"Then no ring."
Carson's face hardened.
For one stupid second, I thought he'd let me refuse. Maybe there was one line he wouldn't cross in front of the entire city.
Then the tribunal bell rang.
A guard shoved through the side doors with a folded execution order in his hand.
"The prison requests confirmation," he said. "The Mercer boy's sentence is scheduled for six o'clock."
My knees almost gave out.
"You said sunset," I whispered.
Carson didn't look at him. "The schedule changed."
"You changed it."
"Sign."
I turned on him. "You sick bastard."
"Sign, Ivy."
The guard raised the order so every council member could see the red seal.
My brother's name sat beneath it.
Noah Mercer.
Execution by ward discharge.
The letters blurred. I shoved my hand toward Carson.
"Do it."
His fingers closed around mine. "Say it clearly."
"Put the damn ring on me."
He slid the ring onto my finger.
The metal tightened.
Not around my finger. Around my whole hand.
Pain ripped up my arm, bright and vicious. I cried out and slammed my free palm against Carson's chest.
He barely moved.
Solid muscle met my hand. Heat punched through the thin fabric of his shirt, and his breath caught under my palm.
The silver seal beneath our feet flashed red.
"What did you do?"
Carson's hand clamped around my waist before my legs folded. His forearm locked against my ribs and dragged me against him in front of every watching face.
"Stand up," he said.
"Get off me."
"Break the circle and the contract rejects you."
"Good. Let it reject me."
"It won't."
The ring burned again.
A thin red line appeared beneath Carson's cuff, circling his wrist in the exact shape of my new band.
His eyes dropped to it.
His expression cracked for half a second.
I caught it. "It marked you too."
"Don't touch it."
"You don't like being trapped, do you?"
"Neither do you."
"I hate you."
"That'll make this easier."
The judge started reciting the binding words.
I barely heard him. Carson's hand was still spread over my waist, his fingers hot against my side. His thumb moved once beneath my ribs.
My body answered with a sharp shiver.
His eyes dropped to my mouth.
I shoved at his chest. "Don't look at me like that."
"Like what?"
"Like you're deciding where to bite."
His jaw tightened. "This is a public kiss, Mercer. Nothing more."
"Then keep it short."
"You giving orders now?"
"I am when your mouth's involved."
The judge's voice rose over the chamber. "The contract requires the bride and groom to seal the vow."
Carson leaned closer.
His breath brushed my cheek. Warm. Controlled. He smelled like ward-lamp smoke and bitter coffee.
My fingers curled into the front of his coat. Not because I wanted him closer. Because the seal had started pulling at my legs again.
"If you hurt me," I whispered, "I swear I'll make you regret it."
"You already make me regret plenty."
"Good."
"Close your eyes."
"Go to hell."
His mouth covered mine.
It should've been brief. A public lie for the council. A mark on a contract. Nothing else.
Then the ring tore the pain out of my arm.
It shot through my chest, climbed my throat, and poured straight into his mouth.
Carson jerked against me.
His grip on my waist turned brutal for one second. A rough sound broke between us, too low for anyone else to catch.
His lips stayed on mine, but his control slipped. His breath shook against me. His skin burned through his shirt. His heart slammed beneath my palm.
The ring pulsed.
A red line raced from his wrist up his arm.
I tore my mouth away.
Carson staggered back and caught the table behind him.
The tribunal erupted.
"What happened?"
"Was that part of the ceremony?"
"Commander?"
I pressed my burning hand against my chest. "You felt that."
Carson stared at the mark spreading over his wrist.
"No."
"Don't lie to me."
"I said no."
"Then why are you bleeding?"
A thin cut split the skin beneath his sleeve. Blood slid over his knuckles.
He looked at me.
For the first time since he'd arrested me, Carson looked shaken.
I should've enjoyed it.
Instead, the sight of his blood made my own arm throb harder.
The judge slammed his hand against the bench. "The marriage is sealed. Commander Rook, remove the prisoner from the tribunal floor."
"I'm not going anywhere with him."
Carson wiped the blood from his hand with his thumb. "You don't have a choice."
"I just married you. I can still refuse to walk."
"Then I'll carry you."
"Try it."
His gaze dragged over me and stopped on my lips. "You want me to?"
The question came out quiet.
Too quiet.
The space between us tightened. His hand was still close enough to touch my waist. I could feel the heat coming off him, even with the tribunal watching.
I shoved him back with both hands. "Don't turn this into something it isn't."
"You kissed me."
"I was forced."
"Your mouth still opened."
"Because your ring was burning through my bones."
"Keep telling yourself that."
I slapped him.
The crack cut through the chamber.
Every guard reached for a weapon.
Carson didn't move. His head turned with the impact. Slowly, he faced me again.
A red handprint spread across his cheek.
"Touch me again," I said, "and I won't stop at your face."
His eyes went cold. "You just signed a contract that makes assaulting me a breach."
"Then charge me."
"I might."
"You won't."
"Why not?"
I stepped into his space, ignoring the burn crawling up my arm. "Because you need me to repair your shield."
The council went silent.
I jabbed a finger at his chest. "You need me alive. You need my hands on those broken wards. And you need me close enough that I can't expose whatever you hid under that black paper."
Carson's face stayed blank.
His fingers closed around the folder.
There it was.
A reaction.
"Show me the hidden clause," I said.
"Not here."
"Why? Afraid your council will learn what you bought?"
"You're done."
"No. I'm just starting."
I grabbed for the folder.
Carson caught my wrist and yanked me against him. My shoulder struck his chest. His arm locked around my waist, holding me in place while the ring burned between us.
"Let go," I hissed.
"Stop fighting me."
"Make me."
His mouth lowered near my ear. "Careful."
The word scraped across my skin.
His breath touched my neck. His body pressed against mine, hard and hot through our clothes. My pulse jumped for a reason that had nothing to do with the ring.
I hated that he felt it.
His thumb pressed into my waist.
"You still want to know what's under the clause?" he asked.
"I want the truth."
"Truth gets people killed in this city."
"So does your silence."
His hold loosened for half a second.
I twisted free and snatched the folder from the table.
The black ward paper split beneath my fingers.
Light burst across the hidden page.
Words appeared in burning silver ink.
Carson went still.
I read the first line aloud. "Supplemental condition of the Rook-Mercer marriage contract."
"Ivy, put it down."
"No."
The second line ignited.
"Every kiss exchanged by the contracted parties shall unlock one sealed section of the city's protective shield."
The tribunal fell silent.
I looked at Carson. "Every kiss?"
"Give me the contract."
"You knew."
"I knew there was a ward clause. I didn't know it'd activate through you."
"You knew enough to force this marriage."
"I forced it because Noah was going to die."
"And because every kiss gives you access to the shield."
His face tightened. "Not me. Us."
The page flared brighter.
A new line appeared beneath the first.
"The first seal shall open upon completion of the public vow. The second seal shall open when—"
The words stopped.
A dark symbol formed at the bottom of the page, shaped like a crown split by a blade.
I had never seen it before.
Carson had.
His hand shot toward the next seal carved into the tribunal floor. The red mark around his wrist burned white as his fingers hovered one inch above it—