Verity's POV

I sat on a stone bench in the gardens and tried to breathe through the tightness in my chest. The air smelled like roses and earth and something sweet I couldn't name. Birds sang in the trees overhead and the sound should have been calming but it wasn't. Nothing felt calm anymore.

Footsteps crunched on the gravel path behind me. I turned quickly and my hand went to my throat out of habit even though I knew I couldn't scream for help if I needed to. But when I saw who it was some ...