Cassian's POV
I knew she was innocent the moment I saw her face.
Not because she looked pure or helpless—though she did, broken and starved in the dirt between our kingdoms. But because I'd seen that exact look before. On my mother's face, right before they killed her.
The look of someone betrayed by the people who should have protected them.
Seraphina Ashford knelt in the mud, her body shaking so hard I could see it from my horse. Bruises covered her arms and face. Her dress was torn and filthy. She was thin—too thin. They'd starved her.
Rage burned through my chest like wildfire.
"Here's your spy, Your Majesty," the Aelorian captain said with a smug smile. Marcus. I knew his name. Knew his reputation for cruelty. "Seraphina Ashford, as promised. She's all yours."
Mine. They'd given her to me like property.
I dismounted and walked toward her, watching her flinch with every step I took. She expected pain. Expected death.
Of course she did. That's what they'd told her about me.
The Iron King. The monster. The killer.
All lies. But useful lies. Fear kept enemies away better than any army.
I stopped in front of her. "Look at me."
She kept her head down, trembling.
"I said look at me," I repeated, softer this time.
Slowly, she lifted her head. And I saw her eyes for the first time.
Green. Like forests in summer. But filled with terror.
And something else. Something stronger.
Defiance.
Even broken and beaten, this girl hadn't given up. She was still fighting.
Just like my mother had fought until her last breath.
"Who did this to you?" I asked, keeping my voice calm even though fury roared inside me. "Who hurt you?"
She looked confused. "I... what?"
"Who starved you?" I pressed. "Who beat you?"
She glanced at Captain Marcus. That answered my question.
"Don't look at him," I said sharply. "Look at me. Answer my question."
"I... they... I'm a prisoner," she whispered. "This is how prisoners are treated."
Wrong. So completely wrong.
I turned to Marcus, my hand moving to my sword. The Aelorian soldiers tensed. My own men moved closer, hands on their weapons.
One word from me, and this border meeting would become a bloodbath.
But killing Marcus wouldn't help Seraphina. It would only start a war she'd get caught in the middle of.
So I did something harder than killing him.
I turned back to her and softened my expression. "Can you stand?"
"I... I think so."
I offered my hand.
She stared at it like it was a snake about to bite her. Every story she'd heard about me was probably screaming at her not to trust me.
But she had no choice.
Her small, cold hand slipped into mine. I pulled her up gently, feeling how weak she was. She swayed, and I caught her arm to steady her.
Up close, I could see more damage. Rope burns on her wrists. A split lip. Hollow cheeks from starvation.
They'd tried to break her.
"You're safe now," I told her quietly, making sure only she heard. "I promise you—you're safe."
Her eyes widened with confusion. She didn't believe me.
I'd have to prove it.
"Take Lady Seraphina to the medical tent," I ordered my men. "Get her food, water, and clean clothes. And someone find her a proper room in the castle."
Marcus laughed behind me. "Surely you mean the prison, Your Majesty?"
I turned and gave him a look that made him shut up fast. "I meant exactly what I said."
I looked at Seraphina one last time. "Welcome to Valcrest, Lady Seraphina. No one will hurt you here."
Then I walked back to my horse before I did something stupid. Like punch a foreign captain and start an international incident.
"Your Majesty," my second-in-command, Rylan, said quietly as he rode up beside me. "The men are confused. Why are we treating the prisoner like a guest?"
"Because she's not a prisoner," I said. "She's a victim."
"But the evidence—"
"Was fake." I cut him off. "All of it."
Rylan frowned. "How do you know?"
I watched as my men carefully helped Seraphina into a wagon—a proper wagon this time, with cushions and blankets. She looked shocked by their gentleness.
"Because I had spies in the Aelorian court," I said. "I've been watching Duke Aldric Ashford for months. The man is planning a coup. He needed a scapegoat—someone to blame for his crimes. His own daughter was the perfect target."
"So she really is innocent?"
"Completely." I gripped my reins tighter. "They framed her, destroyed her reputation, and threw her to me hoping I'd kill her. One less witness to their treachery."
"What are you going to do?"
Good question.
The smart move was to send her back with proof of her innocence. Clear her name. Be the hero.
But something stopped me.
Maybe it was the look in her eyes. That mix of fear and strength.
Maybe it was the way she clutched her mother's necklace like it was her last piece of hope.
Or maybe it was because when I touched her hand, something inside me—something I'd kept frozen for fifteen years—started to thaw.
"I'm going to protect her," I said finally. "And then I'm going to destroy everyone who hurt her."
Rylan smiled grimly. "The men will like that plan."
We rode toward the castle, the wagon carrying Seraphina following close behind.
I had questions that needed answers. Like why Duke Aldric would betray his own daughter. What he was really planning. And why my spies reported that Seraphina's mother—Lady Helena—died under suspicious circumstances ten years ago.
Too many coincidences. Too many convenient deaths and accusations.
Something bigger was happening here.
And Seraphina was at the center of it, whether she knew it or not.
Seraphina's POV
I woke up screaming.
Hands grabbed me, and I fought them, wild with panic.
"No! Please! Don't—"
"Lady Seraphina! You're safe! It's okay!"
A woman's voice. Kind. Gentle.
I stopped struggling and opened my eyes.
I was in a tent. A medical tent, from the smell of herbs and medicine. A woman with gray hair and a warm smile held my shoulders.
"There now," she said softly. "You're safe. I'm Mira, the head healer. You fainted at the border. King Cassian brought you here himself."
I looked around wildly. "Where... where is he?"
"The king? He's meeting with his advisors. But he left strict orders to take care of you." Mira smiled. "He was quite insistent. Said anyone who mistreated you would answer to him personally."
That made no sense. Why would the enemy king protect me?
"Here." Mira offered me a bowl of soup. "Eat slowly. Your stomach needs to adjust."
The soup was warm and delicious. I ate too fast and had to slow down when my stomach cramped.
"Why is he being kind to me?" I asked between bites. "Everyone says he's cruel. That he kills prisoners."
Mira laughed. "King Cassian? Cruel? Child, whoever told you that was lying. He's the best king we've ever had. Fair, just, and fiercely protective of his people."
"But the stories—"
"Are propaganda," Mira said firmly. "Your kingdom spreads lies about us to justify their attacks. The truth is, we've been defending ourselves for years. King Cassian has never started a war. He only finishes them."
My head spun. Everything I believed was turning upside down.
"Rest now," Mira said, standing up. "Tomorrow, the king wants to speak with you. He has questions."
Questions. About what? About my "crimes"? About my family?
Mira left, and I lay back on the surprisingly soft cot. Through the tent opening, I could see the castle in the distance.
Valcrest Castle. The enemy stronghold.
My new prison.
Except... it didn't feel like a prison. The healer was kind. The soldiers who'd carried me here were gentle. And King Cassian...
The way he'd looked at me. Not with hatred or lust or cruelty.
With anger—yes. But anger at the people who'd hurt me, not at me.
"You're safe now," he'd said.
Why did I almost believe him?
I touched my mother's necklace and closed my eyes, exhaustion pulling me under.
I didn't know how long I slept. But I woke to voices outside the tent.
"—absolutely not. She's too weak. It's too soon."
"The king wants to see her. Now."
"Then the king can wait. I'm the healer, and I say she needs rest."
"Mira—"
"I don't care if he's the king or the Moon Goddess herself. That girl has been starved and beaten. She needs time."
Silence. Then a different voice. Deeper. The one that had promised me safety.
"You're right, Mira. I apologize." King Cassian. "I'll wait until tomorrow. But I need to speak with her as soon as she's able. It's urgent."
"What's so urgent?" Mira demanded.
Another pause. Then, quietly: "Her father is planning to invade within the week. And she's the only one who might know how to stop it."
My blood turned to ice.
Father was planning an invasion? Of Valcrest?
But that would mean... that would mean the war wasn't about defense at all.
It was about conquest.
And he'd used me—his own daughter—to create the perfect distraction.
The voices faded as they moved away.
I lay frozen in the cot, my mind racing.
Father hadn't just framed me to cover his crimes. He'd framed me to start a war.
A war where thousands would die.
And it was all my fault.
No. Not my fault. His fault.
But I was the only one who could stop it.
I sat up slowly, my body aching. Tomorrow, I'd talk to King Cassian. I'd tell him everything I knew about my father's plans, his allies, his weaknesses.
I'd betray my own kingdom.
But my kingdom had betrayed me first.
And maybe—just maybe—I could save innocent lives on both sides.
I touched my mother's necklace one more time.
"Mama," I whispered, "I hope you'd understand. I hope you'd forgive me."
Outside the tent, I heard footsteps. Coming closer.
Then stopping right outside.
A shadow fell across the tent entrance.
Someone was watching me.
My heart pounded. "Who's there?"
No answer.
The shadow moved. Disappeared.
But before it did, I saw something that made my breath catch.
A glimpse of a cloak. Red silk. Expensive.
The same cloak my stepmother wore.
Ravenna was here. In Valcrest.
But that was impossible. Unless...
Unless she'd followed me here for a reason.
To make sure I died before I could talk.