••{AZERIA'S POV}••
I stand there with my hand pressed to my cheek, my fingers trembling.
It's not the sting that hurts.
That faded almost instantly like pain always does for our kind.
It's the fact that she touched me at all.
In all the centuries I have lived, through wars that drowned kingdoms in blood, through betrayals and funerals that split this family down to its bones, my mother has never raised her hand to me.
Not once.
Until now.
I feel a sharp ache in my chest like something fragile inside me has cracked. And it's more painful than anything I've ever felt in my entire life.
Before I can even form a word, Azrael moves.
He steps in front of me, his broad shoulders blocking my view of her, his voice deep and cold as ice.
"Don't ever touch her again."
The room suddenly feels smaller. Heavier.
My mother straightens, fury flashing across her face. "She crossed a line."
"No," Luceris says calmly. "You did."
My eyes widen.
Luceris.
