“
You would say that,
”
he
said, glancing away from me
.
“
You have everything so good here.
”
“
In a place I don
’
t belong. Where do I belong, Ayden?
”
“
I don
’
t know, but you
’
ll figure it out.
”
“
And you
’
ll be the first to know.
”
He smiled and shook his head.
“
Can we talk about something else?
”
He stared down at my lips again and I blushed.
“
We were supposed to be reading. Not kissing.
”
I poked him in the eye and he laughed
.
“
We can do both.
”
His eyebrows shot up and he flashed me that queer, cocky smile.
“
Not the best idea you
’
ve had all day
, sorry
.
”
Glancing down at our hands, I ran my fingers over the scars on his knuckles, tracing them until I knew
everyone
like they were my own.
“
You can end up dead
if this continues
.
I don
’
t know how it digressed to this, but y
ou
’
re d
ealing with a betrothed woman, your P
rincess no less. Do you know what that means?
”
“
I know,
”
he said.
“
But second chances only come once.
”
And that was it. I
kissed him and allowed it to linger, speaking the things I couldn
’
t.
I
sighed and
stood to my feet
,
shrugg
ing
out of the sand. It
’
d take me three baths to get the sand out of my hair, but if I could help it, the smell of Ayden would never leave me. He stood, too, and I looked up at him.
“
Reading
tomorrow
and that is it.
”
I tried my best to stay serious, but he saw right through me.
“
I don
’
t want this
to end.
”
“
Neither do I.
”
He pushed my hair behind my ear and held my face in his hands.
“
So, you can
’
t tell anyone. This place is just between you and me.
”
“
You
’
re afraid,
”
Ayden said. It wasn
’
t a question, more of a statement. A true statement.
“
I
’
m afraid, too. But I like you, Echo. A lot. This Prince guy is one lucky bastard.
”
“
He
’
s a bastard, but not lucky.
”
I frowned and took a step away from him.
“
I should go. I
’
ll be back again, though.
”
Ayden nodded, and just like
every day
that
we had
met, it was a pain to say goodbye.
“
I like you, too. Maybe more than I should.
”
I turned from him, wet and covered in sand, and walked back to the palace before rehearsal
s
began.
N I N E T E E N
Echo
I
returned with a smile on my face.
It was probably my biggest, given
that
I felt as light as air, as weightless as a feather. I stumbled through the foyer with my fingers on my lips and the taste of Ayden on my tongue. He was the sweetest flavor I
’
d ever tasted, I was sure, and I wanted more.
Sand still stuck to weird places on my body and I shooed away any guards who presumed I needed help. I hummed to myself, feeling completely on top of the world, and even spun around in circles until I grew dizzy. Ayden consumed me, thoughts of him
devoured
my mind, and his smell, still lingering on my skin, held an aftermath of great
significance—my mark of freedom. At that moment, Everlae
’
s problem
s
, my wedding, and even Mother couldn
’
t bring me down from the high.
“
Princess
Echo, the King wishes to speak with you in his study room,
”
a guard barked.
But my Father could.
I stopped dancing and turned to meet
the guard. T
ra
ils of wet sand covered
the white marble
floors in the foyer
and everyone stood around staring at me as if I
’
d
grown another limb. It
felt as if I
’
d stepped into someone else
’
s
home
, and for a moment, that
’
s what I allowed myself to believe.
T
omorrow I
’
d see Ayden. To feel his lips on mine again,
being here for another night
was the perfect price to pay.
“
Yes. A
l
right.
”
I dusted off the remaining sand from my bodice and pushed my
hair
behind my ears. No matter what I did
,
though, I st
ill
looked like I
’
d been rolling around in the sand.
The guard led me through the foyer and ballroom, and the entire time I prayed to the gods he
’
d believe the lie I was about to tell him. Father and I hadn
’
t spoken since the day out in the garden and after all that
’
d happen
ed
, I wasn
’
t hoping for a friendly get-together.
My mind spun in circles, making up lies to lies and excuses for excuses. Even though I knew Father would read me like an open book on display, it was much better than the truth. That I didn
’
t want to get married, I hated Noah, I had run away to Old Haven, and had hopelessly fallen in love with a Hunter. A Hunter who had no idea I withheld such love for him.
I sighed and walked into my father
’
s study with my head hung low. Mother was
nowhere
to be seen and I wondered if she was taking care of Everlae. Hopefully Silas was far from here
,
because I swore if I only saw his face I
’
d be tempted to beat him
relentlessly and
the same way he did my sister.
In the room, Father sat at his desk with his hands steepled on his chest.
The guard bowed and left politely.
“
Have a seat, Echo,
”
Father instructed. I moved to the
armchair
in front of his desk and stared out the window, thinking of Ayden and how far he must
’
ve been. Did he walk fast, wanting to get far from me as fast as possible? I smiled. Or did he linger like I did, smiling and spinning
in circles
as if life couldn
’
t get any better than this?
“
They are beautiful, aren
’
t they?
”
Father said, staring out the window with me.
I turned to him and nodded. He must
’
ve been talking about the garden outside.
“
Yes, I
’
m sorry. I got distracted.
”
“
No need,
”
he said.
“
Bleeding h
earts hold something of a sentimental value here in New Haven, don
’
t you think?
”
“
Well, sure.
”
When he glanced over at me, I nodded eagerly.
“
I mean, yes. They
’
re beautiful, but don
’
t you
think you should rename them, F
ather?
They have such a horrible name.
”
Father looked me in the eyes and smiled.
“
If only I could do that with everything, change it.
”
He looked away from the window and to me.
“
If I could take everything I didn
’
t like, Echo, and change it, do you think that
’
ll make New Haven a better place?
”
I hadn
’
t the
slightest
idea where he was going with the conversation, so I just shrugged.
“
That
’
s really up to you. You are King, right? Controlling people
’
s
lives and ruling out the wrongs?
”
I didn
’
t notice the clip in my voice until after the words had been said. Maybe it was being here and not
there
with Ayden
that set my blood ablaze.
Maybe I just didn
’
t care anymore.
“
You
’
ve changed, Echo,
”
Father said matter-of-factly.
“
This wedding has changed you.
”
Or Ayden did
, I thought.
“
I have changed, Father.
”
His facial expression also changed when he said,
“
Would this have to do with your absences as well?
”
He glanced down at my dress and shook his head at me. We stare
d
at each other for a moment, and every lie I
’
d been ready to give blew up in my face.
“
Noah tells me of your whereabouts, Echo. I can
’
t say I didn
’
t expect this from you, but I can say I don
’
t like it.
”
My lips began to tremble and I had to fight to hold back the unspoken tears.
“
What has he been telling you?
”
I whispered.
Father went
qu
iet and the empty room seemed jarringly desolate
.
“
Are you purposely trying to sabotage this wedding? There
’
s no other explanation I can come up with, Echo!
”
His voice suddenly made me jump, and I bit into my lip. I kept my eyes on the window, but my feet tapped against the marble in a way that declared how guilty I was.
“
Father, I don
’
t—
”
“
Don
’
t you dare lie to me,
”
he cut in.
“
Apparently you
’
ve forgotten where you are, who you a
re, and where you come from.
This boy, Echo, a Hunter? One of
them
? Your mother has to be r
ight. If it
’
s attention you seek
—
”
Tears spilled from my eyes and the words fell from my lips in one breath.
“
I just want to be happy.
”
“
It
’
s not about your happiness, Echo! Only selfish people are to think that way.
”
Father stood from his desk and moved around to
me. He stood in front of me—gre
y hair, tall frame, and bright but aging eyes.
“
We are higher than them, and we always will be. What do you expect people to think when they see you mingling with them, Echo? You
’
re heiress of a gre
at nation and you don
’
t want it?
Do you not understand what great fortune has
befallen
on you?
”
“
What if I do not want it, Father?
”
I stared up at him with a face full of tears.
“
It is not about you, my daughter. You were created to lead a nation, not
to
chase wild dreams with a peasant.
”
A
peasant? Is that how they view
them?
“
That is all? So, I was an obligation? I wasn
’
t created to love and to be loved?
”
I stood to my feet and faced him.
“
My happiness matters to me, Father. It
’
s the utmost important thing in my life and if I am happy without being a princess and without the dresses and jewelry, why am
I forbidden from that privilege?
You are my father
,
and yet you strip me from that!
”
Father shook his head.
“
This is an infatuation, Echo. It will pass. You are my legacy and no daughter of mine will dishonor my famil
y and my kingdom! You will rule.
”
We stood in silence and I searched
his eyes
f
or something other than apathy, b
ut that was all I was getting from him. I took a step
back
, as if seeing the brick wall that stood between us for the first time.
“
If I must live another miserable day in my life, I promise you it will be my last. There is no peace, no rest, and no sanctity here, Father!
You throw people off to their deaths without a single thought! I cannot—
will not
—be heartless. I do not have it in me. If I rule, I will knock down every pillar you have built and create my own. Your decrees would cease to exist, because I refuse to let lives of the innocent
fritter away
! Hunter, Warrior, there is no damn difference.
”
If Mother had been here
I knew she would have long slapped m
e and sent me to my rooms, b
ut F
ather stood staring at me as if I no longer belonged to him. In that moment, I knew he
’
d disowned me. Maybe five weeks ago I would have been afraid of this moment, but now I faced it courageously.
“
You are not to see him again. In fact, I
’
ve already called
border patrol and he is no longer
permitted on New Haven property,
”
Father sneered.
“
You can
’
t do that! He needs to work, his mother is ill and—
”
“
What his kind need
s
and want
s is
not my responsibility, Echo!
“
She is dying!
”
“
People die
every day
!
”
he barked.
His voice grew deeper and hoarser. He took a step closer to me and stared into my eyes.
“
I can be very fair, Echo, when those working with me are willing to be reasonable. But when I am lied to, cheated, and overruled, I tend not to take it lightly.
”
I clenched my jaw and glanced outside the window again, wishing I was out free with the
many
bleeding hearts.
In turn, I was inside with a dying heart.
“
I can
’
t stay away from him.
”