If I marry this man, I will die within a year. If I leave, death will follow me. There is nothing I can do. I am a Scion and my life belongs to the Othala. In Sector Eight, each Othala witch in the ruling Senate must marry a human girl from one of the old aristocratic families. This year, one of these Scions must marry the Regent and produce an heir. Cora is a Scion who wants nothing to do with the world she's forced to be part of. On the night she tries to take control of her future, she puts herself in danger and a stranger steps in and takes control. The evening Cora thought would lead to her freedom instead makes her a pawn in a battle she wants no part in. Alaric is the new Regent and wants absolute power over the Sector. His brother, Mattias, is the only witch powerful enough to stand against Alaric's increasingly savage rule and the Senate want him to step in. Alaric fears he'll be deposed but Mattias' plans lie elsewhere. Mattias was born and raised in the ruling Hyland family. Now he's stepped outside of his role and has another life nobody knows about. Keeping up the pretence works with everybody except Cora; she has seen a different side to Mattias and is determined to discover the truth. Cora is pulled into the brothers' lives and her fear of the sadistic Alaric matches her desire for Mattias. Mattias' secretive behaviour and attraction to Cora places them both directly in a paranoid Alaric's crosshairs. The last thing Mattias wants is somebody interfering with his plans. Especially a human girl—one he's falling for and will do anything to protect. Politics and magic vie for control as Sector Eight crumbles in this dystopian paranormal witch romance from USA Today bestselling author LJ Swallow. Book Eight in the Othala Witch Collection