Chapter 26 · The Dead Take Her Side

"Kneel, Varan." Kaiser’s voice cut through the dead army’s roar. "Or tell every corpse in this fortress that your queen is a liar."

Varan stood three steps below me, blood soaking through the bandage at his ribs. The crown on my head pressed cold into my skull. Every dead soldier in the hall had dropped to one knee, their broken armor scraping stone.

Only Varan remained standing.

His pale eyes stayed on mine. Not on the crown. Not on the army. Me.

"You want me to kneel?" he asked.

"I want you to confirm what you already know."

His mouth tightened. "You don’t get to order me around because dead men like your scent."

"No?" I touched the black bone crown with two fingers. Pain snapped through my hand. "Then take it off me."

The hall went quiet.

Even the dead stopped dragging their blades across the floor.

Varan climbed the steps. His boots struck stone once. Twice.