Half out of breath, I hurried down the hall to my sister’s room, bursting in to find Isolde in the middle of a flock of maids, at least a dozen of them brushing her golden hair, applying makeup, placing a string of jewels around her neck, and everything else that would make her look perfectly presentable. But she was already dressed in a shimmering gown that looked almost gilded with gold lace overlaying the skirt and long, diaphanous sleeves.

She looked beautiful, except for the miserable expression on her face. She’d clearly just been crying as two of the maids were attempting to cover up the puffiness of her eyes with more makeup. But I, as her brother, could tell right away.

I cleared my throat loudly, drawing a dozen pairs of eyes to me. “Can you give me a moment alone with my sister, please?”

Immediately, they backed away from her, bowing and shuffling out of the room. It was still strange to me to have so many servants about the house. The Tillcot family might have still been considered nobility, but after our father gambled away our entire fortune, we’d been living with the bare minimum, and as a consequence, the estate had become woefully untended.

Only now with the royal ceremony approaching did my parents insist on having a house full of servants. They expected our fortunes to be altered by this, and they weren’t entirely wrong about that.

But it was at Isolde’s expense. She’d been given the “honor” of being chosen as the consort of the demon prince, and she was anything but happy about it.

As soon as the maids were gone, I hurried to my sister’s side, kneeling beside her as she began sniffling, clearly on the verge of tears.

I pulled a handkerchief from my coat pocket and gently wiped at her eyes. “You’ll mess up your makeup, and Mother will yell at you if you cry.”

Mention of Mother only made her scowl. “Like her opinion matters anymore. She’s shipping me away, Adrian!”

I felt my own anger rise to match my twin’s. When our parents had first announced Isolde would be presented as a potential consort for the demon prince, I’d been horrified. But I had also told myself that dozens of girls would be presented, and there was no way Isolde would be picked.

Of course, I should have known better. Isolde was the most beautiful girl in town, so it was only natural she would catch the demon prince’s eye.

“Don’t think of it like that,” I told her, though the words rang hollow. I was devastated to be losing her like this.

As twins, we’d done everything together as children. Even after our father had insisted on me being trained separately as the heir, the two of us stayed close, with Isolde partaking in sword training and a good deal of the same studies. In truth, she was better with a sword than I was. I far preferred my art and inventions—which, of course, my father wholly disapproved of. He always said it wasn’t befitting a man of such noble station, but I could never stop my dreams of inventions.

Remembering what I had brought along, I pulled something out of my pocket and presented it to Isolde. “Here, I painted this for you.” It was a small, palm-sized canvas with a portrait of our family. “It’s a wedding gift for you to remember us by.”

Isolde cupped the small portrait in her hands and looked as if she would cry again. “This is all so unfair!” she sniffled. “I don’t want to be married! I want to see the world. And as his consort, I’ll just be stuck in that stifling palace!”

“At least the demon prince is handsome,” I told her. Though I had only seen him a couple of times myself, there was no denying that he was probably the most attractive man I had ever seen—and he had a reputation to go along with it. He was famous—infamous, really—across the land for having many conquests, and rumors spoke of his prowess in bed. I couldn’t say I was surprised, not with a chiseled jaw and hands like that.

To say I hadn’t imagined myself with him in various scenarios would have been a falsehood. But there was no need to share that with anyone else.

I shook my head, trying to dispel the thoughts. That wasn’t what I should be thinking about right now at all, not in my sister’s time of need. Plus, the demon royals were quite dangerous, with enhanced strength, speed, and even magic at their disposal. It was the reason they’d managed to rise to power over the entire land.

“Are you really so upset about becoming the consort?” I asked.

Isolde sighed. “I have something to admit. I…thought of running away. I even booked passage on a merchant ship that leaves today.”

“What?” I gasped. “Are you actually going to do it?”

“I still want to,” she admitted. “But I have no idea how I would sneak out of the house. There are so many servants; they’ll notice immediately.”

“They’re only here until the departure of the bride,” I reminded her.

“Yes, but I am that bride, and surely they’ll notice if I don’t get into that damn carriage.”

I sighed, knowing it was useless to argue. I only wished I could do something for her to make this day easier, but I just…couldn’t.

“Well, I will be at the ceremony,” I said. “Look at me if you get nervous.”

She sighed tearfully. “Thank you, Adrian. I wish you could come to the palace with me. I’ve heard there’s an amazing art collection there. Apparently, the old queen used to be a collector.”

“Perhaps I’ll look around when we’re there for the ceremony.” I stood up and hugged her again, my eye catching on the long, veiled cloak hanging on the dressing room door.

“What is that?” I asked.

She rolled her eyes. “It’s the traditional wedding garb the palace sent over. Such prudes. The consort must be completely covered during the ceremony. I haven’t put it on yet because it’s so suffocating.”

I walked over to examine it. The fabric was thick enough, and it seemed as if it would completely cover whoever was wearing it. Even someone as tall as me at almost six feet.

“How do you even get it on?” I asked.

Isolde laughed and came over to join me. “You want to try it on?”

“Yes, actually.” I was always curious about how new things worked.

She helped me into it, lifting the heavy material over my head. There was a piece that fit around my head and allowed the veil to fall over my face while the rest of me was covered in the heavy material of the cloak. Though it was soft against my skin, it weighed a lot, and it was difficult to even keep my head upright. But I was completely covered, from head to toe.

Though I could barely see her through the fabric, Isolde’s smile was obvious as she laughed. “You could go in my place like that. No one would even know.”

“You’re probably right,” I laughed. I’d always been thin and wiry. As adolescents, we’d been mistaken for each other from a distance because I’d been so lanky my whole life.

And with that, an idea formed in my mind.

“Isolde, you could go!”

“What are you talking about?”

“You could go to your ship, and I could go in your place to the palace. Then, once I’m there, I will reveal it’s me and that will give you enough time to get away!”

Her shock quickly gave way to a smile. “Would you really do that for me, brother?”

“I would do anything for you. I love you more than anyone else in the world.”

“But what about our parents? Our family honor will surely take a hit once everyone finds out.”

I scoffed. “Our family honor has been in the gutter a long time thanks to our drunken, gambling addict of a father.”

Isolde suddenly hugged me, nearly sending us both toppling over with the weight of the cloak. “I can’t believe you’re doing this for me,” she whispered fiercely. “I love you so much.”

“Hurry and change,” I told her, feeling the burn of tears in my eyes. “You can climb out the window like you always do.”

She grinned. “You know me so well.”

I told myself it wasn’t a real goodbye as she hurriedly changed and climbed out the window after hugging me one more time. This was just a temporary situation, but sitting there in the heavy cloak and waiting for someone to take me out to the carriage felt somehow like the longest minutes of my life.

But eventually, my father arrived. “Isolde, it’s time.”

I silently followed him out, grateful that Isolde was nearly as tall as I was. This would have been impossible if we weren’t so physically alike.

I was thankful, too, that my father was not an affectionate man. He didn’t bother trying to hug me or hold my hand as he led me out of the house and toward the waiting carriage. I would have been angry that he was so cold during the day while Isolde was clearly distraught, but right now keeping my identity a secret was much more important.

I had to do everything I could not to give the deception away. The longer everyone believed I was Isolde, the more time she would have to get away.

The waiting carriage was predictably ornate, etched with gold just like Isolde’s dress. It was obvious it came from the palace.

My mother stood just outside it and nodded toward me as I approached. “You are receiving a great honor today.”

“The family will be relieved because of you,” my father added.

Behind the veil, I scowled. Was this how they had spoken to Isolde about her upcoming marriage? It was so cold, selfish. They really did only care about the family name and that they would be paid by the crown in exchange for Isolde. As if she was something to be sold and bought.

I forced those thoughts aside and stayed quiet as I climbed into the carriage. As much as I wanted to take the suffocating veil off—Isolde had been right about that—I couldn’t risk it. I needed to keep up appearances long enough for her to get on that boat.

The carriage ride through the city took several minutes, as the family estate was on the outskirts and the palace was at the very center. With each passing second, I felt more anxious and sweatier underneath the veil. Outside, people lined the streets to watch the royal carriage carrying the future human consort of the demon prince.

I knew how much this meant to the people. It would represent a promise of unity between humans and demons in the kingdom.

And at that thought, I had a moment of panic. What had I just done? Had I messed everything up for the people? No, no. Surely not. Surely the demon prince would simply choose another human consort. He never really cared about Isolde; he was only committing to a political marriage.

I would just have to speak with him in private before the ceremony, to explain things. I was sure they would have things in place in case something went wrong. But then, I’d heard the demon prince had a tempter. So would he arrest me for lying? Or…would he torture me, or worse? There really were so many horrible rumors about the demon prince out there.

I shook my head as if I could shake those dark thoughts away. No, the demon prince wouldn’t just kill me out of temper. He was trying to broker a peace with the humans.

When the carriage finally rolled to a stop, a servant was already waiting to help me out. I was careful as I accepted their hand, not ready to give up my identity just yet.

The same servant led me into a small waiting room, and I assumed the prince would come there to greet me, but after several minutes a man in a pressed suit—clearly a butler—arrived. “Please follow me.”

“Are we going to see the prince?” I said softly, trying to mask my voice.

The butler nodded, and I reluctantly followed him, rehearsing what I would say in my head as the butler led me through a heavy wooden door.

Immediately, I saw Prince Bane Hightower, the demon prince, standing before me. He wore a beautiful suit and was just as gorgeous as I remembered, with piercing brown eyes, a chiseled jaw, and broad shoulders. He radiated authority, and my body reacted automatically, growing hot just at the sight of him.

I felt as if my voice had fallen away, but I had to say something. I had to share my practiced speech.

But as I opened my mouth, ready to confess all to the prince, someone shouted, “Now, the ceremony can begin!”

Shocked, I looked around. The veil meant I had no peripheral vision, but as I swiveled my head, I realized where we were: the chapel.

Oh no. No, no, no.

The wedding had already started.