Page 91 of A Kingdom of Shadow and Ash

Mal stilled.

The chair was familiar in its design. Her people had them, too—rounded and deep, reminiscent of the great nests wyverns used. She had spent many nights in one herself, preferring their cradle-like embrace to a mattress.

He looked…youngerlike this, stripped of his rigid formality. He barely made a sound as he slept, his breath slow and even.

It would be soeasy.

He would not hear her approach, would not stir as she leaned over him, a dagger slipping between his ribs before he could wake. His heart, warm and beating, would still beneath her hands, and the prophecy would be fulfilled.

Mal reached for the blanket draped over the back of the chair.Silly drakonian prince. Sleeping in here will not keep you safe from me.

And yet, despite the thought, despite the knowledge that one day shewouldhave to killhim—

She still covered him with the blanket before slipping back into her own room.

…

Ash jolted awake, breath sharp, heart pounding. Shadows of a dream clung to him—black hair like ink spilling over his skin, nails dragging across his flesh, laughter curling around him like smoke, dark and aching. His chest tightened as the remnants of it faded, leaving only a hollow weight behind.

Blinking, he took in his surroundings. The study. He had come here last night, leaving the bedroom to his wife.No matter how much temptation whispered at the edges of his thoughts, no matter how much some part of him longed to claim his place beside her, he would not.

His wife.

The title still felt foreign, unreal.

Ash exhaled sharply, shaking the last threads of sleep from his mind. He was married. To a wyverian princess. Had she liked the room? Had she found comfort in the gift he had painstakingly prepared for her? Or had he overstepped, forcing familiarity where it was not welcome?

He rose to his feet, and as he did, something slid from his shoulders—a blanket. Frowning, he stared down at it. He had not covered himself last night. He had left himself open to the cool night air, hoping it would ease the restless energy simmering beneath his skin. But it had not been enough.Shehad been just beyond the door, and that alone had been enough to force him into a restless sleep.

Mal Blackburn was perched on the balcony’s breakfast table, legs tucked beneath her, bathed in the early morning light. A grape hovered between her lips, her movements frozen as shetook him in.

Ash stilled as well, his eyes darting between her and the trays of food spread across the dark wooden table. His jaw tensed. If the maids had entered earlier and seen her bed untouched… would they assume? Would they whisper? It was an oath marriage, surely everyone would understand, and yet… servants had a way of letting their murmurs drift into the wrong ears.

Mal bit down on the grape, unbothered, the juice trailing lazily down her chin.

‘Klara brought it,’ she said, watching him closely. ‘She won’t tell anyone we did not sleep in the same bed, husband. We wouldn’t want them thinking we’ve started off on the wrong foot.’

Husband.

She was teasing him.

Suppressing a sigh, Ash stepped forward and settled at the opposite end of the table, keeping space between them. She continued eating, her gaze drifting to the sea below, unconcerned.

He reached for a piece of fruit—

A pale, claw-tipped hand smacked his own away.

Ash’s golden eyes narrowed, a low growl building in his throat.What was wrong with her?

‘Rotten,’ she mumbled, her mouth full.

He nearly recoiled when he finally took in the state of the table. Plates upon plates ofrottingfood covered the surface—fruit swollen and blackened, meat nearly dissolving into itself. His stomach twisted in revulsion.

Mal chewed, unbothered. The realisation struck him like a blade. He hadneveractually seen a wyverian eat. During festivities, they politely refused drakonian food, disappearing todine elsewhere. Now, he understood why. Mal waved a dismissive hand.

‘Klara will bring you food,’ she said. ‘She went to fetch it. Has anyone told you that you are very grumpy in the morning?’

His jaw clenched.

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