Elowen's Pov
The hall emptied too quickly.
Chairs scraped back. Goblets were left half-full. Councillors murmured among themselves as they rose, careful not to look at one another for too long. Whatever ease the morning had pretended to hold shattered the moment the king spoke Prince Rowan's name.
Missing.
I remained seated, hands folded neatly in my lap, my body still while my thoughts raced. Cassian rose beside me with unhurried precision, his chair pushed back just enough to signal authority. He did not look at me. Not once.
That frightened me more than if he had.
"Walk," he said quietly.
It was not a request.
I stood and followed him as he strode from the chamber, his pace steady, unbroken by the curious glances cast our way. The corridor swallowed us whole, its stone walls cool and unforgiving. Guards fell into step behind us at a distance that felt intentional.
When we reached a smaller antechamber, Cassian dismissed them with a gesture. The door closed, sealing us into silence.
Only then did he turn.
"Tell me," he said evenly, "what Prince Rowan said to you last night."
My pulse quickened. "He asked how I was finding the palace."
Cassian watched my face, not blinking. "And."
"He asked if I was happy."
The air shifted.
I forced myself to meet his gaze. "I answered honestly."
"And what is honesty to you," he asked, voice calm, dangerous in its restraint.
"That I am adjusting," I said. "As anyone would."
A pause.
"You did not deny unhappiness," he observed.
"I did not confirm it either."
His mouth curved faintly, though there was no warmth in it. "Careful answers."
"I am learning," I replied.
His eyes narrowed slightly, assessing. Measuring.
"Words spoken to foreign princes do not remain private," he said. "They travel. They are interpreted. Used."
"I did not intend for them to mean anything beyond the moment."
I felt the weight of that settle into my bones.
"Prince Rowan noticed you," Cassian continued. "That is the issue."
My chest tightened. "I did nothing to encourage him."
"I did not say you did," he replied. "But attention is not something afforded lightly here. Especially not to you."
"Why," I asked before I could stop myself.
His gaze sharpened. "Because you are mine."
The word again.
"I do not belong to anyone," I said quietly, though fear threaded through my resolve.
"You belong to this crown," he corrected. "And that places you in danger whether you acknowledge it or not."
Silence stretched between us, taut and heavy.
"Is he dead," I asked softly.
Cassian did not answer immediately.
Something unreadable flickered across his expression.
"Prince Rowan is being handled," he said. "That is all you need to know."
My stomach twisted. "Because of me."
"Because of his curiosity," Cassian corrected. "And because curiosity has a cost."
I swallowed hard.
"You should understand this," he continued. "Marriage here is not shelter. It is proximity. The closer you are to power, the more visible you become."
"I did not ask to be seen," I said.
"No one ever does."
He stepped closer then, not invading my space, but making his presence impossible to ignore. "From this moment on, you do not wander unescorted. You do not entertain foreign nobility without my knowledge. And you do not answer questions that invite speculation."
"I am not a prisoner," I said, my voice trembling despite my effort.
"No," he agreed. "You are a liability."
The word struck deeper than I expected.
"And yet," he added, "you are one I intend to manage."
I looked away, shame and anger warring in my chest.
"What happens if I fail," I asked.
His voice dropped. "Then others will pay for it."
The implication was clear.
He stepped back, the conversation evidently concluded. "You will remain in the eastern wing today. The king wishes to observe you."
"To observe me," I repeated.
"To decide whether you were worth the alliance," Cassian said. "I have already decided. He has not."
With that, he turned and left the chamber, his footsteps echoing down the corridor until they faded into nothing.
I stood alone, the silence pressing in on all sides.
"I am not invisible anymore," I thought. "And invisibility might have been the only safety I had."
Prince Rowan's face rose unbidden in my mind. His easy smile. His gentle question.
Are you happy.
I closed my eyes.
Whatever had happened to him, I knew one thing with chilling certainty.
This palace did not forgive curiosity.
And neither, I was beginning to understand, did my husband.