Chapter 44

Ifollow Violet deeper into the house to the winter garden. Once roses thrived, now only thorns endure. The icy weather has robbed the garden of all colors, leaving behind only branches.

Violet turns around to face me. Her eyes glaze over. One look at the sadness on her face and I know it. I know that Zog's biting words hold more than a grain of truth.

She is my weakness.

Never, not for a moment, did I ever expect to feel like this. Not for an orc, much less for a human.

But Violet is brave, bright, and gorgeous. She is gentle but fierce. Sassy, but smart. Violet has commanded my attention and my admiration from the moment she rescued my nephew. From the moment she defied me to save a child that's not even from her species.

"Violet," I murmur, my fingers brushing against her cheeks. "I do not know what you heard. Zog is under pressure; he didn't mean what he said."

It's not a good defense and I know it. There's nothing else I can say, though. And Violet's eyes glint with vulnerability.

"You know he meant every word." She leans into my touch, but her face is filled with pain. "And I'm starting to think he's right."

It hurt coming from Zog's mouth. It hurts worse coming from hers.

"Wanting you is not a weakness." The admission scrapes raw inside me.

"Isn't it?" She arches an eyebrow. "Then why are we so discreet? You barely touch me in public. And I know it's because you fear your clan's reaction." She swallows hard. "I get that. You're at war exactly because your sister fell in love with an outsider."

"No," I say, my voice firmer than I feel. "We have these skirmishes because Shagrat is greedy. My sister, her husband, and Eirik are just means. Just excuses."

Violet looks down at Eirik. "It doesn't change that Eirik will grow without them. And I don't want to risk more death because of me."

I can't correct her. She's right. And I know Zog is right, too. This is dangerous. The clan has come to accept her as a member but as their queen? A human?

The future is too bleak to contemplate.

Violet inhales sharply. She pulls her shoulders back, pillaring her spine even as her eyes glint with tears.

She's so brave. So strong in the face of pain.

When she meets my gaze, a tear trembles on her lower lashes. "We shouldn't be together."

My heart shatters. I grunt as if punched in the gut.

"I need space to... to think this over," she says, schooling her features.

"Space?" The word feels foreign. I pretend I can't understand it.

Violet does what I can't. With one look, I know this is over. We. We are over.

She grabs Eirik under his armpits and puts him in my arms. I can't take my eyes off her. Of her face, so beautiful in pain.

"Thank you." Her voice cracks, a broken whisper betraying her genuine feelings.

Violet walks out of the garden. I don't know how long I stand here. The title of king never felt so heavy.

I know with violent certainty that I will never feel the same. If Violet leaves, she will take my heart with her.

Eirik places his forehead against my shoulder and dozes off. I take it as a sign that I should put him to sleep. My feet take me toward the bedrooms with no conscious thought.

We pass the bathhouse hallway just as Ursha walks out. She greets me with a stiff bow.

"Ursha."

She arches an eyebrow. "Where's your human mate, Chief? Isn't she supposed to be taking care of him?" She points at Eirik.

I grind my teeth together. "Violet will probably try to go back home." Sadness clutches my heart, but I school my expression. Just like Violet. "I need you to make sure she can leave safely."

Ursha's brows jump high. She's so shocked by my words that she doesn't even complain. I leave her standing in the hallway as I make my way to my bedroom.

And it comes as no surprise when I find it empty. Devoid of Violet and her things.