Seraphina's POV
The wine glass slipped from my fingers.
Everything happened in slow motion. The crystal glass tumbled through the air, spinning, spinning—then crashed against the marble floor. Red wine exploded everywhere, splattering across the white stone like blood.
The entire ballroom went silent.
Three hundred nobles turned to stare at me. My heart stopped. This was it. The moment I'd been dreading all night.
"You clumsy fool!" Celestine's voice rang out, sharp and cruel. My stepsister stood at the center of the ballroom in her gorgeous silver gown, her blonde hair perfect, her beauty like something from a painting. Everyone loved her. Everyone wanted to be near her.
And I was her maid.
"I'm sorry," I whispered, dropping to my knees. My plain brown servant's dress pooled around me as I started picking up glass pieces with shaking hands. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean—"
"You never mean to," Celestine said, walking toward me with slow, deliberate steps. Her heels clicked on the marble. Click. Click. Click. Each step made my stomach twist tighter. "You're always sorry. Always messing things up. Tell me, Seraphina—do you enjoy embarrassing our family?"
Our family. As if I was really part of it.
I kept my head down, not answering. Years of living with Celestine taught me that talking back only made things worse.
"Look at me when I'm speaking to you."
I lifted my head. Celestine's blue eyes glittered with something that made my skin crawl. She wasn't just angry. She was... excited? Like she'd been waiting for this moment.
That's when I noticed him. Lord Adrian Blackwell stood beside Celestine, his arm casually draped around her waist. Adrian. The man who'd been engaged to me six months ago. The man who'd promised to love me forever.
The man who'd thrown me away like trash.
"Adrian," I breathed. My chest felt tight. "What are you—"
"Oh, didn't you know?" Celestine's smile was like a knife. "Adrian and I have been together for months now. We're in love."
The words hit me like a punch. The ballroom spun. No. This couldn't be happening. Not here. Not in front of everyone.
"We wanted to wait to tell you," Adrian said. He didn't even look sorry. His handsome face was blank, like I meant nothing. Like our three years together had been nothing. "But Celestine thought you should know the truth. We're getting married."
Gasps echoed through the ballroom. Whispers started immediately.
"That's her former fiancé!"
"How shameful!"
"Poor thing... wait, isn't she the daughter of Lord Ashford?"
"The disgraced one? I heard her father only keeps her around because his wife insists."
Each whisper was a stab. I tried to stand, but my legs wouldn't work. Glass pieces fell from my trembling hands.
"Did you really think Adrian could love someone like you?" Celestine asked, her voice carrying across the silent ballroom. "You're plain. Boring. You have no magic, no power, no beauty. You're just... nothing."
"Celestine, please—" My voice cracked.
"She's right," Adrian added, and his words hurt worse than anything Celestine said. "Being engaged to you was a mistake. I had to end it. I couldn't spend my life tied to someone so... worthless."
Tears burned my eyes. I blinked hard, trying to hold them back. I wouldn't cry. Not here. Not in front of them.
"Father!" Celestine called out suddenly. "Come tell Seraphina the good news!"
My father appeared from the crowd. Lord Edmund Ashford, my own flesh and blood. Hope flickered in my chest. Maybe he would defend me. Maybe he would—
"Seraphina," Father said, his voice cold. "I've made a decision. You're no longer part of the Ashford family. Effective immediately, you are disowned."
The world stopped.
"What?" I whispered.
"You've been nothing but a burden since your mother died," Father continued. His eyes held no warmth, no love. Nothing. "My wife has been patient, but after tonight's embarrassment, I can't keep defending you. You will leave the family estate. You will no longer use our name. You are nothing to me."
The nobles gasped again. Disowned. At a royal ball. In front of everyone.
I couldn't breathe. Couldn't think. This was worse than any nightmare.
"Any objections?" Crown Prince Theron's voice suddenly cut through the chaos. He stood near his throne, watching everything with dark, calculating eyes. "No? Then the matter is settled. Guards, remove this girl from the ballroom."
Two guards grabbed my arms. They hauled me to my feet, dragging me toward the exit. I stumbled, my mind blank with shock.
This wasn't real. This couldn't be real.
But it was. The nobles parted like I carried a disease. Some looked at me with pity. Most looked disgusted. Celestine waved goodbye, smiling. Adrian didn't even glance my way.
The guards shoved me through the ballroom doors. They released me in an empty corridor, and I collapsed against the cold wall.
Everything I'd ever had was gone. My family. My home. My future. Everything.
I had to get out. I had to run. Somewhere. Anywhere.
I stumbled down corridor after corridor, not caring where I went. Tears poured down my face. My chest heaved with sobs I'd been holding back.
Then I turned a corner and froze.
A door stood in front of me. Heavy. Ancient. Covered in strange symbols that seemed to glow faintly in the darkness. A sign hung above it, written in old script:
THE FORBIDDEN WING
ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK
DEATH AWAITS WITHIN
From behind the door came a sound. Low. Painful. Like someone—or something—was suffering.
My hand reached for the doorknob. Some small, broken part of me didn't care about warnings anymore. What did I have to lose?
The door creaked open.
And that's when I heard the voice. Deep. Rough. Desperate.
"Who's there? Run. For gods' sake, RUN! The sun is setting—"
But I stepped inside anyway.
The door slammed shut behind me.
And I came face to face with the most beautiful—and most terrifying—man I'd ever seen.