Gianna’s POV

The cold seeped into my bones as I stumbled into the throne room, the flimsy nightgown doing little to shield me from the chill. But it was the dark presence of the king that froze me in place. His gaze, fierce and calculating, held a cruelty that seemed to seep from him like poison, and it took everything in me not to flinch.

I forced myself to stand tall, to appear unshaken. I was determined to face whatever twisted game this king had planned with my head held high. But ...