Then, hidden from Draven’s line of sight, she pressed my wrist onto the scorching rim of the moon-forged pot.
“Ah—!” White-hot agony shot up my arm. My knees almost gave way.
“What happened?!” Draven rushed toward us.
In that split second, Myrielle released me—and knocked the bowl over.
Scalding broth splashed across my arms and chest. I screamed. A few drops hit her skin, leaving tiny red marks.
“Ah!” she cried dramatically, collapsing into his arms. “Draven, I only wanted to apologize… but Lunessa grew angry—she said she’d rather spill the broth than let me taste it! If I hadn’t moved, I would’ve been burned much worse…”
She showed him her faintly reddened skin, trembling like a frightened pup.
Draven’s face hardened.
“It wasn’t me!” I cried, showing my blistered hand. “She grabbed me—she pushed my hand onto the pot!”
But he didn’t even look.
“Lunessa,” he said coldly, “how could you be so vicious? Do you understand how important her hands are? Are you trying to ruin Myrielle’s healer training?”
“Draven!” I choked, tears blurring my vision. “Look at me! I’m the one burned—far worse than she is! Why won’t you believe me?!”
His glare turned sharp with disgust. “If she hadn’t dodged, she’d be the one burned. How could you stoop so low? It’s sickening.”
His words struck harder than any blow.
He turned away and cradled Myrielle protectively. “Don’t fear. I’ll take you back to the healer-sanctum.”
As I watched them, something inside me tore open.
Then Draven barked an order that shattered whatever strength I had left.
“Someone lock Lunessa in the cold cavern. Let her reflect on her behavior.”
The breath left my lungs.
He knew—he knew I feared the cold. He knew the cavern was kept eighteen degrees below freezing by lunar crystals.
And yet, he still chose to cast me into it.
So this was his love—the love he once swore would protect me.
The enforcers seized me by the arms.
“It wasn’t me! Moon above—open your eyes! She set this up! Myrielle baited the trap, not me!” I thrashed against their grip, my voice cracking.
“Draven!” I cried, desperate. “Weren’t you the one who swore to shield me? Look at me—look at my hands!”
But no one listened. Not the enforcers. Not him.
The only reply was the echoing thud of an iron cell door slamming shut.
Shadow swallowed me whole.
The burn on my palm mingled with the freezing bite of the cold cavern—heat and ice tearing at me in cruel waves.