Snake
The golden sun had long fallen behind the veil of clouds that hung permanently over the royal keep. Rain tapped soft fingers against the high arched windows, whispering secrets too old for mortal tongues.
In the heart of the east wing, behind thick velvet drapes and ivory doors carved with lions devouring serpents, Crown Prince Derek sat alone in his study.
The room was silent save for the low crackle of the hearth and the slow pour of red wine into a goblet of polished gold. He watched the crimson swirl lazily inside the cup before lifting it to his lips. The taste was rich. Heavy. Unimportant.
He'd already heard enough.
A discreet knock sounded at the door. He didn't look up.
"Let her in," he said.
The door opened, and Princess Selene entered with a rustle of layered silks and calculation. It was the first time she had seen the Crown Prince in the flesh. And for a moment, her breath hitched.
He was not as she imagined not the cold, distant heir from the portraits. There was warmth in his features, but it was misleading, like the stillness of a snake basking in sunlight. His eyes gray as storm light watched her like a blade watches a throat.
And she remembered.How he had summoned Elowen, not her.A maid.By name.
The jealousy twisted sharp in her chest, but she buried it quickly beneath a smile.
"You summoned me, Your Highness?" she said, voice light, respectful practiced.
Derek didn't smile back.
He gestured to the chair across from him without a word. Selene sat, hands folded neatly in her lap.
A long silence stretched between them, filled only by the sound of the fire and Derek's soft breathing. He studied her like parchment, reading not her words, but her margins.
Then, calmly:
"Do you know Elowen?"
The question was simple. But something in the way he said it slow, deliberate felt like a chess piece moving.
Selene's spine straightened. "Yes, I do. She's a maid. Or… was."
Derek nodded once. "And how did you meet her?"
Selene smiled, perfectly timed. "At the Eastern Province, Your Highness. In the market. She caught my attention clever, quick-witted. I took her into my service."
Derek's eyes flickered, but not at the lie at how polished it was. Too smooth. Too rehearsed.
"And where is she now?" he asked.
Selene's lashes fluttered just once. "Missing," she said softly. "No one's seen her in days. I… don't know where she's gone."
A breath passed.Derek took a sip from the goblet.Set it down.
Then, in one sharp movement crack he threw it against the far wall.
Gold and glass exploded across the marble like shrapnel.
Selene jumped.
The silence afterward was thicker than blood.
Derek stood slowly, adjusting the cuffs of his black tunic, the firelight kissing the sharp lines of his cheekbones. When he spoke, his voice was low and controlled terrifying in its composure.
"Do not insult me again, Princess."
Selene's heart slammed against her ribs. "I swear, I don't"
"You had her beaten," Derek said flatly. "You had her humiliated. My investigator found the old records. Her transfer papers. Her chamber. Your guards."
Selene froze.
He stepped closer, voice still calm. "And now she's vanished. Tell me where. Is. She?"
Her face remained poised, but her fingers curled against her lap.Xyril's words rang loud in her skull: Never reveal the truth. If you lose your place, you lose everything.
"I don't know," she whispered.
Derek stared at her for a long time. Then turned away.
"Chief Messenger," he called.
A figure stepped from the shadowed hall beyond the chamber doors. Mawi, draped in the deep violet robes of the royal herald, stepped forward and bowed.
"Yes, Your Highness?"
"Tomorrow morning, you'll make a public announcement," Derek said without looking at Selene. "Princess Selene will be stepping down from her position as one of the Chosen. She will return to her homeland with full escort and formal apology from the crown."
Selene gasped, rising from her chair.
"No wait Your Highness, please"
Derek turned to her, eyes hard now.
"You abused a girl under your charge. You lied to the future king. You insulted the process of the Selection."
Her lips parted, desperate. "If I go back now my title my alliances the dowries everything I built"
"Will burn," he said.
She staggered. Her vision tunneled.
The palace had been her stage. The marriage her throne. The crown a breath away. If she left, it would all collapse. Her father would see her as a failure. The other kingdoms would see her as discarded. No second chance. No second prince.
"I can still be of use," she whispered. "I can still serve the crown serve you."
Derek stepped close again. His voice dropped to a whisper meant only for her.
"I do not need snakes in my bed, Selene. And I do not reward cruelty."
He turned without waiting for her reply.
"Escort the Princess back to her quarters," he told Mawi. "She leaves at dawn."
Selene stood frozen for a moment longer trembling not from fear, but fury.
Elowen had ruined her.That girl.
No. This wasn't over.