Out of Moves

By: Allison Aldridge

The Darling

Returning to Lovelen might be what finally destroys us both.

Months on the run have worn me down to something unrecognizable. New name. New life. Same ghosts. I thought I’d escaped the city and the boy I once loved—until he found me and dragged me home. Now the Knights watch me like vultures, and he looks at me like I’m the betrayal he can’t forgive.

But I destroyed everything to keep him alive. As the past claws back and buried secrets splinter open, I can’t ignore the truth: he still unravels me with a single touch, even if he swears he’ll never trust me again.

The Knight

Astoria Mordred ran from me once. She won’t get the chance again.

Bringing Lovelen’s Darling home reopened every scar she left behind. The Knights want answers, and I’ve been charged with pulling them out—no matter how deep they’re buried. But Astoria isn’t the girl I knew. She’s hardened, haunted… and still capable of shattering me.

When an old enemy returns, all sharp edges and whispered threats, I know she’s hiding something lethal. And when the truth breaks, I see how long she’s been bleeding for me.

Loving her could break my oath. Saving her could cost my life. But losing her again would destroy me.