Lyla stood before her mirror, the letter now tucked safely inside her trunk. Her reflection smirked back at her—cheeks flushed from excitement, black hair braided in long waves down her back.
“The King wants me near,” she murmured, adjusting a small ruby pin on her collar. “Finally.”
She had watched from a distance as the royal messenger handed the letter to her father. She saw the flash of surprise on their faces. But none of that mattered now. She was going to the palace. His palace. A dream come true.
Lyla smiled wider.
This was her chance.
---
The castle loomed large as the carriage rolled past its iron gates.
Lyla stepped down from the carriage with the grace of a noblewoman, her eyes drinking in the towering walls, the courtyards brimming with silence, and the guards who stoo
