The Betrayal
Blood bubbled past my lips as I stared at the sword protruding from my chest. The ornate hilt—engraved with our family's crest—was clutched in the hand of the man I'd called brother.
"Edric...why?" I choked out. My knees hit the marble floor, the cold seeping through my ceremonial armor.
My eldest brother leaned down, his golden hair falling across his face like a noble's veil. His breath smelled of mint and wine as he whispered:
"Did you truly believe I'd let a half-blood bastard sit on our father's throne?"
The blade twisted. White-hot pain exploded through my ribs as my vision darkened at the edges.
"You were always too trusting, Kael." Edric's voice came from far away now. "Mother's been poisoning your real mother for years. Little Liora will join her soon—"
My final breath wasn't a scream, but a vow.
If I could do it all again...
Darkness swallowed me.
Then—
PAIN.
I drew breath in a ragged gasp, but instead of death rattle, my lungs filled with the piercing wail of a newborn.
What—?
Blinding light. Smothering cloth. Giant faces swimming above me.
"—healthy boy, Your Majesty!"
That voice. I knew that voice.
Matron Helga? But she died when I was—
A woman's exhausted face came into focus above me. Sweat-dampened auburn hair. Eyes the color of summer leaves.
Mother.
Not the queen. My real mother—the servant-turned-consort who'd died when I was seven. Who I now realized had been murdered.
A meaty hand thrust into my vision, bearing a familiar signet ring.
"Let me see my son."
Every fiber of my infant body froze.
Father.
As the king lifted me, I saw them—the entire royal court gathered in the birthing chamber. And there, standing closest to the throne, a beautiful woman in emerald silks met my gaze.
Queen Isolde.
Her rosebud lips curved into a smile as she reached to touch my forehead.
"Such a... ordinary child," she cooed.
Ice shot through my veins. Not metaphorical ice—actual, physical cold that made the torches gutter. The queen's manicured finger burned where it pressed between my brows, some dark magic seeping into my skull.
A sealing spell!
Instinct took over. The Omni-Core that had lain dormant in my past life flared to life behind my ribs.
The queen gasped.
The king frowned. "Isolde?"
"Nothing, my love." She recovered with practiced grace, though her eyes had gone sharp. "Just startled me with his grip."
But as they handed me back to my mother, the queen lingered.
And when our eyes met again—
She knew.