386 The Messenger 

~ ZARA ~

Our plan was finally coming together. And after the ceremony this afternoon, when I made the announcement of my true roots, and my plans, any who answered the call would be welcomed to the Palace—where they would be interrogated and assessed. If they were not killers, but merely held in the grip of my father's iron hand, they'd be freed and allowed to follow and join Arinel's citizens to live in peace and prosperity.

But those who revealed that they enjoyed the bloodlust and ruthless nature of my father's kill-or-be-killed approach would fall to their own philosophy.

We weren't playing games.

A knock at the door to the bridal suite interrupted my thoughts. I turned in my seat to find Abigail bustling across the room to me from the hallway outside.

It still lifted my heart to have her near. She'd been terrified when I first returned. Barely looking me in the eye—she'd clearly heard the rumors and decided that I had been acting before.