A teenage girl lay naked and sobbing in a bed. Standing over her was a man easily three times her age, buttoning his shirt and smoothing his short gray hair. He turned away from her with a sneer.

"Make sure you finish your dusting," he said coolly, and then he opened the door and was gone.

She sat up, her blue eyes livid with anger in her puffy, tear-streaked face.

"I'll do more than that," she snapped.

She found her maid uniform, discarded on the floor next to the bed, and pulled it on. Across the room from the bed was a bureau, and on the bureau sat a highly polished jewelry box containing a single item. She carefully opened the top to reveal the apparently plain necklace. A quick glance back at the door confirmed he wasn't returning. Her hands trembled as she pocketed the simple brass chain holding an ovular clear stone. She gathered her cleaning supplies and walked briskly out of the room and down the hall, hanging her head low to hide her face behind a curtain of thick chestnut brown hair.

"Good morning, Iris."

Micah's smug voice invaded the dream and pulled Iris into consciousness. She vaguely remembered him telling her the night before that she would be sharing his room from now on so he could keep a closer eye on her. The mattress shifted beside her, and she opened her eyes, her stomach turning as she looked up at him. He was propped up on an elbow, twirling a lock of her hair around his finger.

"Did you hear the past bearers at all last night?"

"No," she said softly. Her voice wasn't harsh like it usually was after the extraction process. It felt wrong that her voice should sound so normal when the rest of her still ached and burned.

"Any dreams?"

"I saw my mother stealing the amulet."

He chuckled. "Ah, yes, the folly of my late master. I made him tell me everything before I killed him. To keep that amulet in such an insecure location, and to rape the very girl responsible for keeping it polished. I would have been more surprised if she didn't steal it," he scoffed. "And then it took him two years to track her down. She told him she pawned it, and the fool believed her."

"Is she dead?" Iris asked tentatively.

"Of course. He couldn't have anyone knowing about his idiocy, could he?" Micah's fingers slid down to her chest, to the amulet. He picked it up, studying it in the rays of sunshine spilling through the window. "But he was a capable mage and an adequate master. I suppose that is where your power comes from. Mages tend to breed mages, with a few notable exceptions." His cold blue eyes flicked from the amulet to her face. "My parents had no magical ability and still produced three mages."

She didn't turn away as he leaned in and kissed her. Any such movement would mean excruciating pain, and she would have plenty of that soon enough. But, as with his handling of her last night, excluding him digging his fingers into her waist in the courtyard, his kiss this morning was soft and painless. He set the amulet in the center of her chest, pressing it into her lightly, and then his hand glided across her curves as his lips traveled across her face and neck. She held perfectly still, fighting the wave of nausea that swept through her. If she didn't know him, she would think his caresses and kisses were tender, affectionate, even. She did know him, though, and she knew it was all part of his torture, all part of his scheme to maximize her mental torment.

"I'm feeling generous this morning, Iris," he breathed into her ear. "Drop your shield from the fairies so I can summon them, and I'll only kill one of them. The rest will be allowed to tend to you as they did before, and I may consider giving you more time to recover before I continue this."

She swallowed nervously. "I...I don't know how to do that."

"Oh?"

She heard the low threat in his voice and hastened to continue. "I haven't been shielding them. At least, I haven't been doing it consciously. If I knew how..." She trailed off, because even if she knew how, she wouldn't do what he was asking. She wouldn't sacrifice even one fairy for herself.

He sighed. "Iris. Sweet little Iris. You leave me no choice."

She squeezed her eyes shut. A tear slid down her cheek. "Please. You don't have to do this."

The bed shifted, and his weight settled on top of her, his hands at her collar. "You're right," he said coolly. "I don't have to do this." The ripping of fabric coincided with the sob torn from her throat. "I want to do this."

There was nothing she could do. Every movement sent fire shooting through her body, and it was easier to allow the pain to overwhelm her than to think about what he was doing to her. He kept talking to her, as he always did, honeyed, poisoned words dripping from his tongue, compliments and threats woven together so tightly that there was no separating them, finding their way through the roar of agony to pierce her mind. His laughter found its way to her, too, mocking her involuntary whimpers and cries of pain. Finally it was over, and he was holding her as she sobbed, back to the false tenderness that only drove the hurt in deeper.

"Iris. Sweet little Iris," he murmured, kissing the top of her head gently. "Do you understand what it means to be mine now?" His fingers threaded through her sweaty hair, pressing her into his chest. "If you do as I say, it won't be like this again."

Again. Everything within her recoiled from that word. A fire lit in her chest, a burning hatred, and she fully understood the sheer rage she saw in her mother's eyes.

This wasn't happening again.

"I'll let you in on a little secret, Iris," he continued, unaware of the anger seething through her core. "I've been losing the war on purpose. That last battle should have the dragons preparing their final strike, and I'm expecting their entire army to arrive at some point over the next few days. The king is going to die in the battle, and, unfortunately, with no queen, no heir, and no living family, that will leave the throne vacant. Unleashing the full extent of my power to single-handedly wipe out the dragon army will make me the obvious choice for the next king. And, unlike the current occupant of the throne, I have a vested interest in leaving a lasting legacy on this world. You are the logical choice as my queen, with your inherent power increasing the likelihood of producing someone suitable enough for me to entrust with my secrets." He chuckled. "And, of course, you are also so wonderfully malleable to my demands." He kissed her one more time and climbed out of the bed. "I have a busy day of twisting the king around my finger. A maid will come at midday to get you cleaned up."

She kept her eyes closed as he moved about the room getting dressed, tears sliding down her cheeks but sobs no longer shaking her shoulders. The fire surging through her body was nowhere near as hot as the anger in her chest. This was going to keep happening unless she stopped it. Micah's master killed a man for the amulet. Iris' mother stole it in an act of vengeance against the man who raped her. Micah spent his life stealing magic and killing others in his search for it. There was no end to this cycle unless it was gone.

The door opened and closed, and she exhaled deeply, opening her eyes to verify that Micah was gone. She forced herself to sit up, biting her tongue to silence the cry of pain from the fire shooting through her body. The throbbing between her thighs didn't go away when she held still. She would heal, eventually, but the scars he left on her mind would always remain.

She hated him with a passion.

You can fight him, Iris.

Her eyes shot wide open. The soft, rhythmic pulsing of the crystal was back. The whispers were back. She reached for the amulet, wincing from the pain of the movement. Her fingers tightened around the gentle warmth emanating from the stone. The crystal was calling to her. She had to find it. She had to end this.

A soft tapping at the window caught her attention. She looked over and could have cried with relief. The fairy was there, tapping at the glass. She stood up and grabbed the bedpost for support as a wave of fire shot up her legs and across her arm. Her breath came in ragged bursts. She wasn't going anywhere if she didn't do something about this pain, but if Micah felt her using magic...

You can fight him.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and pulled the warmth from the amulet out into her body. It washed over her in soothing waves, pushing the aches and the lingering flames away. She opened her eyes again and walked to the window without pain. The latch opened easily, and the fairy zipped straight to her lips with a burst of warmth.

"Yes, I'm glad to see you, too," she giggled.

The fairy zipped circles around her, and that, along with the chilly air from the open window, reminded her that she was naked. She closed the window and hugged herself, turning back to the room. Its decor was consistent with the glimpses of luxury she'd seen upon entering the castle. A plush red carpet covering the center of the floor, gold inlays decorating the dark oak bed posts, red and gold bedding - Micah was already living as the king, even if he didn't yet bear the title. The sound of running water drew her eyes to the claw-footed bathtub behind a red and gold dressing screen in the corner of the room.

"I don't know that there's time for that," she said doubtfully, but the fairy was already pushing at her back, urging her toward the tub. "Then again, I wouldn't mind getting rid of any traces of him..."

She sank gratefully into the steaming water, closing her eyes and sighing contentedly. The groan of drawers being opened and closed told her the fairy was already working on finding her some clothes. She opened her eyes again and reached for the soap. There wasn't time to soak and relax. The pulse from the crystal echoed through the amulet, sending ripples through the water.

I'm sorry, Iris. I love you.

She sucked in her breath and dropped the soap, stunned by the whispered words and the vision that came with them. Her mother's tearful blue eyes hovered above her. She leaned in to kiss Iris on the forehead, and then she tucked the amulet into the blanket and disappeared.