Chapter 57
Yet I couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched.
My breath quickened, steps becoming faster, more urgent. I turned another corner, only to find myself facing a corridor that looked exactly like the last three I’d walked down
Frustration built within me, mingling dangerously with the rising fear.
Footsteps echoed softly from somewhere behind, barely audible yet unmistakably there. My heart slammed against my ribs as panic tightened its grip.
Without thinking, I darted forward, breaking into a run.
My footsteps were loud, reckless, and I could hear the other set matching my pace, coming closer.
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Breathing sharply, I stumbled around another comer, blindly reaching for something—anything—to hide behind. My hand caught against the edge of a tapestry hanging on the wall. In my panic, I tugged too hard, and instead of merely providing cover, the tapestry tore aside, revealing a narrow, hidden door.
I didn’t hesitate.
Quickly pulling the hidden door open, I slipped inside, shutting it quietly behind me. I stood there, heart hammering wildly, pressing my ear against the wood.
Silence.
Whatever or whoever had been chasing me was gone.
Exhaling slowly, I finally turned, squinting in the dimly lit chamber I’d stumbled into. The air was thick with dust and smelled of lime and sweets.
I gulped. Wondering if it was Alaric who chased me.
Could it be him?
maybe in beast form wanting to eat ine alive. Okay no that’s just an awful thought. I shook my head trying to stay calm.
Cautiously, I stepped forward, eyes slowly adjusting to the darkness.
My pulse gradually steadied, and curiosity replaced my fear as I realized I’d found something hidden.
A secret lair.
It was so private that one would never even know a door was there.
The room was small, with only a single pedestal placed carefully in the center. Atop it sat a delicate glass case, illuminated faintly by
some unseen source.
Inside the case rested a single glowing petal, radiant and mesmerizing, shimmering softly with hues of violet and gold.
I stepped closer, breath caught in my throat, utterly entranced. There was something aboutit, a gentle pull that whispered to me, urging me forward. I stopped just short of touching the glass, my fingers trembling slightly as reached out instinctively.
The glow intensified for a brief moment, as if acknowledging my presence, welcoming me
“What is this?” I whispered, barely audible.
There was two answer, only the steady, ethereal glow. It felt strangely alive, as though it sensed me standing there. Something tugged gently inside my chest, a familiarity I couldn’t explain.
A feeling that can’t like home as I watched it, warmth seeped through my bones, chasing away the lingering chill and fear
Was this linked to Alarie’s curse?
My marad raced, countless questions wiring, yet I was hesitant to voice them. The petal pulsed softly again, almost in javitation
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8:32 PM
Chapter 57
I frowned slightly, torn between caution and a compelling desire to touch it, to feel the soft glow against my fingertips.
There was a reason it was kept hidden yet… it calls to me. For me to touch it.
Taking a slow, steady breath, I reached out once more, my hand mere inches from the glass, my heart thundering with anticipation.
“Liana!” A sharp voice broke through the silence, loud and abrupt.
I gasped, pulling my hand back quickly. My eyes darted wildly, searching the room, my heart racing once again.
Alaric stood in the open doorway, his face a mask of barely–contained fury. His eyes burned with anger, but beneath it was something else–fear.
“What the hell are you doing in here?” he demanded, voice low and dangerous.
“I–I was lost, and I found-” I gestured weakly toward the pedestal.
His eyes widened slightly, his jaw tightening even more. In three long strides, he closed the distance between us, grabbing my wrist roughly and pulling me away from the pedestal.
“Don’t ever touch it,” he hissed, eyes darkening. His eyes widened slightly, his jaw tightening even more. In three long strides, he closed the distance between us, grabbing my wrist roughly and pulling me away from the pedestal.
“Don’t ever touch it,” he hissed, eyes darkening.
I blinked, startled by the sheer panic in his voice. “Alaric, I wasn’t going to—”
“You were,” he snapped, voice low and shaking. “You would’ve. If I hadn’t shown up.”
I swallowed, confused and a little hurt. “It was calling to me. I didn’t even know what it was.”
“It doesn’t matter what it was doing,” he growled. “That petal–if you touched it…” He paused, chest rising and falling fast. “Do you want me to lose what’s left of my soul?”
His words hit me harder than I expected.
My gaze dropped to the floor. “I didn’t know.”
“That’s exactly the problem, Liana. You didn’t know. You come into places you shouldn’t. You poke at things you don’t understand.”
“I didn’t ask to be dragged into this madness,” I snapped, my voice rising now, trembling from the sharp edge of his tone. “I didn’t ask to be cursed alongside you!”
He flinched like I’d struck him, and I regretted it instantly.
“I didn’t mean-
“No,” he muttered, releasing my wrist abruptly. “You did.”
We stared at each other in the thick silence that followed, the glow of the petal still soft behind us, almost mocking.
Alaric dragged a hand through his hair, turning away from me. “Just… leave it alone, Liana. Leave this alone.”
I opened my mouth, but he didn’t give me a chance.
“Go,” he muttered. “You should be focused on your precious harvest gathering. That’s what matters right now, isn’t it?”
I frowned. “You’re angry,”
“No,” he said, with a bitter laugh. “I’m exhausted. I’m trying to stay alive. I’m trying not to lose myself completely. And yet–every time I see you near that petal, every time I remember how close I am to becoming something I can’t come back from…”
His voice trailed off, but the weight of it lingered in the air.
“I didn’t mean to upset you,” I said softly.
His shoulder tensed “Too late.”
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8:32 PM ·
Chapter 37
15
I bit the inside of my cheek, my pride screaming at me to argue, to yell, to demand something more. But I didn’t. I couldn’t. He looked… wrecked.
Still, I had to know. “Is that… what Cecelia was talking about?”
He turned halfway toward me, eyes flashing. “She spoke to you about it?”
“Not everything,” I admitted. “But she mentioned it. The petals. That you’re tied to them.”
He scoffed. “Of course she did.”
“think she was trying to warn me. She said none of the others made it past the harvest. That the mating ceremony…”
He cut in sharply. “We’re not discussing this.”
“Why not?”
“Because it doesn’t concern you.”
“Yes,” I said, stepping closer. “Yes, it does. I’m the one being sent to the rebel king. I’m the one being forced into this harvest show. And I’m the one expected to–what? Survive a curse no one else has?”
His jaw clenched, but he didn’t look away.
“You’re the one who dragged me into this rehen king shit,” I whispered. “So you don’t get to decide what I should or shouldn’t know.”
He stared at me, his expression unreadable.
Then finally, with a sigh that sounded far too tired for a king, he said, “Just… stay away from that room, Liana. Please.”
That single word–please–disarmed me more than any threat he could’ve made.
I nodded slowly.
“I will.”
He didn’t speak again, didn’t even look back as he turned and walked away, the weight of the castle seeming to settle on his shoulders as he disappeared into the shadows.
! stood alone in the corridor, pulse still racing, heart
aching with questions I wasn’t sure I wanted answers to.
And the petal?
It kept glowing.
I close my eyes and when I did. I saw the rose and a petal…fell.
