Bella finally started paying attention when Soren began listing her punishment.
Ten floggings.
And she had to grovel to Neve. She had to go to him and apologize. She had to kneel before him and ask for his forgiveness for trying to kill him.
Bella felt her stomach drop.
"That's my punishment?" she asked, her voice coming out sharper than she intended. "I'm not doing that. That's humiliating. I'm a princess. I'm the daughter of a former chief. You can't make me—"
"You can refuse," Soren said calmly, cutting her off. His expression was cold and unmoved by her protests. "But then the punishment becomes exile. You'll be cast out of the leopard tribe territory. You'll be left to fend for yourself in the wilderness during winter with no supplies and no protection."
Bella's mouth closed.
Exile was worse than flogging and groveling combined. Exile meant death, probably. Slow death in the cold snow with no one to help her.
