Darius.
He looked at me the way he used to. Before the throne room. Before the proposal. Before he shattered me.
“Alice.” His voice cracked. “I am so sorry. You’re everything to me.” He reached for my face, his fingers trembling. “Please forgive me.”
It felt real. So real.
But it couldn’t be.
“Wake her up,” a hard female voice said.
“Alice, wake up.” Someone shook me hard and I groaned, my arms screaming from the chains still biting into my wrists.
The dream shattered like broken teacups. Darius’ silver eyes faded. His touch vanished. The warmth of him dissolved into cold, damp air.
And instead of Darius standing before me, it was Queen Alanna—dressed in a blood-red gown, diamonds glittering at her throat—and Ari lurking behind her like a faithful dog.
The other cells were empty. I tried not to think about what that meant.
“Were you dreaming?” Alanna tilted her head, her smile sharp as a blade. “Dreaming about Darius?” She laughed—a cold, brittle sound. “A man you’ll never have. Especially after tonight.”
I scowled at her, too tired and too broken to care about consequences. “What’s tonight?”
“My wedding, of course.”
The words sliced through me.
Tonight. Not tomorrow. Not someday. Tonight.
Whatever fragile hope I’d been clinging to—Chester’s riddles, the idea that Darius had sacrificed himself for me, the desperate belief that somehow this nightmare would end—shattered into a thousand jagged pieces.
There was no way I could free him. No rescue. No escape.
Tonight Darius would belong to her forever.
And I was stuck here, useless.
“Once Darius is my king, I can’t afford to keep you alive.” Alanna stepped closer, her perfume clashing with the stench of the dungeon. “You’d be too much of a distraction. A loose thread that needs snipping.”
She reached out and lifted my chin with one cold finger.
“I wouldn’t get too attached to that pretty head of yours, Alice.” Her smile widened. “After midnight, you won’t be needing it.”
She laughed—delighted by her own cruelty—and the sound made my heart turn cold.
“Come, Ari.” She waved her hand in the air. “We have much to do to prepare for tonight.”
She radiated triumph like a hunter displaying her kill. Why wouldn’t she be? She had everything. The kingdom. The crown. And soon, Darius.
Ari followed her without a word. Without even a glance in my direction.
My stomach dropped.
He was supposed to be working on getting the key to unlock my binding bracelets. He’d promised to help me escape. Had he lied? Had this all been another trap?
The black web bracelet pulsed against my wrist—a cold reminder of my oath.
I was bound to him upon pain of death. If I didn’t help him escape, I would die. But if he’d abandoned me...
