Only two days remained until the wedding.

Basharr Palace hung heavy with blooms strung from the ceilings of every room. Creamy roses, buttery peonies, and blood-red poppies filtered through seeded eucalyptus, saturating the court in their floral scent. Matching ribbons wrapped around the musical statues, chair legs, the stems of glasses, and the wrists of every courtier. The garden didn’t escape the streaming fabric, either.

Everywhere Violet turned ribbons seemed to be on a ...