by Caspian. It was his choice. He chose to do such a thing.
Something inside her snapped. His message was clear. And in that understanding, something else crystallized.
Clarity.
His main hand was occupied, still holding the crushed remains of the rose. He was watching her face, waiting for her reaction, distracted by his own performance.
Skylar moved.
She closed the remaining space between them in a single step. Caspian's eyes widened. He was surprised, genuinely surprised, and she saw him register what was happening a moment too late.
Her hand closed around the hilt of his sword.
The wolf's head. The blackened steel. She pulled and the blade slid from its sheath. The iron sung, with a sound like silk tearing. In one motion, she had it free and pointed at him.
At Caspian Everus. At the Lord of Xoras. At her betrothed.