"Drag her out, feed her to the dogs!" a guard shouted as hands yanked Colette across slick stone. "Please!" Colette hit the floor and scrambled. Water oozed from her hair. Her skirts clung. She smelled of sewage and rain. "Look at you," Frankie Soares said, smiling. "A general's daughter reduced to gutter puddles. Perfect." "She broke the statue in the courtyard," another guard said. "Smashed the prince's seal. She needs to learn." "I didn't—" Colette's voice splintered into a sob. She pressed her palms to the wet stones. "Please, spare me. My family needs me." "A noble's daughter begging for mercy," Frankie laughed. "Save the drama for the magistrate. Drag her along. Dogs first." "Prince Sebastian will be pleased," the guard added. "News travels quick. The prince hates disrespect." Colette looked up. The gate beyond the outer chamber framed a pair of dark guards. The prince's standard hung above them. She saw the slow, careful step of someone who always measured blood. A cold hand touched her elbow and hauled her upright. The world tilted. She spat rainwater and held the lie steady. "Please," she said again, softer. "My father—he is General Jasper Gordon. If you kill me, you'll send him into madness. He will curse whoever touched his blood." Silence cut like a blade. Frankie grinned wider, showing a row of white teeth. "You would blackmail the court with a grieving general?" Frankie mocked. "You think threats save you?" "She thinks