Page 126 of Severed Heir

Victor spun, eyes blazing. “Helied!She’s not even his!”

“You never asked,” the king replied flatly. “You named her. You made the vow. You sealed it. This is your failure.”

Victor spat at Andri’s feet. “Is your whole bloodline mud? Was Fallon that desperate to run from you?”

Beside him, Damien shifted, jaw clenched. “Father… her blood doesn’t matter to me. I still wish to marry Severyn.”

Victor snapped, “It matters to me. You will not marry that bastard child. Gods only know who her father is.”

Andri stepped forward, his voice rough. “I never wanted her to find out like this. Severyn is my daughter, she is my child!”

The world dropped out from under me.

I wasn’t his daughter. I wasn’t Winter-born. I wasn’t anything. I turned and ran from the courtyard, past the stone paths and hedged walls, until I found sand beneath my feet and the sound of water crashing just ahead. For a moment, I considered swimming, just to get away from all of it, from everything I had ever been told.

Holy Gods. This was… this was. I couldn’t even make sense of it.

When the footsteps came, soft and measured, I didn’t turn. Not until a hand touched my shoulder.

Archer.

“What just happened?” I whispered.

“I don’t know.”

“If I’m not Andri’s daughter… then who is my father?”

“We’ll find out,” he said. “Together.”

“Together? You let me walk into that marriage. You let him almost marry me.”

“There was no stopping the ceremony without condemning you to worse,” Archer said. “I had to let you choose, even if that choice came too late. A loveless marriage is easier to survive than one where you love someone else.”

“And the bargain?” I asked. “Why didn’t the sun vanish from Colindale?”

“The king worded it carefully. The vow was to Andri’s daughter, not to a Winter blood. The smoke should’ve shown both quells of ice and warmth. But it didn’t. Victor backed out. That’s on him.”

I stared at the horizon. “I made a fool of myself. In front of all of them.”

Archer’s hand cradled the back of my head, drawing me closer. “No,” he murmured. “You stood there ready to marry Damien, for the sake of your homeland. That’s not weakness, that’s strength.”

The crunch of footsteps broke the stillness.

Damien stood nearby, shirt unbuttoned at the collar, eyes cold and calculating as they swept over us.

“He’s weak, Sev,” Damien said softly, stepping forward. “He can’t protect you like I can. Don’t run back to him. Please… stay.”

“No,” I said, my voice quiet but firm. “You hurt me. Love isn’t a twisted game where I’m the prize for a broken bargain.”

His brow raised. “So, this is it? You choose him over me?”

“There was never a choice,” I said. “You stripped the other option away. Youforcedme to stand there. Tohear that.”

Damien shifted closer. “Someone in the crowd knows where your mother is. I heard her name. I can take you to her, Severyn. You deserve to know the truth about her, about your real father.”

“You expect me to trust you after everything?”

Archer stepped between us, his grip tightening on my arm. “No. You’ve played your game. You really think she’ll believe a word that comes out of your mouth?”

---