Page 20 of Prisoner of Steel and Shadow

She wasn’t completely without morals. She had rules. No innocents. No children. No animals. The exception always being when death would be a mercy compared to the alternative. She’d had more than one brutalized woman beg to be put out of her misery. Shadow knew she’d made the right decision the first time she witnessed peace wash across the woman’s face. Death was a comfort. A father’s warm embrace and promise of eternal safety. It was the least she could offer to those who had suffered so much under the watch of an indifferent mother.

The door opened with a click.

“There you are, my sweet Shadow. Will you not come down to join the festivities?”

Ah yes. The festivities.

Sign-ups for the High Lord’s contest officially opened tomorrow. For weeks people had been flooding into town, eager to either be among the ranks or watch those who entered fight to the death for the final position in the High Lord’s formal court.

His champion.

A harbinger of justice or a weapon in the dark. Two sides of the same blade, both equally effective and utterly lethal.

It was essentially the same role she filled now, but with more fanfare and better pay. It was a sore spot between them that he hadn’t simply granted the title to her after their years together. But the conversation was the same every time she broached the subject.

“Is it to be the silent treatment again?” Erebos sighed, his footsteps growing louder as he moved across the room to stand just behind her. “I thought we’d finally put this to bed.”

You did, perhaps.

He rested his hands on her shoulders. “We’ve been over this, Moonbeam. I have a more important role in mind for you.”

She inwardly gagged at the nickname and then silently mouthed the next words with him.

“Don’t you want to be my Lady?”

No!

When she still didn’t answer, he spun her around, curling his finger to lift her chin until she met his gaze. His golden hair was swept back, though the ends fell over his shoulders like a silky waterfall. The sharp aristocratic angles of his face were bathed in the last rays of the sunset, illuminating his jade green eyes. The only outward sign of his frustration was the slight tightening around his full lips.

“Why do you continue to put this off when we both know how it could be between us? We’regoodtogether, Shadow. We make sense. And there’s no one I trust to stand at my side more than you. You’ve been my loyal supporter since day one.” He frowned when she still didn’t speak. “You’ve never had trouble saying yes to me before.”

Because you’ve never asked me for something I wasn’t willing to give.

Reaching out, he took a strand of her white-gold hair, rubbing it between his fingers before tucking it behind her ear. “Is there someone else?”

“What? Of course not.”

She was so caught off guard by the question that she hadn’t realized she’d spoken aloud until he grinned.

“I must admit. I’m relieved.”

“With as busy as you keep me, when would I have had time to meet someone, let alone fall in love?” she asked dryly, crossing her arms to force a little more distance between them.

“I don’t know. It’s the only reason I could think of why you’ve yet to accept my offer.”

Because the possibility a woman might not want to get married and be shackled to a man for all eternity is such a novel concept?

Not every woman dreams of becoming a wife and mother. Shadow was certain she wasn’t fit to be either. Not with all the blood on her hands. How could she possibly care for anyone, let alone keep something so fragile alive when she’d made a living out of ending them?

It was probably for the best she couldn’t conceive. She’d been stabbed through the abdomen some years ago. They’d stitched her back together, but the damage was so absolute the healer had tearfully informed her she’d never be with child. And on the off chance she did manage to get pregnant, it was likely neither she nor the child would survive the experience.

She hadn’t understood the other woman’s tears. To her, with the kind of life she led, it was a relief. But she quickly learned people didn’t like when she said that aloud, so she’d never spoken of her condition again.

Blinking, Shadow mentally slapped herself upside the head.

No one else knew. Meaning Erebos didn’t know. Perhaps if he did, he’d finally let the matter drop. Certainly the ability to bear him an heir would be a nonnegotiable requirement when selecting his future wife?

“Erebos, there’s something I need to tell you.”

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