#Chapter 27 – Forty Silvers Well Spent

Lila I rolled my shoulders back as I stepped into the open arena. The crowd roared around us, the entire palace seemed to be eager to see who would bleed and who would make it through this selection. Not that I was listening to the whispers, but I heard them anyway. “Elena Ashford, again.” “She’s got the King wrapped around her fingers.” I kept my chin up and gaze forward, ignoring the burn of attention crawling up my back. As I neared the contestant lanes, my eyes caught on Asher perched casually on a low wall just beyond the sparring line. His hair was tied back, and that beautiful mouth of his was curled in a half-smirk. He raised two fingers to his brow in a mock salute. “Looking sharp, Lucky,” he called, voice easy, teasing. Loud enough to turn heads. I didn’t answer. The smile he shot back told me my silence was enough of a reply. The horn sounded and we moved to our lanes in a tight formation. The first challenge was archery. Straightforward, impersonal. Per