Seraphina's POV
I grabbed the fireplace poker and pressed myself against the wall.
"Seraphina," my stepmother's voice cooed through the door. "Open up, darling. Let Mama help you."
My hands shook on the poker. "Where's Elena? What did you do to her?"
Silence. Then a laugh. Cold and cruel.
"Oh, that servant? She's... sleeping. Don't worry about her. Worry about yourself."
The door handle rattled harder. She was trying to break in.
I looked around frantically. The window was too high to jump from. No other exits. I was trapped.
"You can't hide forever, you little brat," Ravenna snarled, her sweet voice gone. "Your father wants you dead, and I always finish what he starts."
Boom!
She slammed against the door. The wood cracked.
I raised the poker, my heart hammering. One more hit and she'd break through—
The door across the room—the one leading to the bathing chamber—burst open.
I spun, ready to fight.
King Cassian stood there, sword drawn, his silver eyes blazing with fury.
"Get away from her!" he roared.
But he wasn't looking at me. He was looking past me, at the main door.
It exploded inward.
My stepmother rushed in—but she wasn't alone. Three men in black masks followed her, swords gleaming.
Assassins.
"Cassian, behind you!" I screamed.
He moved like lightning. His sword met the first assassin's blade with a clash of metal. They fought with deadly speed—thrust, parry, block.
I backed toward the fireplace, poker raised, as my stepmother smiled at me like a snake.
"Did you really think you'd be safe here?" she purred. "Your father has spies everywhere. Even in the Iron King's castle."
"You killed my mother!" I shouted. "You poisoned her!"
Her smile widened. "Took you long enough to figure it out. Yes, I killed that weak fool. She was going to expose your father's plans. I couldn't allow that."
Rage exploded in my chest. I swung the poker at her head.
She dodged easily and grabbed my wrist, twisting until I dropped the weapon. Pain shot up my arm.
"You're just like your mother," she hissed in my face. "Too soft. Too stupid. Too—"
A sword burst through her shoulder from behind.
Ravenna screamed and released me, stumbling forward. Behind her, Commander Rylan withdrew his blade, his face grim.
"The king said no one touches her," Rylan growled. "That includes you."
More guards poured into the room. The assassins tried to fight, but they were outnumbered. Within minutes, all three were subdued.
King Cassian kicked the last assassin's sword away and turned to me. "Are you hurt?"
I shook my head, unable to speak.
"Good." He grabbed my stepmother by her uninjured arm and hauled her up. "Lock her in the dungeons. Deep cells. Maximum security. I want guards on her every second."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Rylan said.
As they dragged Ravenna away, she looked back at me, blood dripping from her shoulder. "Your father will come for you! He'll burn this castle to the ground! You can't hide forever!"
Then she was gone.
I collapsed onto the bed, my whole body shaking.
King Cassian knelt in front of me. "Seraphina. Look at me."
I lifted my eyes to his.
"You're safe," he said firmly. "I promise. She can't hurt you now."
"Elena," I whispered. "She said she hurt Elena."
Cassian's jaw tightened. "Rylan, send someone to check on Elena immediately."
"Already done, Your Majesty. We found her unconscious in the hallway. She's alive, just drugged. The healers are with her now."
Relief flooded through me. Elena was alive.
"How did my stepmother get in?" I asked. "How did she know where I was?"
Cassian and Rylan exchanged dark looks.
"We have a spy in the castle," Cassian said quietly. "Someone gave her detailed information about our security, your location, everything."
A traitor. In Valcrest. Working for my father.
"I need to move you," Cassian continued. "Somewhere more secure. Somewhere only I know about."
"Where?"
His silver eyes locked on mine. "My personal chambers. No one enters without my permission. You'll be completely safe."
My cheeks flushed. "Your... your chambers?"
"I'll sleep elsewhere," he said quickly. "You'll have the room to yourself. But it's the most secure location in the castle."
Before I could respond, another guard rushed in.
"Your Majesty! We captured the spy!"
Everyone turned.
"Who is it?" Cassian demanded.
The guard looked sick. "It's... it's Lord Marcus, Your Majesty. Your chief advisor."
The room went silent.
Lord Marcus. The man who'd served Cassian for years. Who'd been at every meeting, knew every secret, had access to everything.
A traitor.
Cassian's face went cold as stone. "Bring him to the throne room. Now. We're going to have a public trial."
Three days passed in a blur.
I stayed in King Cassian's chambers like he'd ordered. The room was huge and comfortable, but I felt like a prisoner again—trapped for my own safety.
Servants brought me meals three times a day. Healers checked on me. But I saw no one else.
From the window, I watched the courtyard below. Soldiers trained. Servants worked. Life continued.
And every morning, King Cassian trained with his men.
I couldn't help but watch him.
He moved like a predator—fast, strong, graceful. His sword flashed in the sunlight. But what surprised me most was how he treated his soldiers.
He laughed with them. Clapped them on the shoulder when they did well. Offered advice instead of insults when they made mistakes.
He was nothing like the stories said. Nothing like my father.
My father would have beaten a soldier who failed. Cassian taught them and tried again.
"You're staring."
I jumped and turned.
Elena stood in the doorway, holding fresh towels. She looked pale but smiled at me.
"Elena!" I rushed over. "You're okay! I was so worried—"
"Takes more than a drug to keep me down," she said with a wink. "Though I have to say, waking up with the king's face hovering over mine was quite a shock."
Despite everything, I laughed.
Elena set down the towels and sat beside me. "You've been locked up for three days. The king wanted me to ask if you'd like to walk in the gardens today. Fresh air might do you good."
"Is it safe?"
"Commander Rylan and twenty guards will accompany you. Plus the king himself."
My heart skipped. "King Cassian will be there?"
Elena's eyes twinkled. "He insists on it. Says he doesn't trust anyone else with your safety." She leaned closer. "Between you and me, I think he likes you."
"Don't be ridiculous," I said quickly, my face heating. "I'm just... a responsibility. A political problem he has to solve."
"Mm-hmm. Keep telling yourself that."
An hour later, I walked through the most beautiful gardens I'd ever seen.
Flowers bloomed everywhere. Trees provided shade. A fountain bubbled peacefully in the center.
And beside me, King Cassian walked with his hands clasped behind his back, looking more relaxed than I'd ever seen him.
"Do you like it?" he asked.
"It's beautiful," I admitted. "Did you plant these yourself?"
"Some of them. My mother loved gardens. After she died, I kept hers alive. Added to it over the years." He touched a white rose gently. "She said gardens represent hope. That even in the darkest times, something beautiful can grow."
I thought of my own mother. "My mother loved gardens too. She had a small one at our estate. White roses were her favorite."
Cassian plucked the white rose he'd been touching and offered it to me. "Then this is yours."
I took it, our fingers brushing. A spark of something—electricity? awareness?—passed between us.
We walked in silence for a while, guards following at a respectful distance.
"Why are you being so kind to me?" I finally asked. "I'm the daughter of your enemy. The girl framed as a spy. I'm nothing but trouble."
He stopped and turned to face me fully. "You want the truth?"
"Please."
"Because when I look at you, I see myself fifteen years ago. Betrayed by people I trusted. Alone. Afraid. Convinced I'd never be safe again." His silver eyes softened. "Someone showed me kindness then. It saved my life. I'm simply returning the favor."
"Who showed you kindness?"
He smiled sadly. "Your mother."
I nearly dropped the rose. "What?"
"When I was sixteen and newly crowned, your mother came to Valcrest as a diplomat. She saw through my anger and pain. Treated me like a person, not a weapon." He paused. "She's the reason I became the king I am today instead of the monster everyone expected. I owe her everything."
Tears filled my eyes. "She never told me she came here."
"It was a secret mission. But she made a difference." He stepped closer. "You're like her, Seraphina. Strong, kind, resilient. And I refuse to let your father destroy that light the way he destroyed hers."
No one had ever spoken to me like that. Like I mattered. Like I was worth protecting.
"Thank you," I whispered.
He reached out and wiped a tear from my cheek, his touch gentle.
And in that moment, something shifted between us. Something dangerous and wonderful.
A guard's voice shattered the moment. "Your Majesty! Lord Marcus is demanding to speak with you. He claims he has information about Duke Aldric's invasion plans."
Cassian's expression hardened. "Tell him I'll be there shortly."
The guard left, and Cassian looked at me apologetically. "I have to go. Will you be alright?"
"Yes. Go. I'll be fine."
He hesitated, like he didn't want to leave. Then he bowed slightly. "Until dinner, Lady Seraphina."
He walked away with his guards, leaving me in the garden with Elena and a handful of soldiers.
I smelled the white rose and let myself smile for the first time in weeks.
Maybe, just maybe, I was starting to feel safe.
But as I turned to head back inside, I saw something that made my blood freeze.
A figure standing in the shadows near the garden wall. Watching me.
They wore a hooded cloak, face hidden. But I could feel their eyes on me.
"Elena," I said quietly, not looking away from the figure. "Do you see that person by the wall?"
Elena turned. "What person?"
I blinked, and the figure was gone. Vanished like smoke.
"I... I thought I saw someone."
Elena frowned. "The gardens are heavily guarded. No one could get in without permission."
But someone had been there. I knew it.
And they'd been watching me with an intensity that felt almost... familiar.
As we walked back to the castle, one thought circled in my mind:
My stepmother was locked in the dungeons. Lord Marcus was captured.
So who was the figure in the shadows?
And why did I have the terrible feeling that the real danger was just beginning?