Elara POV
"Elara Ashton. By order of Princess Seraphina, you're coming with us."
My heart stopped. The guards filled my tiny doorway like mountains of metal and strength. Their hands reached for me.
"Wait!" I jumped off my bed. "What did I do? Please, I haven't done anything wrong!"
But they didn't care. Strong fingers wrapped around my arms. They dragged me out of my room before I could even grab my shoes.
"Mama!" I screamed. "Mama, help!"
No answer. The hallway was empty. Everyone was asleep except me and these guards. They pulled me through the dark hall, my bare feet slapping against cold stone floors.
My mind raced. They knew. They had to know I'd been listening. But how? I'd been so quiet!
We stopped at a door I recognized. Princess Seraphina's secret study. The guard captain knocked twice.
"Come in," Seraphina's voice called sweetly.
They shoved me inside. I stumbled and fell to my knees.
The room was warm, lit by a roaring fireplace. Seraphina sat in a plush chair like a queen on a throne. Duke Ashford stood beside her, smiling like a cat who'd caught a mouse.
"Leave us," Seraphina told the guards. "Wait outside."
The door closed. We were alone.
I stayed on my knees, shaking. "Your Highness, I don't understand—"
"Oh, I think you do." Seraphina stood and walked toward me. Her golden hair gleamed in the firelight. She looked like an angel. She smiled like a demon. "Tell me, Elara. What did you hear tonight?"
My stomach dropped. "I... I don't know what you mean."
"Don't lie." Her voice turned sharp as a knife. "My guards saw you. Standing on your bed. Ear pressed to the ceiling. Listening to my private chat. "
I couldn't move. Couldn't think. "I heard nothing," I whispered. "I swear. I was just—"
"You were spying." Duke Ashford crossed his arms. "The question is, what do we do about it?"
Terror made my voice shake. "Please. I won't tell anyone. I promise. Just let me go back to my room. Let me take care of Mama. We'll disappear. You'll never see us again."
Seraphina laughed. It was the coldest sound I'd ever heard.
"Oh, you're not going anywhere. In fact, you're going on a very special trip." She leaned down until her face was inches from mine. Her breath smelled like wine. "You're going North, little sister."
The word "sister" dripped with poison.
"What?" My voice came out tiny. "No. The Dragon King wants you. The treaty—"
"The treaty says the Dragon King gets a princess." Seraphina straightened. "But here's the beautiful part: you're King Blackwell's daughter too. Illegitimate, yes. Hidden, yes. But his blood runs through your veins just like mine."
I looked at her. My whole body went numb.
"You're insane," I breathed. "The Dragon King will know. He'll kill me. Then he'll come here and burn everything to ash!"
"Probably." Seraphina shrugged. "But by then, you'll be dead. And Father will have his reason to declare war on the North. Duke Ashford will lead the troops. We'll overcome those monsters and take their lands. And when the war is over..." She smiled at Ashford. "We'll finally be able to marry."
"You're going to start a war?" My voice cracked. "Thousands of people will die!"
"Thousands of peasants will die." Ashford fixed. "People who don't matter. People like you."
Rage burned through my fear. I lurched to my feet.
"I won't do it! You can't make me!"
"Oh?" Seraphina raised one perfect eyebrow. "Not even to save your mother?"
The room spun.
"Mama?" I whispered. "What about Mama?"
"Right now, she's sleeping peacefully in her little servant's room." Seraphina studied her fingernails. "But one word from me, and guards will drag her to the cells. They'll lock her in a cell so deep and dark that she'll forget what sunshine looks like. And if you tell anyone—anyone at all—about our little plan..." She met my eyes. "They'll kill her for treason. Slowly."
I couldn't feel my legs. Couldn't feel anything.
"You're a monster," I choked out.
"I'm a princess." Seraphina smiled. "Now, here's what's going to happen. Tomorrow night, you'll drink some special tea I've made. It will make you sleep very deeply. When you wake up, you'll be dressed in my finest gowns, sitting in a carriage heading North. You'll try to be me. You'll marry the Dragon King. And you'll die like the useless bastard you are."
"And if I refuse?"
"Then your mother dies tonight." Seraphina's voice was ice. "Your choice, Elara. Save her life, or doom her with your ego."
Tears burned my eyes. I wanted to scream. To fight. To run.
But I couldn't. Because she had Mama. And I would do anything—even die—to keep Mama safe.
"Fine," I whispered. "I'll do it."
"Smart girl." Seraphina patted my cheek like I was a dog. "Take her back to her room. And remember, Elara—one word to anyone, and Isolde pays the price."
The guards grabbed me again. Dragged me back through empty halls. Threw me into my room and locked the door from outside.
I fell on my bed and sobbed into my pillow.
Tomorrow night. Tomorrow night they would drug me. Dress me. Send me to my death.
I had one day to figure out how to save Mama and myself.
One difficult day.
I cried until I couldn't cry anymore. Then I sat up, wiped my eyes, and stared at the locked door.
Wait.
If they needed to drug me tomorrow night... that meant they didn't plan to grab Mama until after I was already gone. They needed her alive as insurance to keep me quiet.
Which meant Mama was still safe. For now.
I stood up and walked to my tiny window. Dawn was breaking over the palace walls. Pink light touched the sky.
I had one day. One day to warn someone. To find help. To leave this nightmare.
My hands stopped shaking. My tears dried.
I wasn't helpless. I wasn't just going to accept my death.
I was going to fight.
But then I heard it—a soft scraping sound at my door. The lock popping open.
My heart hammered. Had they changed their minds? Were they taking me now?
The door cracked open.
A figure slipped inside, hood pulled low over their face.
I opened my mouth to scream— And then they pushed back their hood.
I stared in shock at the face beneath.
"We need to talk," they whispered quickly. "Before it's too late."