Coulta was born with a curse, one that forces him to obey the commands of those with authority over him. At only five years old, his father gives him up into service of a powerful lord, hoping to give Coulta a better life. But it was a mistake. Varin turns Coulta into an assassin, someone who can't stop himself from killing even the most innocent person he was commanded to murder. Despite the pain of a life out of his control, Coulta does have hope; hope that he will one day meet the person his mother claimed would free him of his curse.

Wildas is the Crown Prince of Phelin. He has known nothing but luxury and comfort, not the pain and suffering of a cursed killer. He has no idea that his life is in danger, that assassins are lurking in the shadows of the next city he will visit on behalf of the Crown. Nor does he know that his very soul is tied to one of those assassins, a tie that not even death could ever break.

Together they will discover that even chance encounters have meaning, and that their own personal struggles are nothing compared to what is to come when their kingdom is launched into a civil war that puts all of lives in danger. Only by relying on each other will they have any chance of survival.

Originally published in 2014 and is being cross-posted on multiple sites.