Chapter 10: A Vow Written in Tears
1159 Words
The ancient city fell into absolute silence.
No one moved.
No one breathed.
Leila stared at Seraphine, unable to believe what she had just heard.
The woman stood on the palace steps with a calm smile, as though she had confessed to something insignificant instead of the murder of a queen.
Leila's fingers tightened around the silver locket until the edges dug into her skin.
"You are lying."
Her voice was barely audible.
Seraphine tilted her head.
"I wish I were."
"You expect me to believe you murdered my mother and then walked away?"
"I did far more than walk away."
The words struck like knives.
Leila took a step forward.
Damien immediately caught her arm.
"Do not."
She pulled away.
"Let me go."
"Not while your emotions are controlling you."
Leila looked at him with tears burning in her eyes.
"She admitted she killed my mother."
"I heard her."
"And you want me to stand here?"
"I want you alive."
Leila's breathing became heavier.
She looked back at Seraphine.
"Why?"
Seraphine's smile slowly disappeared.
"Because your mother refused to surrender the Blood Throne."
"My mother protected her people."
"She protected a dangerous power."
"You murdered her."
"I saved the world."
Leila's anger exploded.
Without thinking, she raised her hand.
A brilliant wave of golden energy burst from her palm and raced across the street.
The blast struck the palace steps with tremendous force.
Stone shattered.
Columns cracked.
Dust filled the air.
When the cloud settled, Seraphine remained standing exactly where she had been.
Not a single scratch marked her body.
She smiled gently.
"There she is."
Leila froze.
"What?"
"The Queen of Desire."
"I am not."
"You just proved otherwise."
Leila lowered her shaking hand.
She had not meant to attack.
The power had answered her rage without permission.
The voice inside her returned.
"You must control your heart."
She ignored it.
Seraphine slowly descended the palace steps.
Every glowing warrior remained perfectly still.
None of them attempted to stop her.
Damien stepped forward, placing himself between Leila and the approaching woman.
"You will not come any closer."
Seraphine looked at him almost fondly.
"You always were loyal."
"I learned loyalty from the woman you murdered."
For the first time, genuine regret flickered across Seraphine's face.
"I loved Elena."
Leila stared at her in disbelief.
"You expect me to believe that?"
"It is the truth."
"You killed someone you loved?"
Tears briefly filled Seraphine's silver eyes.
"I had no choice."
Leila laughed bitterly.
"There is always a choice."
Seraphine slowly shook her head.
"You know nothing about that night."
"Then tell me."
The woman became silent.
Finally, she spoke.
"Your mother asked me to do it."
The words stunned everyone.
Leila blinked.
"No."
"It was her final command."
"You are lying."
"I wish I were."
Leila looked toward Cassandra.
The woman lowered her eyes.
She could not deny it.
Leila's heart pounded painfully.
She turned to Lucien.
"Tell me she is lying."
Lucien's expression was filled with sorrow.
"I cannot."
Her knees weakened.
"No."
Damien caught her before she fell.
She looked up at him desperately.
"Tell me."
His voice was heavy.
"Queen Elena knew the throne had chosen you."
Leila listened through trembling breaths.
"She also knew the Order would never stop hunting you."
"So she..."
Damien closed his eyes.
"She sacrificed herself."
Leila shook her head repeatedly.
"No."
"She believed her death would buy you enough time to survive."
Tears streamed uncontrollably down Leila's face.
"My mother chose to die?"
"She chose you."
Leila buried her face in her hands.
Every memory she had recovered now carried even greater pain.
She remembered her mother's smile.
Her warmth.
The gentle humming.
Everything had been taken away.
Not by fate alone.
But by a decision made out of love.
Seraphine looked toward Leila.
"I carried her final message for twenty years."
Leila slowly lifted her head.
"What message?"
Seraphine reached into her robe and removed a folded letter sealed with faded crimson wax.
The royal seal.
Queen Elena's seal.
She extended it toward Leila.
"No."
Damien's voice rang sharply.
"It could be a trap."
"It isn't."
Seraphine looked directly at him.
"I swore upon Elena's grave that I would deliver this letter only to her daughter."
Leila stared at the envelope.
Her hands trembled violently.
She stepped forward.
Damien did not stop her this time.
She accepted the letter carefully.
The parchment felt ancient.
Warm.
Almost alive.
The seal broke with the lightest touch.
Inside was a single page written in graceful handwriting.
Leila recognized it immediately.
She had never seen it before.
Yet somehow...
She knew it belonged to her mother.
With trembling hands, she began to read.
"My dearest Leila."
The moment she spoke the first words aloud, the entire city fell silent.
Even the crystal rivers seemed to stop flowing.
Tears blurred her vision.
She continued.
"If these words have reached you, then I am no longer by your side."
"I know you will have many questions."
"You may even hate me for leaving you."
"But never doubt this."
"You were loved before you were born."
"You were loved every moment of your life."
"And I would choose you again, no matter the cost."
Leila could barely continue.
Her voice broke.
"I did not surrender because I feared death."
"I surrendered because I feared what the throne would demand from you if I remained alive."
"I prayed you would grow into a kind woman."
"Power without kindness destroys everything it touches."
"If one day you discover the truth..."
"Do not seek revenge."
"Seek understanding."
Leila lowered the letter.
She was crying too hard to continue.
The mysterious voice inside her whispered softly.
"She kept her promise."
Leila looked toward the sky above the hidden kingdom.
For the first time since learning the truth, she did not feel consumed by hatred.
She felt loss.
Deep.
Endless.
But beneath it, something stronger began to grow.
Resolve.
She wiped away her tears.
Then she looked directly at Seraphine.
"I don't forgive you."
Seraphine nodded.
"I know."
"But I will discover the whole truth."
A faint smile touched Seraphine's lips.
"That is exactly what your mother hoped you would do."
Suddenly, a deafening roar echoed from beyond the city walls.
The Guardian spun toward the sound.
Its golden eyes widened.
"No."
The ground shook with terrifying force.
Cracks spread across the streets.
Far in the distance, a massive wall surrounding the hidden kingdom exploded inward.
An army unlike anything Leila had ever seen poured through the breach.
Thousands of armored soldiers marched beneath black banners.
At their center rode a man in dark armor with a sword that burned with crimson flames.
The Guardian's voice thundered across the city.
"The Crimson King."
Damien's face became grim.
"He was supposed to be dead."
The armored king raised his blazing sword toward Leila.
His voice echoed across the entire kingdom.
"Bring me the Blood Queen."
"And leave no one else alive."
- Writer
