Aire tasted blood.
The metallic taste sat heavily on her tongue, and a small trail of it had escaped the corner of her mouth and stained her chin.
She barely noticed.
The polished black floor beneath her felt cold against her cheek.
For several long seconds she simply remained there, drawing in shallow breaths.
The world spun. Not because she had run, but because they had caught her.
A bitter laugh almost escaped her. What had she expected? That she would outrun an entire dark fae estate?
That she would somehow find a hidden gate and simply walk back into the wolf realm?
The thought felt ridiculous now.
Aire slowly pushed herself onto her elbows. The effort made her vision blur, and the grand court hall stretched around her.
The towering black pillars rose toward a ceiling so high it vanished into darkness while silver flames burned within the enormous braziers.
The light reflected across the polished stone.
