Heir of Ashes

Chapter 11 : Eyes watching

This is it, I have pushed him too far.

I looked up at him into those green eyes that looked murderous at the moment. I have stopped breathing, and my mouth feels dry. Tears start to sting in my eyes. What have I done?

“Dad…” I tried. I was hoping I would get through to him.

“Shut up!” he roared in my face. I jolted, my muscles locking in fear.

If I could only explain why I did it, he might understand.

He won’t understand…

I swear his body was shaking in anger.

This was the moment. I would finally know what my mother goes through.

The door creaked open, shattering the tension. Air rushed into my lungs as his glare shifted to the intruder. I braced, wondering who would face his wrath—until I saw her.

Mom.

No, not her…not again.

She doesn’t yell. She doesn’t even glance at me first. She goes straight for him, grabbing his arm with a firm, unyielding hand. “That’s enough, Dominiq,” she says calmly, but with steel underneath the softness. “Enough!” she throws herself into his damning sight to protect me.

He jerks against her grip, furious, sputtering words I can’t make out. She holds him anyway, gently, like a parent restraining a child from running into fire.

“I’ve missed you, love. We haven’t spent time together just you and me.” She offers the words she knows will settle his demons. She drags him toward the door, his hands flailing just enough to remind me he’s still dangerous, still furious, still a storm that could break.

Once they’re gone, I sink to the floor near the piano, sliding down until my back hits the wall. My hands hover over the tattoo, like touching it could erase it, undo everything.

It won’t

And somehow, despite the terror, a tiny seed of resolve blooms. He saw it, yes. He exploded, yes. But I-I did it. I marked myself. I carved my rebellion into my skin. I close my eyes. My legs throb from standing so straight that it was impossible to move, my chest aches from how hard my heart had pounded in it, but the fear is tinged with something else…

Power. A dangerous, small, fragile power.

Tomorrow, he’ll see me again. He’ll rage again. But for now… I survived.

Later that day

Jana arrives breathless, the way she always does, like a gust of air you don’t realise you need until it’s already filled the room.

I love her for it.

I’m grateful we’re cousins. In some strange way, it means she doesn’t get to leave-she has to stay, has to be my friend. Because the truth is… if she weren’t, she probably would have given up on me a long time ago.

I’ve cancelled plans more times than I can count. Most of the time, she’s the one who comes here. We almost never get to go out, not like normal girls. I’ve stolen a few moments over the years, brief escapes, but never enough to make this feel like a real friendship.

I shut the door quickly behind her, trapping her inside my cage with me.

I’m still hiding from my father. He knows exactly where I am, he always does, but he hasn’t come. I’m sure that’s thanks to my mother, who distracted him and kept him occupied. She knows how to calm him. It usually means she’s sacrificing another piece of herself to appease him.

Guilt coils tight in my chest. I hate that I put her in that position.

That’s the problem-our lives are so intertwined. He uses me to control her, and her to control me. But I’m getting to a point where I don’t want to keep sacrificing parts of myself just to maintain the illusion of peace. I don’t want to become what she is now, a shell of who she used to be.

There’s no version of this where we both win.

“I need to show you something, but you can’t freak out, okay?” I said as I faced her. I was so excited to show her. No one has reacted pleasantly to my tattoo yet.

Her eyes go wide. “Oh gods, are you pregnant?”

“JANA-no.” I lift the hem of my dress, exposing the fresh ink running from my hip to my ankle.

She gasps. “Holy-Meira! What did your dad say? Even my dad would freak, and we both know he is the cooler one of the brothers." Heat rises to my cheeks. Pride. Shame. Maybe both. I trace the flowers, my softness, and the skull, my darkness, like reading a story I’m too afraid to say aloud.

“It felt…” I swallow. “It feels freeing. Like I finally chose something for myself. And when my father saw it, he lost his mind. But I didn’t care. Not really. For the first time, I felt like I had some control.” Jana beams, unaware of the weight behind my words. She only knows “strict father.” Not bruises on my mother. Not how silence becomes survival. Not how obedience is oxygen.

“You want to do it again-push the boundaries, don’t you?” she asks, her voice soft but knowing.

“Yes.” The answer slips out like a confession. “I want… more. Something normal. Something reckless. Something real.” It doesn’t have to be something extreme like a tattoo or defying my father, but I want to feel as free as I did when I got the tattoo.

She hesitates-but excitement wins. Jana cares. She wouldn’t want me to do something too reckless.

“There’s a place in Heartspan,” she whispers. “A secret club… The Basement. No one goes there unless they’re invited or important. But I’ve been with my one friend before. We can sneak you in next time we go. I don’t know when that will be, but the important thing is it’s right by the river that runs between Heartspan and Veridia. We’ll have to be careful that no one from Veridia actually sees you.”

Heartspan is encircled by a river that splits into four, each flowing toward one of the kingdoms, splitting the four Kingdoms. Every kingdom has a bridge that leads into Heartspan, connecting all of us to the city.

A dangerous thrill blooms in my chest.

A new taste of freedom. Another crack in my cage.

“Why haven’t I heard of it before?” If there is some fancy exclusive club in Heartspan, people would have been talking about it for sure.

“As I said, it’s mostly by invitation. But if you’re feeling brave, you can try your luck and see if the door opens for you. From the outside, it just looks like a run-down shack. It’s so cool-once you step inside, there’s a trapdoor that takes you underground into a tiny, dark room. A bouncer stands there with a door behind him, and a camera watches everything. Whoever is on the other side decides if you get in or not. People lucky enough to make it inside keep their mouths shut, afraid they won’t get in again. And the ones who don’t… well, they don’t have anything to brag about. I’ve even heard that if you blab, misfortune tends to find you.”

It’s crazy, an actual secret underground club right in the heart of Gemcrest, and no one outside knows about it.

“I definitely want to go there.” I gushed out in excitement. My whole body was buzzing at the idea of it. We spent the rest of the afternoon just hiding out in my room. I didn’t want to go and face my father. We didn’t have a lot to do, but we still enjoyed ourselves. We watched videos on our phones and talked about the gossip that was making the rounds at the moment. It was nice to have her here, and I am always sad when she eventually has to go home.

After she leaves

I don’t think.

I act.

The idea has been swirling in my mind all afternoon. I can’t stay in this castle-not if my father might come looking for me. Tonight, I’m going out… to that secret club.

First, I need to change my appearance. Jana was right; I don’t want anyone recognising me. The club might be a secret, but the Princess of Vermillia sneaking around at night? That would set the entire court buzzing.

I dig through my old dress-up trunk. I have quite a few disguises tucked inside. I used to love playing dress-up-anything to not be who I really was. My fingers wander until they close around a red bob wig. I dash to the mirror, smoothing my hair before tugging the wig into place. Red hair suits me. It makes sense-most of my mother’s family has red hair. Only she and Aunt Ava are blonde.

No one is really sure where my black hair fits in. When I was younger, people never let me forget it-they’d go on and on about it. My father’s family is all blonde, my mother’s side mostly redheads, with a few brunettes sprinkled in. At least my eyes aren’t a mystery. One matches my grandfather’s exact shade, the other mirrors my father’s.

Then the dress-I picked something I’d never usually wear. My style leans more to grungy, dark, and simple, but today I went all out: a short pink sequined dress with puffed sleeves. I slipped on a pair of pink silk heels, the ribbons wrapping delicately around my ankles, and felt… almost unrecognisable.

Dark red lipstick.

Winged eyeliner.

And my tattoo is there for the world to see.

I meet my own eyes in the mirror, mismatched greens staring back at me like they’re asking who I think I’m becoming.

I slip out through the balcony.

No guards.

No alarms.

Father is still too angry to think straight, let alone tighten security.

A dangerous blessing.

I head toward Heartspan- toward my freedom, if only for a night. Tonight, I don’t want to be a princess. I just want to be someone else. I don’t want to stand out. I don’t want to be watched.

I just want to be me, an ordinary eighteen-year-old girl.

THE BASEMENT - HEARTSPAN

The cabin looks abandoned-tilted roof, moss. You’d think it housed gardening tools. It looked like the wind could blow it over. I felt a little bit unsure of my decision to come here. What if this is the wrong cabin?

But Jana had said:

“Don’t trust the outside. The real Basement is below.” I decided to take a chance on it. I walked over and opened the door. I gave it a few seconds to make sure it won’t cave in. Once I was sure it was safe, I stepped inside. It was exactly like she said. There was a trap door which I opened up and climbed down the ladder.

There was a large man guarding the door, his frame almost covering it entirely. He looked me from shoes to hairline. He was scrutinising me. I don’t know if I met the standards. I am in disguise; being a princess wouldn’t get me through the door. I stood in silence as I waited for his verdict. I see the earpiece in his ear light up. He pressed his lips together as he listened to what I guess his boss had to say. He moved to the side, opening the door for me. I nodded at him as I walked past him and into my freedom for the night.

I hear the music before I can see anything. I’m walking through a black hallway that is only illuminated by lights from a different room bleeding into it. Through the cracks in the big double doors at the end of the hallway.

The double doors open, and The Basement reveals itself to me. It looks dark, expensive and dangerous. The walls look like black glass; they are most likely black polished marble. Gold-chained chandeliers dripping like molten metal from the roof, reflecting in the walls and floors. To one side is an obsidian stone bar with golden LED lights highlighting the chairs lining it. The walls were lined with lit-up golden glass shelves filled with bottles of alcohol.

On the other side, in the shadows, were black leather couches, I imagine for more privacy, unlike small tables and chairs that are scattered over the rest of the place. Straight ahead of me was a dance floor with a carved obsidian stone DJ booth.

Tattooed men in tailored suits sat on the couches with women dripping in diamonds on their laps.

Money. Power. Secrets- breathing the same air.

My heartbeat syncs with the bass as I move into the crowd. Girls in tiny dresses were rubbing up against guys who most likely had no sense. Their bodies are moving with the music.

For once, no guards follow me.

No one whispers “princess.”

No one watches me like a fragile, breakable thing. I make my way to the bar and order a drink, a shot of tequila. I have never had alcohol. Just the odd glass of champagne at events, but I was never allowed to finish it, just drift through the room, glass in hand.

I shot the tiny glass of clear liquid back and almost gagged. I do not like Tequila. It burns my throat and makes my head spin. I kept a straight face, not wanting to give away that I was a novice. I smiled at the bartender before moving away. As I was turned away from him, I finally let my face pull. It’s fine, I’ll try something else next, but now I am going to dance. Every bad feeling that has latched onto my bones will be shaken off.

I jumped and swayed around to the music, my eyes closed. I do not care what anyone thinks. I am enjoying myself. I am not here for anyone but myself.

I dance.

I drink.

I laugh.

I feel free....

Until I feel eyes on me.

Not hungry.

Not predatory.

Something sharper.

I turn...

And see him.

Watching me.