MARIA.
The freezing night wind whipped across the courtyard, biting into my skin, but I barely felt it. My body was completely numb.
Noah was staring down at me, his dark eyes searching my face with a painful mixture of desperation, fear, and insecurity. The weight of his question hung between us like a heavy iron anvil.
'Will you really marry them too?'
I stared at him, my jaw trembling, completely speechless. Adrein's blood hadn't even dried on the stone floorboards inside. His body had dissolved into dust only a few hours ago, Damien was lying in the medical wing with a hole in his chest, and here we were, standing by the fountain talking about marriage logistics.
A fresh wave of hot tears spilled over my lashes, scalding my cold cheeks.
"Noah..." my voice broke, coming out as a strained, disbelieving whisper. "How... how can you even ask me that right now?"
