Chapter 3
Seraphina's POV
Caelen froze for a second. His face went dark.
"Have you lost your FUCKING mind? Impersonating royalty? Trying to get yourself KILLED?"
"I'm not lying!" I grabbed his sleeve. "Father—he covered it up—nobody knows I left—"
"ENOUGH!" He yanked his arm away. "You disappoint me, Sera. There's a limit to lying. This is the capital, not your backwoods shack. Spouting this crap will get your head chopped off."
"I really AM the Princess—" Pain wracked me. Cold sweat poured down. "Caelen—please—get a physician—I'm DYING—"
"ENOUGH!" He stood, straightening his collar. "Stop being dramatic. You won't die from a miscarriage."
He turned to the guards outside: "Lock her up. Nobody gets in without my say-so."
He paused, eyes sweeping over me: "If she keeps running her mouth—gag her."
Then he left without looking back.
I collapsed, watching him disappear.
The pain in my lower abdomen intensified. I could feel it—something leaving my body.
The child I'd dreamed of every day.
The little life that had been in my belly for three months.
Slipping away.
I curled up in the pool of blood and passed out.
After losing the child, I was kept prisoner like a corpse in that room.
No one cared. No one treated me. I just lay in dried blood, fading in and out. Time became meaningless. Couldn't even tell day from night.
Don't know how long before the door exploded open.
"BANG—!"
I jolted awake, forced my head up.
Victoria stood in the doorway, flanked by several vicious-looking servants and a black-robed witch.
She strolled in, glanced at my blood-soaked form, sat down in a chair, and leisurely sipped tea.
"Tsk. So YOU'RE Sera. Pathetic little thing." She laughed lightly. "Don't blame me though. The child in MY belly has to be the firstborn. That's the only way I can hold my head up in the Governor's mansion, right?"
I braced myself against the bed frame and stood. "So you had to kill MY child?"
"Oh my, you're accusing me wrongly." Victoria blinked innocently. "Caelen put the poison in himself. He's the one who didn't want the child. I just planted the idea."
I stared at her, nails digging into my palms.
She stood and walked over, hand gently caressing her abdomen: "Besides, even if your brat lived, it'd just be a bastard. Now that it's gone, saves everyone trouble."
She turned to a servant: "Bring that over."
A servant stepped forward holding a black wooden box.
Victoria opened it. Inside were several pitch-black seeds covered in barbs.
"These are Ashenthorn seeds." Her smile was sweet. "Once these little guys get inside you, they'll grow like crazy. Thorned vines will wrap around your womb, and then—"
She made a crushing gesture.
"You'll never get pregnant again. Perfect. No more bastards crawling out later to fight for scraps."
"No—" I backed away in horror, but two burly servants immediately lunged forward and pinned me down.
"Lady Mara, if you would." Victoria said gracefully.
The black-robed witch approached, dark purple magic circles forming in her hands.
"NO—! Stop!" I struggled frantically, but the servants' grips were iron.
The witch's hand pressed against my lower abdomen.
The seeds forced their way into my body, driven by magic.
"AHHH—!!!"
No words for the pain.
Like barbed wire growing wild inside, tearing through everything.
"FATHER—!" I screamed until my voice gave out. "Save me—! FATHER—!!"
"SLAP—!"
Victoria's hand cracked across my face.
"SHUT UP! God, you're loud!"
"I AM—" I choked out through tears. "I'm Seraphina—I'm the Princess—"
Victoria froze. Then burst out laughing.
"You? The Princess?" She laughed until tears came. "Princess Seraphina is the Empire's most noble woman, heir to the Progenitor Golden Dragon. Look at yourself. A dirty peasant? You think you qualify?"
She crouched down, gripping my chin, eyes full of contempt.
"I've seen Princess Seraphina's portrait." She looked me over. "You bear some resemblance at most. Cheap imitation at best."
She released me, wiping her fingers in disgust: "Some mud-stinking commoner thinks she can pretend to be a princess?"
The pain in my abdomen hit its peak. I could feel those vines growing wildly inside, crushing everything.
"Father—" I whispered weakly. "Save me—"
"Still calling for him?!" Victoria's hand flew again.
Just then, urgent footsteps sounded outside.
Victoria's face changed. Terror flooded her features, staggering back just as Caelen burst through the door—
"AH—!"
She crumpled, clutching her stomach, face white as death.
"Victoria!" Caelen rushed to her side.
"Caelen!" I reached out, crying for help. "Save me! She—"
"Caelen—" Victoria cut me off weakly. "I just came to see how she was... then she went CRAZY and attacked me!"
"WHAT?!"
"My stomach!" Victoria curled up in pain. "It hurts! The baby! My baby..."
Caelen's head snapped toward me, veins bulging on his forehead.
"You VICIOUS woman!"
"No!" I shook my head weakly. "It wasn't me! She's framing me—"
"ENOUGH!" Caelen roared, scooping Victoria up. "Jealousy drove you INSANE! You'd attack a PREGNANT woman?!"
He shouted to the guards outside: "Throw her in the dungeon! Without my orders, she does NOT come out!"
He shouted to the guards: "Get in here! Drag this bitch to the dungeon!"
