Chapter 2 The Golden Cage

The King didn’t walk me to his chambers. He marched me there, his hand clamped around my wrist like a shackle of hot iron. Every servant we passed hit the floor, pressing their foreheads to the stones. They were terrified of him, but they were looking at me like I was a ghost.

I was the girl who hadn't burned.

The doors to the Royal Suite slammed shut behind us. Solis let go of my wrist, and I stumbled back, rubbing the red mark his heat had left on my skin. The room was massive, filled with gold and white silk, but it felt like a furnace.

"Who sent you?" Solis asked.

His voice was quiet now, which was much scarier than his shouting. He started unbuckling his gold chest plate, letting the heavy metal thud onto the floor.

"I am the daughter of House Damaris," I lied, my voice trembling. "I am Lady."

"Stop." He took a step toward me.

Without the armor, I could see the glow through his thin white shirt. His skin was pulsing with light, like a coal that refused to go out.

"The Damaris girl has golden hair and smells like expensive perfume," he hissed, narrowing his eyes. "You smell like starlight thread and cheap soap. You have the calluses of a weaver on your fingers. You are a servant."

My heart stopped. I looked at the door, but two guards stood outside. There was no escape.

"If you know I'm a fake, why didn't you kill me in the hall?" I demanded, my fear turning into a sharp, bitter anger. "Why bring me here?"

Solis moved so fast I didn't see him reach for me. He pinned me against the wall, his hands on either side of my head. He didn't touch me, but the heat coming off his body made my skin prickle.

"Because for five years, I haven't been able to touch a single living thing without turning it to ash," he growled. His face was inches from mine. I could see the flecks of fire in his golden eyes. "My dogs died. My horse died. The last woman who tried to kiss me is a pile of dust in the garden."

He looked down at my cheek, the spot he had touched.

"But you didn't burn. Why?"

"I don't know!" I cried. "I was forced to come here. The Damaris family took me from my home. They told me that if I didn't pretend to be their daughter, they would kill my mother. I’m just a Weaver, Solis! I’m nothing!"

"You are nothing," he whispered. His gaze dropped to my lips.

For a second, the anger in his eyes turned into something else. It was a deep, aching loneliness. He looked like a man starving for water, and I was the only well in the desert.

He slowly reached out a bare hand. I held my breath. When his fingers brushed my neck, I felt that same jolt of cold energy. It wasn't painful. It was... electric.

Solis let out a shaky breath, closing his eyes. "I can feel your pulse," he whispered. "It’s been so long since I felt a heartbeat that wasn't my own."

I should have been terrified, but all I could think about was how much I hated the people who put me here. The Solar Council, the Damaris family, and the priests all used us. They used me as a sacrifice, and they used Solis as a weapon.

"They're going to kill me when they find out," I said, looking up at him. "The Council. They won't let a servant sit on a throne."

"The Council does what I tell them," Solis said, his eyes snapping open. The softness was gone, replaced by a dark, regal pride. "You are my miracle, little liar. And I don't give up what belongs to me."

He leaned in, his forehead resting against mine. "Stay with me. Play the part of the Queen. If you do, I will give you everything you ever wanted. I will give you the heads of the people who kidnapped you."

My blood hummed. Revenge. It was a beautiful word.

"And if I refuse?" I asked.

"Then I’ll hand you over to the High Priest," he said coldly. "And he likes to burn heretics slowly."

I looked at him, this cursed, beautiful monster. I had no choice. I had to survive long enough to tear down the people who treated me like trash.

"Fine," I whispered. "I'll be your queen."

Solis smirked, a dangerous, victorious look. But before he could speak, the doors burst open.

Lady Seraphine Damaris marched in, her face pale with fury. Behind her stood three high priests of the Solar Council.

"Your Majesty!" Seraphine cried, pointing a finger at me. "You must stop this madness! This girl is an impostor! We found the real Lady Damaris tied up in her carriage. This girl is a common weaver thief who tried to steal the crown!"

The priests stepped forward, their golden robes rustling. "If this is true," the oldest priest said, his voice like ice, "the girl must be executed immediately for polluting the royal bloodline. Guards, seize her!"

Solis didn't move. He didn't let go of my waist. Instead, he pulled me closer, his skin beginning to glow with a blinding, violent light.

"The first man who touches her," Solis roared, "burns."

But the high priest didn't stop. He held up a silver locket. "We don't need to touch her to prove it. This locket reacts to moon magic. If she is a weaver, she carries the forbidden blood of the moon. And if she does..."

The locket began to glow a deep, haunting blue.

The room went deathly silent. In the Sun Empire, moon magic was a death sentence. It wasn't just a crime; it was a curse.

The priest looked at me with horror. "She isn't just a servant. She’s an abomination."

The guards drew their swords. Solis looked down at me, his grip tightening until it hurt. His eyes were wide with a new kind of shock.

"Eara," he hissed. "What are you?"