11
Evanna knew the difference between curiosity and calculation.
And the nobles of Ashmoor had long since stopped being curious.
At breakfast, they stared just a little too long at Lyra’s silver-streaked curls. During court meetings, they whispered behind fans and goblets, not even bothering to pretend it wasn’t about her. One woman gasped when Lyra called Rylan “Daddy” aloud — like hearing the truth was offensive.
The only thing worse than being invisible…
Was suddenly being seen by people who wanted you gone.
Evanna walked the palace halls in silence that afternoon, trailing her fingers along the stone walls, trying to memorize the feeling of them — in case she had to leave.
Lyra was in the solar with Rylan, being read stories about wolf queens and moonlit thrones. Her laugh echoed faintly through the castle, innocent and unaware. But Evanna couldn’t relax.
Something was off.
The staff had grown quieter. The guards near her door had changed shifts three times in one morning. And Rylan—though still attentive and tender—had spent more and more time in council meetings behind closed doors.
Evanna knew what that meant.
“Lady Evanna?”
The voice startled her.
A young maid—maybe seventeen—stood near the end of the corridor, wringing her hands, her eyes wide.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” the girl whispered.
Evanna straightened, keeping her voice calm. “Can I help you?”
The girl stepped forward, glancing behind her. “I’m not supposed to speak to you. But I thought you should know… they’re meeting tonight. The nobles. In the west wing. No guards. No advisors. Just the families who sit on the inner council.”
Evanna’s stomach dropped. “Meeting about what?”
The girl hesitated. “You. And your daughter.”
Her chest tightened. “What are they saying?”
“That she’s illegitimate. That she’s a liability to the bloodline. Some are saying she should be sent away. Others…” The girl’s voice broke. “Others think worse.”
Evanna went cold.
“Why are you telling me this?”
The girl’s eyes shimmered. “Because I know what it’s like to be born unwanted. And because I saw the way your daughter looked at the moon last night. Like it was singing just to her.”
Evanna felt something ache deep in her chest.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “Truly.”
The girl bowed and slipped away before anyone could see her.
Evanna stood frozen in the hallway, heart pounding.
That night, after Lyra was tucked into her castle bed with her fox clutched to her chest, Evanna paced the guest room again, this time not out of fear — but strategy.
She couldn’t wait for Rylan to fix this.
Because if they were already meeting without him…
Then the threat wasn’t just talk anymore.
It was beginning.
She moved to her dresser, reached beneath the drawer, and pulled out the old leather satchel she’d packed years ago when she was pregnant and terrified.
She never unpacked it fully.
Maybe she always knew this moment would come.
But as she turned toward the bed, ready to sit and gather her thoughts—
The door creaked.
And Rylan stood in the doorway, expression unreadable, scent stormy with tension.
“We need to talk,” he said.
Evanna nodded. “Yes. We do.”