The voice came from behind them, deep and cold as winter frost.
Soyeon's heart stopped.
Prince Liang Jian stood at the courtyard entrance, his bow drawn, two arrows nocked and aimed directly at the assassins holding her. His face hardly betrayed what he felt, but his eyes burned with the unmistakable glint of a man on a rampage. A man that wanted nothing more than for his sword to soak up blood.
"Liang Jian," Soyeon gasped. "No! Please leave!"
He didn't move, and he didn't lower his bow either. His gaze fixed on his grandmother with such intensity that the air itself seemed to crystallize.
"You're an evil woman," he said quietly. "A viper wearing the skin of a grandmother."
The Empress Dowager's eyes widened briefly before she composed herself. She had clearly not anticipated him coming all the way to search for them. When she spoke again, her voice was almost gentle. Coaxing.
