Prologue
Ziv was strolling down the stairs to get a cup of water. At the bottom of the stairs, she could hear voices. She slinked towards her father’s study, where the voices were coming from. The door was cracked and Ziv’s parents were standing inside. She stood at the crack, watching her parents.
“Do you really think this is what we need to do for our daughter?” her father, King Warren, said.
“It’s not just for our daughter. It’s for our country. The country of Dutha is the key to prosperity. She will bring our country more resources and notoriety. This will be a blessed union,” Queen Gabrella said.
“An arranged marriage? That is not the way of our people,” King Warren said. Ziv could hear the sadness leaking into his voice. Her breath hitched in her throat as she gasped. She stepped back from the door.
There was an audible sigh. “How many people do you know that have been blessed with a divine mate? I haven’t met even one. It is so rare now. We cannot stake the country’s future hoping the Gods will bless her. We need to grow. They think we are beneath them, so we need to show them we are not. Prince Lasicks is the key. They have consented, and now we just have to sign on the dotted line.”
A tear rolled down her cheek as she peered through the crack again. Her father shook his head as he grabbed a pen off his desk. “As you wish, your majesty,” he mumbled.
All her life, she dreamed of the Gods given her a soulmate. How could they take that away from me? She thought.
Her mother’s face lit up, and she smiled. “This is going to be the greatest blessing for our country!” She grabbed him for a hug.
Ziv pressed her lips together as she rushed down the corridor. She flew past the kitchen with tears running down her cheeks and down the narrow hallway towards the servant’s quarters. Ziv found the door on the far left and slowly turned the knob. She snuck to the right of the room. Many nights she had made this journey towards her best friend’s room just to talk. She turned the door handle and slipped into the room. Rixa was the daughter of one maid that worked in the castle. They were the same age, and they became friends easily. AS she crossed the room, she could see her friend’s blonde hair glistening in the sunlight. “Rixa, wake up,” Ziv croaked.
Rixa turned and looked up at Ziv with narrowed eyes. “Ziv? Did you have a bad dream or something?”
Ziv climbed into the bed with Rixa. “I am sorry. I had to come.”
“Why, Zee?”
Ziv pulled Rixa into her arms. “My parents... they are arranging my marriage.”
Rixa gasped and pulled back from Ziv’s hug. Her blue eyes shining with tears. “Why would they do that?”
“My mother said it was best for the country?”
“What about a divine mate?” Her voice cracked. The two had been dreaming of getting a divine mating from the Gods for years. “How can you be engaged to someone you have never met when you are only twelve years old?”
“They said there was no way that we should try to wait for something that doesn’t happen anymore.”
Rixa shook her head. “But it happens! She is just ignoring it. Old man Breton had a mate till she died last year.”
Ziv shook her head, tears falling down her cheeks. “I guess it is not for me.” She closed her eyes and sucked in a breath. “I just need to dedicate myself to being a strong princess who does what is best for her country,” she whispered.
“But what about your heart?” Rixa whispered.
“The love of my country people will have to do,” she said. She sniffled and calmed her face. A strained smile stretched across her face. “Maybe Prince Lasicks will be my soulmate.”
Rixa laid her head on the pillow. “I heard he is cute,” she drawled.
“His cousin is too. I saw him in Teen Royalty.”
“Was that in the tabloid that your brother was in?” Rixa asked.
“Yeah, that’s the only reason I got it.”
“I guess we need to get more. Research it?”
“Why?”
She turned towards the princess. “Duh, silly. We have to make sure he is not a bad person. You can tell a lot from the rumors that surround a person. And I will follow you every step of the way. I will protect you. If he is bad, I will kill him for you.”
A genuine smile crossed Princess Ziv’s face. “Or your brother could.”
Rixa rolled her eyes. “We will just have him as backup. But we should probably learn to fight. Haven’t you heard some rumors of some cads that have been set up in the past? Like in Leva? Self defense training, research, and pray that—“
“—he’s my soulmate?”
Rixa closed her eyes. “I was going to say that it wasn’t a monster. Go to sleep, princess.”
“Thanks, Rixa,” she whispered as she curled up under the covers with Rixa.
