Chapter 46. A Changed Ally

Nathan's POV

The heavy door of the opulent chamber shuts with an ominous click, reverberating through the room. It's a sound that echoes within me. The air is thick with the scent of jasmine and something darker, a musk that's all too familiar- fear mixed with false bravado.

I stand before Ally, her slender form silhouetted against the moonlight spilling through the floor-to-ceiling windows. She's back in the palace, her first night returning to this gilded cage, a place where I've held sway over her with iron and shadow. My gaze drifts over her, assessing, calculating...desiring.

"Ally," I begin, my voice low and smooth, a predator's purr. "It seems you've forgotten your place."

She doesn't flinch. Instead, she holds my gaze, those deep-set eyes reflecting a resilience that wasn't there before. Her chin tilts up ever so slightly, and it's as if Dawn herself stands beside her, lending her a