As we turn for the door, I catch a glimpse of us in the mirror. The dresses are truly stunning together, a clear signal that we stand for Emberfall. Rhen once asked me to be his ally, to present a united front to his people. To stand at his side. This … this is different. I’m not a billboard. Anger, familiar and not entirely unwelcome, builds in my belly, chasing away everything else. “Wait,” I say, pulling Zo to a stop. “Freya?” I tug the bow of my bodice loose. “We’re both going to need another dress.”
