"A cry!"
"Baby!" a maid shouted, stumbling against a folding screen.
"Silence!" someone barked, then silence broke into a dozen terrified whispers.
"The Empress will hear—"
"Keep the cloth—cover her face—now!"
"Push! Push!"
"She's coming," a voice said. Footsteps hammered on the corridor outside.
"Hold her! Hold her!" the midwife snapped.
Aurelie Sorensen's hands clenched the linen. Pain cut sharp, then split into a different kind of iron. She pushed once, twice.
"There's a mouth," the midwife said. "Pull him free!"
"A boy," the midwife declared. "A boy—third of the house."
A rusted door slammed. The chamber flooded with torchlight and a cold glare.
"Consort Aurelie," Charlize Hunt said, stepping into the room without knocking. "You have the nerve to bring a living heir into my court after your—after him?"
Aurelie's jaw worked. Blood smeared her hand. She whispered, "He is mine."
Charlize advanced, voice sharpened. "An heir unblessed by my counsel. This threatens the balance. Titles can be stripped. You know the law."
"Titles?" Aurelie said. "This child has a name."
Charlize's laugh cut like a blade. "Names mean nothing if I command otherwise."
Aurelie glanced down at the wailing infant. Her eyes were raw.
"Strip her titles!" Charlize ordered.
"Stop!" The midwife moved as if to shield the child. "Madam Empress, spare the mother—"
Charlize stepped closer, hand lifting to signal the guard.
Aurelie took a breath that was all pain and will. She pushed herself upright. Blood dampened
