MasukI was arranging my bag for our trip to meet my mother, my hands moving almost on autopilot while my mind was miles away. I stood there, lost in thought. After twenty-three years of silence, I would finally get to meet her.
‘I wonder what she’ll be like,’ I thought. Would she be angry to see me? Would she see me as a reminder of a past she wanted to forget, or would she welcome me as her child? The thought made my heart swell with a painful mix of anticipation and nervousnI was arranging my bag for our trip to meet my mother, my hands moving almost on autopilot while my mind was miles away. I stood there, lost in thought. After twenty-three years of silence, I would finally get to meet her. ‘I wonder what she’ll be like,’ I thought. Would she be angry to see me? Would she see me as a reminder of a past she wanted to forget, or would she welcome me as her child? The thought made my heart swell with a painful mix of anticipation and nervousness. Whatever the outcome was, I told myself I would accept it wholeheartedly. I just needed the truth. I swung my bag over my shoulder and headed downstairs to meet Lucien. I reached the car and dropped my bag into the back seat, leaning against the door while I waited for him to arrive. He showed up in no time, looking serious and determined. “You ready?” he asked as soon as he saw me. I beamed at him, pulling my jacket closer to m
“That went great,” I said breathlessly, standing up and surveying the wreckage of the library. My heart was still hammering against my ribs from the adrenaline of the switch. “You think?” Lucien replied, his voice dripping with his usual dry sarcasm. He was leaning against a mahogany pillar, his eyes scanning the cracked floorboards. “What even possessed you two to think this was a good idea?” I asked, looking between them. My head was still fuzzy, the residual coldness of Serene’s presence lingering in my veins. “It wasn't me. She came up with this idea on her own,” Lucien said, pointing his chin toward Madame Vivienne. She was slowly pushing herself up from the ground, brushing dust off her skirts. “If I had a say in it, we wouldn’t have done it.” “I didn’t account for her acting this way,” Vivienne admitted, her voice slightly shaken. She looked at the center of the room where the wind had been st
I stood in the middle of the library, the air thick with the smell of old parchment and the heavy weight of what was about to happen. I was waiting for Lucien to appear. We had all had a day of rest to recover from the bombshells dropped yesterday, but now it was time to get back into the thick of it. I sighed again for what felt like the hundredth time. “He is probably busy with something. He will be here soon,” Madame Vivienne said, her voice soft as she tried to reason with me. She was likely sensing my unrest; my heart was drumming a frantic rhythm against my ribs. “What’s taking him so long?” I voiced out, the annoyance evident in my tone. I did nothing to hide how I felt. I was tired of waiting, tired of being the piece on the board that everyone else moved around. Vivienne stood there staring at me, her expression patient. “Again, he will be here soon. Just give him time,”
“What do you mean?” Lucien asked, his brow furrowed in genuine puzzlement, as if I had just suggested the most absurd thing to exist on the face of the earth. “I wish to meet my mother. What’s so difficult to understand about that?” “No,” he said flatly. His voice was a wall of granite, leaving absolutely no room for argument or negotiation. “What do you mean, ‘no’?” I asked, stepping closer to him until I was deep in his personal space. I felt a familiar, hot rage boiling up in my chest, pushing against my ribs. “Don’t you understand? No is a full sentence,” he said. Without another word, he turned his back on me and left the room, his stride long and purposeful. “Seraphina, I don’t think that’s a good idea—wanting to visit your birth mother,” Madame Vivienne said softly. She moved toward me, her face tight with concern, trying to persuade me to give up on my quest for answers b
I woke up to a soul-splitting headache that felt like my skull was being ripped open. I couldn’t even find the words to describe the sensation; it was a rhythmic, agonizing throb that made every movement feel like a chore. The influx of morning sunlight pouring through the curtains did nothing to help. In fact, the brightness only intensified the pain, stabbing at my eyes. ‘I really hate mornings today,’ I thought, pulling the covers over my head. Usually, I would be up and about, tidying my things and minding my business, staying productive to keep my mind quiet. But today, I didn't want to get up. I just wanted to be one with my mattress, to sink into the fabric and disappear. The conversation from yesterday kept replaying in my head like a cursed record. The truth about where I came from—the Valentine blood, the Blackwood lineage, the twin brother I never got to hold. It hurt. I felt fresh tears prick at my eyes at th
My father was executed... by his? “Look, I know you may hate me for what my father did,” Lucien started to speak, his voice desperate to bridge the widening gap between us. “But that doesn't—” “Get out.” I cut him off before he could finish another word. The air in the room felt like it had been sucked out, replaced by a cold, suffocating vacuum. He looked hurt—genuinely wounded that I would dismiss him so easily—but I didn't have any sympathy left to give. “Seraphina, I know—” he tried again, taking a step toward me. “You don’t know anything, Lucien!” I screamed at him. The sound ripped from my throat. “You can’t even begin to fathom what I feel right now!” I could feel the agitation vibrating in my limbs, the power in my blood reacting to the sheer chaos of my heart. “My entire birth family is dead, and it’s thanks to your father,” I said, my voice wobbling on the final word. “So don’t you da
The kitchen was my sanctuary, and the rolling pin was my weapon. I worked with a manic intensity, channeling all the fear, confusion, and adrenaline from the village into the dough. Fold. Roll. Chill. Repeat. I knew what they were now. Or at least, I suspected. The glowing eyes in the diner, the
I woke up in a bed that cost more than my entire life. The room Mrs. Higgins had given me was in the servants' quarters, but it was still nicer than anything I’d ever owned. Silk sheets, a private bathroom, and a window overlooking the dense, fog-covered forest. I remembered the rules Lucien—Mon
I turned to head up the stairs, my heart pounding in my ears. I was shaking, but for the first time in my life, I felt light. The secret was out. The poison was drained. "Wait." The voice was barely a whisper, but it stopped me cold. I turne
The room was spinning, my cheek throbbing in time with my racing heart. I touched my face, my fingers coming away warm."You hit me," I said, my voice trembling not with fear, but with a cold, shaking rage."You deserved it!" Thomas bellowed, his chest heaving. "And more! You insolent brat! After e







